One of the most reviled and misunderstood pests known to science is the bed bug C lectularius. Many of us dozed off to sleep at night as infants with the words of our guardians in our ears “sleep tight and don’t let the bed bugs bite”

Bed Bugs probably started to predate on man at around the time we started living in, bat bugs Cimex pilosellus and Cimex pipistrella primarily feed on bats and it is probable that bat feeding species of bug evolved to feed on the blood of human beings when our ancestors commenced dwelling in bat infested caves.

Before the production of DDT in the early 20th century bed bugs were common unwelcome guests in most poor quality homes.

The later decades of the twentieth century saw pest control professionals called out to very few bed bug call outs indeed, their presence being mainly confined to cheap holiday lodgings and student accomodation etc.

Many people mistake dust mites, which aren’t visible to the naked eye, with bed bugs which most definitely are.

Adult bedbugs are red-brown, about a quarter of an inch in size and very engorged after a feed of human blood.

In the absence of a suitable human being to feed on they can stay dormant for long periods of up to 18 months.

The initial signs of a bed bug problems are oftenspots of blood on bed-sheets and on the corners of mattresses and some people can react extremely badly to their bites.

The early part of the 21st century saw bed bug infestations exploding across the entire world, the cheap availability of international travel and economic migration have both been blamed for the resurgence.

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

A single away in an infested hotel is all it requires, they hitch a ride in your clothing or bags. Pest control operatives are also now reporting cases of transport related bed bug infestations on trains, tubes and buses so a simple journey to work on an infested tube or train can be enough to spread the these pests to your own home.

They are an difficult pest to eradicate 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 expensive and time consuming. They have even been discovered found living under the toe-nails of infirm people and in the creases of flesh of very fat people.

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

Telephone Manchester Pest Control now on 01772 837727

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