Conditions-wise, bed bugs can live almost anywhere their host can live in. Since bed bugs are only the width of a credit card, they can squeeze into various narrow hiding spots with ease. In even more severe overcrowding situations, bed bugs may reside outside the 5-feet zone and can be found in drawer joints, electrical receptacles, appliances and many others. These could include the neighboring walls, carpet and even drawer joints. The secondary bed bug harborage include more areas within 5 feet of the bed. When an infestation gets more severe and there are more bugs, overcrowding occurs and some bed bugs choose to seek refuge further away from the host. It includes the mattress, bed sheets and bed frames. Hence, the primary bed bug harborage cover the main area that bed bugs reside in. In other words, it would be advantageous for the bugs to stay relatively close to the host. In fact, these bugs often choose to be closer to the host so that blood feeding is more accessible.īed bugs are attracted to carbon dioxide and body heat but can only detect these signs over short distances. Primary Bed Bug Harborageīed bugs have no inhibitions about laying their eggs close to the host, as long as they know that they would be undisturbed. For example, if you were to generally sleep on one side of the bed and not the other, bed bugs would be more likely to lay eggs under the pillow of the other side that has been left untouched. In general, bed bugs choose to lay their eggs in locations where they will be undisturbed. Since bed bugs commonly nest in clusters, the eggs can be found together with the bed bugs, bed bug shells and the droppings as well. In addition, since they are small, they are well-hidden in hard-to-reach places such as dark corners and crevices. Since bed bug eggs are sticky, they can easily cling onto your mattresses, bed sheets and even curtains. Nearly 70% of any bed bug infestation is linked to the bed and any furniture or items that are close to it. As a result, the female may lay an egg anywhere in a room or area. The female may also lay her eggs singly or in groups. Hence, she can make more eggs the more meals she can take. A female can produce between 5 to 20 eggs from a single blood meal. If a female has reliable access to a food source, she will be able to produce more egg batches. A female bed bug may mate with her offspring as long as they have fully matured. The length of time varies from as quickly as 21 days in warmer temperatures, to more than 4 months in cooler temperatures. The maturation of a nymph depends on the temperature. These blood meals are also equally important later in life, since the adult bed bugs need it to reproduce. However, they are unable to reproduce until they fully mature.Īs soon as the nymphs hatch, they search for a blood meal before molting 5 times and gradually turning into a reddish-brown color. These nymphs emerge translucent and are able to feed on blood as soon as they hatch. These eggs take approximately 6 to 17 days to hatch into nymphs. How Many Eggs Do They Lay?Īfter female bed bugs mate, they lay about 1 to 7 eggs per day and will end up laying from about 200 to 250 eggs during her lifetime of up to 1 year. However, the females’ travels are problematic for humans, since it allows her to cause infestations of more than 5,000 bed bugs in new locations within a 6-month period. Furthermore, since female bed bugs can keep sperm for up to 6 weeks, this gives her enough time to travel. This is so that she can focus on laying many eggs without any interruptions. That is why the female bed bug often chooses to travel away to a new location with a guaranteed food source and a lack of mates. In fact, females that only mate once will produce 25% more eggs than the ones that have mated repeatedly. Studies have shown that the healing process is important so that the female can successfully produce more eggs. This is a likely reason why females that have mated several times over a short period of time will end up laying less eggs than a female who has had time to recuperate. Hence, scarring can occur as a result of frequent mating. They mate by “traumatic insemination,” where a male bug pierces into the female’s abdomen and ejaculates into it. Female bed bugs actually take quite a toll during the mating process, due to the unconventional method of reproduction that bed bugs use. Secondary and “Other” Bed Bug Harborageįemale bed bugs lay eggs after a blood feeding has taken place.
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