Some parasites are elongated, while others are completely round. Some of them are completely dried out bed bugs, but there are also many with rounded (convex) bodies. I didn't use a ruler, I just used my eyeball to measure the size of a bedbug, comparing it to my finger. I would like to hear the opinion of an expert, what parameters these parasites actually have. Do all their species have the same characteristics or is it all one species. Thank you for your time.
The author of the portal answers the question:
In my material below, you will learn the exact size of bed bugs at different stages of their development.
What bed bugs look like at different stages of development. Close-up photos
Young and old individuals are often similar in appearance. At all stages of development (there are 3-5 stages in the transition from egg to imago), the main features that allow to recognize insects regardless of their age are preserved:
- 3 pairs of limbs;
- 1 pair of tendrils on the head;
- The body is oval in shape, flattened in the hungry state;
- the oral apparatus of the stabbing-sucking type (proboscis).
Distinctions of the young individuals different species from their adult counterparts:
- Coloration: larval body color is milky, almost white, at the stage of transformation into a nymph the chitinous shell gradually darkens;
- body size: when emerging from the eggs, the larvae do not yet exceed the length of the shell;
- it is not possible to inject a substance along with saliva that anesthetizes the bite site, which allows to insects quickly hide in the shelter;
- young individuals Flying bugs are not able to move through the air; they get this ability when they become sexually mature.
Growth rate
Intensity of development bedbugs of any species depends on environmental conditions. Comfortable is temperature within +20°...+29°С. At the same time, the rate of development changes insignificantly, as long as the fluctuations of environmental parameters have not become significant. However, the most suitable for bedbugsThe room temperature at home is +25°C (with some variation in one direction or the other).
As soon as the temperature decreases (less than +20°C) or increases (more than +30°C), the intensity of parasite development slows down or speeds up, respectively.
The average growth rate of larvae is 1-2 weeks. The warmer it is in the room, the faster will develop bedbugs. When it gets colder, all processes in the organism are inhibited. Accordingly, the period of development changes, but it is noted that under average air parameters, the cycle of growth and formation of such insects is 35-50 days. In a colder microclimate (e.g., when the temperature drops to 0°C), the development period may be prolonged, because in this case larvae will not emerge from the eggs until the environmental conditions change.
Diagram of development from larvae to adults. Photo
There are three to five stages of maturation of a young individuals after emergence from the egg. During this time, the bedbug gradually changes externally: its body enlarges and its outer covers change in color. Growth pest contributes to the molting process. Each of the stages ends with the shedding of the old shell. It is inelastic, and therefore it is impossible to develop in it further. After the molt, a new coat grows. Stages of development insects:
- larva when emerging from the egg - 1 mm (1 week);
- shell is formed, the shell is slightly darker - 1.5-2 mm (2 weeks);
- more obvious changes in the outer covers, the body length reaches 3 mm (3 weeks);
- During the next 2 weeks, the nymph continues to grow (reaching 4 mm);
- the juvenile turns into an imago (6th week).
Intermediate stages of development are possible parasitesThe size of the bed bugs varies slightly up or down (depending on environmental conditions).
What does the size of the body depend on?
The main factor influencing the parameters insectis the intensity of the diet. The digestive system is capable of taking in quite a large volume of food. As a result, bedfellows have bedbugs the size of the body changes significantly by a factor of 2 to 3. Because of this, it is not always possible to recognize bed bugs. This peculiarity is noted in bed, house and laundry parasites (different names of representatives of this species).
Plant-eaters, carnivores do not have the property of increasing so much.
How big are the adults of the house bug
Body parameters of different insects are different. For example, the triatomine bug, Gladyschus triatomus, is considered the largest. Their body length varies from 15 to 35 mm. To understand how big these insects are, you need to know how big bed bugs are. Thus, adults reach 6-8 mm. Such a difference is due to differences in sexual characteristics. Thus, the female has bedbugs body size often reaches 8 mm.
Table: Size of the bed bug at different stages of development
To understand who attacked at night (nymph, adult), it is necessary to compare insects at different stages of development in size. The table shows all possible parameters of parasites, including their nest.
| Stages of insect development | Dimensions, mm |
|---|---|
| Egg | No more than 1 |
| Larva (1 week after emergence from the shell) | 1 |
| Nymph (at various stages) | 1,5-3 |
| Imago | 4-8 |
| Adult parasites after eating | 10-15 |
| Nest | 50-100 or more |
Bedbugs do not create nests. They gather in colonies. If bed bugs are being studied, the size of their habitat should also be known in order to understand what to expect when searching for an insect shelter. Thus, the size of the parasites' "nest" can be quite different. As long as furniture insects are few in the home, they gather in small groups.
The female lays up to 5 eggs per day, so the colony size increases gradually. After a few weeks, the size of the nest may be 5 cm (in diameter, but the shape is often irregular, so the parameters are approximate). The more bed bugs and the larger the habitat in an apartment, the more numerous the colony will be in each area.
In the worst case, the nest will not look very pleasant: it is a large spot, which is formed by numerous insects, their offspring, excrement, husks from chitinous shells. Sometimes such formations grow to an intimidating scale.
How do you kill an individual while the size of a bed bug is small?
Eggs are a formation with an impermeable shell, through which chemicals and moisture do not penetrate. It is not affected by temperature fluctuations. Adults are also quite resilient to negative factors (mechanical stress, temperature), but they are still can be killed insecticides. However, it is much easier to destroy parasites at an intermediate stage - when they have already left the protective shell, but have not yet passed to the final stage of development. Larvae and nymphs are not yet able to reproduce, and therefore will not give offspring.
In addition, their outer covers are not fully formed, so there is still no barrier protection of the body.
Herbs and essential oils
Of the plants from parasites, the best helps are tansy and wormwood. herbs with bitterness. They are spread around the apartment where the bed bugs live. You can leave dried or fresh plants under the bed, behind the couch, inside cabinets, along baseboards. It is important to regularly renew fresh grass, because it gradually loses its properties.
Apply essential oils. Prepare a solution (add a few drops to water) or put it on cotton pads and leave it where the parasites can be found. It is necessary to be guided by the principles of life of adult insects, because young individuals behave in a similar way. The disadvantage of this method is low efficiency in killing insects.
Herbs do not kill such pests, but repel them.
Temperature mode
Apartment insects do not tolerate cold and extreme heat. They can be influenced by low temperatures (from -17°C), and they will live in such conditions for about 1 day. On the contrary, if it is too hot (+45° C), the parasites will die after 1 hour. It is difficult to create such conditions at home. In winter, when there is frost outside, you should not try to freeze the room by opening the doors and windows wide, this will negatively affect the condition of the water supply and the heating system.
Steam generator
The temperature of steam at the nozzle exit is +150°C, which is several times higher than the critical value carried bedbugs (+45°С). If the environmental parameters continue to change, the death of the parasites occurs not after 1 hour, but after several minutes. This happens at a temperature of +55°C. If you affect pests with a steam generator, the insects will die instantly. The method has disadvantages:
- aggressive effects on materials that do not tolerate the effects of high temperatures;
- there is a risk of getting burned when working with hot steam;
- high cost of the electric device, which means that it is not reasonable to buy it for the sake of exterminating bed bugs, however, you can borrow it from your friends or rent it.
Steam is used to treat places where bed bugs can be found. First of all, attention is paid to upholstered furniture.
Chemicals
Such funds contain insecticides of different kinds: FOS, pyrethroids, and some others. They kill a variety of insects, including house bugs as well as street bugs. Given that house pests feed on blood, baits and traps are not an effective way to control them. Bed bugs are attracted to humans - their smell (carbon dioxide emitted, their body heat).
So you have to use contact insecticides.
Many drugs are characterized by a combined action (intestinal-contact). This will not affect the result, you can use such remedies. A bonus in this case is also death cockroaches as well as other pests in the house. Principle of action insecticides is based on damage to the nervous system. Each of the types of pyrethroids, PHOS, neonicotinoids provides this result in different ways, but the effect is always the same - bedbugs are dying due to irreversible disorders of internal processes.
Video tip (video): how bed bugs look and what size they grow to, what to do to get rid of them
Question and answer section
It is possible to clarify all the nuances of life pests. For this purpose it is recommended to ask questions online. They will be answered by a specialist entomologist.
What do house bugs look like and what is their actual size?
Giant waterbug is a large individual, what size is it?
Bed bug size comparison to finger?
Size of bed bugs by week?
My Personal Story "It's So Big! An encounter that took me by surprise."
"I usually wake up early-at five o'clock I'm already up, I have to go to work. One summer morning it had not yet fully dawned, and I saw a big black beetle crawling on the light bed, bushy, long, I did not even understand what it was - a half-worm with a swollen belly, or some other unseen insect. I was afraid to get up, in case it flew off! I wouldn't have survived that.
And then I made up my mind - my gaze fell on a slipper nearby, and I reached down with my hand, barely moving with fear. The only thing to do here was to survive, because the insect could be poisonous. In general, suffered fear, and with all my might, I slapped the creature. At the clinking sound of running to the switch to see what it was. And then I was upset - a normal bedbug, just a very full, bloated one. Apparently, it bit me, because I found bites on my body (I can hardly imagine how this thing crawled all over me). I crushed it, and all the blood it drank stained the bed.
Tips from the experts
- I do not recommend destroying large parasites (after eating) mechanically, it will stain the furniture, because the insects are full of blood, and therefore appear larger;
- Flat parasites of brown (not brown) color, on the contrary, it is better to destroy them with insecticides, because the hard chitinous covers will not allow to crush them, especially on upholstered furniture, where they live.
Conclusion
Blood-sucking insects may look different at different stages of development. Peculiarities of their development:
- The growth rate is 0.5-1 mm per week. This rate depends on a number of factors: environmental conditions (mainly temperature), access to a food source.
- The larva has a body size of 1-1.5 mm when it emerges from the egg shell. An adult reaches 6-8 mm when hungry. After eating, the bedbug grows 1.5-3 times larger.
- Destroy easiest pests in the intermediate stages of development (larvae, nymphs), they are more susceptible to insecticides because their outer covers are not fully formed.
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