One of the most detested and least understood pests known to man is the bed bug (Cimex lectularius). How many of us dozed off to sleep at night as children 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 dine on people at about the period when we moved into caves, the bat bugs Cimex pilosellus and Cimex pipistrella largely fed on bats and it is probable that bat feeding species of bug evolved to feed on human beings when our ancestors started staying} in bat infested caves.

Until the arrival of DDT in the early 20th century bed bugs were commonplace guests in most low quality homes.

The later years of the 20th century saw pest control companies called out to very few bed bug problems indeed, their presence being largely restricted to low quality holiday camps and student housing etc.

Most people confuse dust mites, which aren’t visible to the unaided eye, with bed bugs which very definitely are.

Adult bedbugs are reddy-brown, about a few milemetres in size and swollen after a feed of human blood.

Bed bugs usually feed on our blood every seven to ten days, emerging in the early hours of the morning and homing in on their target by detecting the exhaled CO2 from human breath and when closing in on their target, they sense body body heat.

Without a suitable human host to feed on they can lay dormant for periods of up to 18 months.

Bed Bugs

Often the first sign of a bed bug presence are spots of blood on bedding and on the edges of mattresses and a lot of people can react badly to their bites.

The early part of the 21st century has seen bed bug reports multiplying everywhere on the planet, the easy availability of world travel and economic migration have both been given as reasons for the resurgence.

What is sure is that that are now making a real fightback not only in cheaper quality housing but first class hotels, schools and even hospitals.

One London borough reported a doubling of bed bug reports every year from 1995 to 2001.

One night away in an infested hotel 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 tubes and buses so a simple journey to work on an infested tube or train can be enough to spread the infestation to your own home.

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

They are not a pest that can be dealt with by an amateur and a pest control professional will almost certainly be needed.

Contact us on 01204 689361