Bed Bugs Whitefield, Prestwich and Swinton.

One of the most feared and least understood pests known to civilisation is the bed bug (Cimex lectularius). How many of us fell asleep to sleep at night as youngsters with the parting rhyme of our parents in our ears "sleep tight and don't let the bed bugs bite"?

Bed Bugs probably started to feed on man at around the period when we moved into caves, the bat bugs Cimex pilosellus and Cimex pipistrella mostly fed on bats and it is likely that bat feeding species of bed bus evolved to feed on man when our ancestors started sleeping} in bat infested caves.

Until the invention of DDT in the early 20th century bed bugs were common stowaways in most low quality homes.

The later years of the 20th century saw pest operatives dealing with very few bed bug infestations indeed, their presence being generally restricted to budget holiday homes and student housing etc.

Most people confuse dust mites, which aren't visible to the naked, with bed bugs which most certainly.

Adult bedbugs are reddish in colour, about a quarter of an inch in size and swollen after dining on human blood.

Bed bugs typically feed on our blood every week or so, appearing in the hours before dawn and locating their target by smelling the exhaled carbon dioxide from human breath and when closing in on their target, body heat.

In the absence of a suitable human host to dine on they can stay dormant for periods of up to 18 months.

Bed Bugs

The first signs of a bed bug presence are spots of blood on bed clothes and on the edges of mattresses and many people can react badly to their bites.

The early part of this century has seen bed bug infestations multiplying across the planet, the easy availability of international and economic migration have both been given as reasons for the resurgence.

What is known is that that are now making a real fightback not only in low quality housing but high class hotels, schools and even hospitals.

One London borough reports a doubling of bed bugs infestations every year from 1995 to 2001.

One night away in an infested premises is all it needs, they hitch a ride in your suitcases or bags. Stretford Pest control companies are also now reporting cases of transport related bed bug infestations on transport of all kinds so a simple ride to work on an infested tube or train can be enough to bring these bugs to your own home.

They are an difficult pest to deal with as contrary to popular notion they do not just live in beds. They hide in any nook and cranny conveniently close to a sleeping target, beds, electrical sockets, televisions, bed side telephones etc and dealing with them is both tricky and time consuming. They have even been discovered found living under the toe-nails of infirm people and in the folds of flesh on very overweight people.

They are not a pest that can be eradicated by an amateur and a pest control professional will almost certainly be required.

Telephone us on 0161 930 8814