Bed Bug Lifecycle
Matt Unrein • September 17, 2024
The Lifecycle of Bed Bugs
Bed bugs go through various stages in their lifecycle which affects their feeding habitats and where they will hide. Bed bugs are blood feeders similar to mosquitos and ticks but how they travel is very different. Mosquitos travel by flight and then find standing water to repopulate. Ticks feed by taking the blood from living animals and humans to gather energy for breeding. Bed bugs are similar to ticks in that they need blood to repopulate but they travel around.
Feeding Cycle
Bed bugs have a cryptic lifestyle. This means that these pests spend most of their time hiding during daylight hours with their friends in tight and dark places. During the night, they become very active and start to look for hosts to feed on. Bed bugs are most active from 24:00 to 5:00 and this is when these pests will feed on their human host. Bed bugs are attracted by CO2 which is produced by humans naturally and bed bugs can also find their host by heat. Once the bed bugs find a host to feed on, they will only need 5-10 minutes to fill up. So the window to find a bed bug directly on your person is very small. Bed bugs only need to feed every 3-7 days on the host's blood. If you are looking for methods to keep bed bugs away from you when you sleep we have most methods that might help.
Mating and Growth Cycle
After feeding on the host's blood, bed bugs become very active in mating. On average female bed bugs will produce between 1-7 eggs per day for about 10 days for each single blood meal they got their host. A single female can produce about 113 eggs in her whole lifetime. Under the right conditions, the mortality rate for these eggs can be as low as 97%. It will take about six to nine days for the eggs to start hatching.
After the eggs hatch the nymphs will develop through five stages of molting until they reach adulthood. This process will take about 37 days to complete and under favorable conditions, about 80% of the nymphs will become adults. If you want to kill the bed bugs before they become adults then the egg and nymph stage will be when they are the most vulnerable. Please visit our FAQ page
for the signs of bed bugs and please give us a call at 816-237-5340 for a free inspection.
Even the cleanest hotels are vulnerable to bed bugs—especially during the summer rush of travelers crisscrossing the country. With suitcases coming and going, and guests checking in and out in rapid cycles, these pests are finding new homes in hotels both budget and luxury. According to a recent USA Today article titled “Any hotel can have bed bugs. How travelers can avoid bringing them home,” experts emphasize that bed bugs aren’t tied to cleanliness but to human activity. “Bed bugs aren’t a reflection of cleanliness—they’re a reality of travel,” the article states. Bed bugs travel by hitching rides on luggage, clothing, or personal items. Once inside a hotel room, they can hide in mattress seams, behind headboards, or in upholstered furniture—waiting for their next host. This makes high-traffic hotels especially susceptible. The surge in summer travel has brought renewed attention to the risk of infestations. With the influx of summer travelers in full swing, bed bugs are hitching rides on luggage, clothing, and personal items, moving from guest to guest and room to room. For hotel operators, this means proactive action is more important than ever. Hotels should implement early detection protocols, such as routine inspections and discreet monitoring tools. Rapid-response treatment options that don’t disrupt guests are critical. SOS Pest Control's approach includes same-day heat treatments that are non-toxic and discreet, conducted with unmarked vehicles to avoid alarming guests. Because your guests should leave with memories, not bed bugs. According to the USA Today report, travelers can protect themselves by: Placing suitcases on luggage racks instead of beds or carpets Inspecting the bed, headboard, and surrounding furniture for small reddish-brown bugs or black dots (droppings) Washing and drying clothes on high heat after travel Even if hotels take all the right steps, prevention is a shared responsibility between guests and management. “Wherever there are people, there’s potential for bed bugs,” said Dr. Brittany Campbell, entomologist with the National Pest Management Association, in the USA Today article. SOS Pest Control warns that bed bugs can follow guests home and remain hidden for long periods. We recommend travelers inspect luggage before reentering their homes and seek professional help at the first sign of an infestation. If you’re a hotel manager in the Kansas City area, you can contact SOS Pest Control at www.soskc.com or call 816-237-5342. Article link: USA TODAY
New lawsuits against two Las Vegas Hotels and Casino about guests getting bitten by bed bugs have been made known to the public.
