1. What Do Bedbugs Look Like?
You can identify a bedbug by its distinctive red-brown color and ovular body. Adult bedbugs are usually about a quarter of an inch in length and about an eighth of an inch in width. Baby bedbugs, though, are quite different in appearance. They're tiny, about the size of a sesame seed, and they have an off-white color during their first few weeks of life. As they mature, they shed layer after layer of skin until they take on the characteristic reddish-brown hue of the adult of the species.
2. Bedbug Behaviors
If you suspect you've become bedbug food, you'll have to act quickly to spot these little bloodsuckers. They're very adept at hiding and they're most active about an hour before daybreak, at which time they'll emerge to feed on their current host.
Should you have reason to think you've got bedbugs in your bedroom, experts suggest that you keep a light near your bed and wake yourself up about one hour before dawn. Once you're awake, take care not to move too much as you reach for your light, then flick it on suddenly. If you do indeed have bedbugs, you'll see the little critters scatter and run for cover at the first sign of light. Do your best to get a good look at one, just to ensure that it does indeed have reddish-brown skin and an oval-shaped body.
3. Identify Bedbug Bites
You don't need to worry about catching a blood-borne disease from bedbugs. They don't transmit illnesses when they bite you. However, you might get a skin infection from bedbug bites, particularly if you scratch them. They can become quite itchy, though this usually only happens after you've been bedbug food for quite a while. Your body will generally only react to repeated bedbug attacks, unless you're a particularly sensitive individual.
Bedbug bites appear as reddish skin welts, though initially the only sign that you've been bitten by these critters will be spots of your blood left over on your sheets when you wake up. Generally, the worse the bedbug infestation in your home, the more bites you'll have. These bugs usually only need to feed once every few days, so if you have bites all over, suspect that there's a larger population of bugs to blame.
