Some pests may be easy to identify, but bed bugs aren’t one of them. Not only are they small enough to hide in the cracks and crevices of your home, but many homeowners mistake them for other, more harmless insects – which can mean missing the signs of an infestation until they’re scattered across your entire home.
For Raleigh, North Carolina residents, here’s what you should know about how to identify bed bugs, other signs of an infestation, and what to do if the signs you’re seeing point towards a bed bug infestation.
How To Identify Bed Bugs In Raleigh, NC
While bed bugs may be easy to mix up with carpet beetles or even certain types of spiders, there are a few key indicators to help you identify which bug you’re dealing with.
Adult bed bugs are about the size of an apple seed and have long, brown, oval-shaped bodies. Depending on whether they’ve fed recently, their bodies may look more reddish-brown and have a balloon shape.
Younger or adolescent bed bugs, also called nymphs, tend to look a little different. The bodies of nymphs are not only smaller but have whitish-yellow coloring.
With some infestations, you may even catch a glimpse of bed bug eggs, which are only the size of a pinhead, have white coloring, and may have an eyespot if they’re more than five days old.
What To Do If You’ve Got A Bed Bug Infestation In Raleigh, NC
Unfortunately, the signs of a bed bug infestation aren’t always obvious. These bugs tend to be most active at night, which can make them hard to catch sight of. However, there are other signs that you’re dealing with a bed bug infestation:
- A musty odor that seems to linger around your home, or specific areas like the couch or bedroom
- Bed bug fecal spots and droppings on your pillowcases, sheets, nightstands, bed frame, or other furniture around your home
- Reddish-brown discarded bed bug shells lying around your home
Itchy, red welts that appear in lines or clusters on exposed skin
While most people associate bed bugs with beds, that’s not the only place these pests hide. Bed bugs feast on your blood, so they’ll congregate wherever human activity is the highest – whether that’s a specific piece of furniture, your bedroom, or even your bathroom. Once the infestation has grown, colonies of bed bugs may spread across your home, not just in sleeping areas or bedrooms.
What To Do If You’ve Got A Bed Bug Infestation In Raleigh, NC
Whether you’ve found live bed bugs crawling across your home or you’re just noticing some of the warning signs, this is one pest problem that won’t resolve itself. As soon as you suspect that you have bed bugs, you’ll want to call in the professionals – like those of us at Innovative Pest Solutions.
Bed bugs may be tricky, but our experienced professionals are up to the task – not only can we identify bed bugs on sight, but we can root out the source of the infestation as well. If you’re not sure whether you’re dealing with bed bugs and need a second opinion or you’re already aware you’ve got a problem, you shouldn’t wait – contact us at Innovative Pest Solutions today to find out more about our bed bug control program.
