Bed bugs are not difficult to spot if you inspect properly but still there are many people who fail to spot the most obvious signs of a bed bug infestation. Some signs are not difficult to miss because bedbugs do tend to leave evidence when they breed. These tiny parasites are too small to spot and they hide pretty well by blending in with their surroundings. In the broad daylight, a superficial inspection might not work if the amount of bed bugs is less and therefore we need to dig a little deeper. To help you out, we bring you five common signs of a bed bug infestation that are difficult to miss out on.
- If You Have Bed Bug Bites
Bedbugs survive by sucking blood and therefore you will have red itchy spots on your body if there is a bedbug infestation on your bed. These red spots have a raised appearance and will be located close together (like a group of bites). You can find them primarily on your back, hands, face, feet and neck. Bedbugs generally feed in night when you are in your deepest sleep (around some hours before sunrise). They are nocturnal and the chances of appearing in the daytime are very rare.
- Blood Stains
If your bedding has tiny specks of blood (on the bed sheets or even the mattress) then this is also a sign of a bedbug infestation. These blood stains occur when bedbugs filled with blood are accidentally crushed when they get trapped anywhere on the bed. One example of the same is when you roll around when they feeding in you. The removal of a bedbug infestation becomes necessary if signs like this occur and you should call over a bedbug exterminator or try home remedies for the same. You can also check feces or any kind of fecal material that might be on your bed because bedbugs digest blood almost immediately when they feed on you.
- Bed Bugs Shed Skin
While growing, bedbugs shed their skin many times (almost five times) as they reach adulthood because this process is critical for their growth. These shedding are light in color and look like skin casts or empty casings. The size though is very small but can be spotted (in comparison to the blood stains and fecal material) more because there will be a number of them lying around.
- Eggshells Lying Around
A common sign of growing bedbug infestation are the eggshells lying around. Bedbugs will breed rapidly and lay down many eggs as their population increases and therefore it is always advisable to remove them as soon as you spot them. Any delay will only worsen the problem and make them spread in a pace that you can’t comprehend. The eggshells will be very small in size and you can take the help of a magnifying glass to spot them easily. Look at the corners because bedbugs are most likely to breed there and also check the zippered mattress cover.
- Adult Bedbug
People miss the most obvious sign of a bedbug infestation because they don’t know how an adult bed bug looks like. Adult bedbugs have an oval shape and have a brown color usually. They are very flat and this is unusual because no other insect is generally as flat as they are. They have a size of about 4.5 mm that will expand to about 8mm when they have finished feeding. For comparison, they have approximately the same size as of an apple seed. You will also find that they will be reddish brown if they are engorged with blood.
So the above were some common signs of a bedbug infestation and we hope you will be able to spot these pesky parasites more easily from now there forth. There might be even more signs but the ones stated are the most common ones.
