Essay On Bed Bugs

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Bed bugs are parasitic insects of the cimicid family that feed exclusively on blood. Cimexlectularius, the common bed bug, is the best known, as it prefers to feed on human blood. Other Cimex species specialize in other animals, e.g., bat bugs, such as Cimexpipistrelli (Europe), Cimexpilosellus (western US), and Cimexadjunctus (entire eastern US). The name "bed bug" derives from the preferred habitat of Cimexlectularius: warm houses and especially nearby or inside of beds and bedding or other sleep areas. Bed bugs are mainly active at night, but are not exclusively nocturnal. They usually feed on their hosts without being noticed. Bedbugs are small blood-sucking insects that can live in cracks and crevices in and around bed. Attracted by body heat and carbon dioxide, they crawl out at night to bite exposed skin and feed on blood, just as mosquitoes do.Not everyone develops a skin reaction to bedbug bites, but some people develop itchy red bumps. These appear around 15 to 30 minutes after…show more content…
A bed bug nymph of any age that has just consumed a blood meal has a bright red, translucent abdomen, fading to brown over the next several hours, and to opaque black within two days as the insect digests its meal. Bed bugs may be mistaken for other insects, such as booklice, small cockroaches, or carpet beetles; however, when warm and active, their movements are more ant-like and, like most other true bugs, they emit a characteristic disagreeable odor when crushed.Bed bugs use pheromones and kairomones to communicate regarding nesting locations, feeding, and reproduction. The lifespan of bed bugs varies by species and is also dependent on feeding. Bed bugs can survive a wide range of temperatures and atmospheric compositions.A scanning electron micrograph ofCimexlectularius, digitally colorized with the insect's skin-piercing mouthparts highlighted in purple and
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