Anonymous

“ The bite of the bedbug is decidedly poisonous to some individuals, resulting in a slight swelling and disagreeable inflammation. To such persons the presence of bedbugs is sufficient to cause the greatest uneasiness, if not to put sleep and rest entirely out of the question. With others, however, who are less sensitive, the presence of the bugs may not be recognized at all, and, except for the occasional staining of the linen by a crushed individual, their presence might be entirely overlooked. ”

“ The bedbug is one of the numerous insects which have been suspected of conveying disease to man. Compared with such insect pests as mosquitoes, lice, and fleas, however, its rôle is decidedly a minor one. ”

“ The fumes of burning sulphur are also a very efficient means of control where the conditions are such that this method can be used, readily destroying the insect in all stages, including the egg. The treatment is inexpensive compared with the use of hydrocyanic-acid gas and offers much less risk of danger to human beings. There is, however, a considerable risk of injury to household fabrics, furnishings, and wall papers from the strong bleaching quality of sulphur fumes. ”

“ Under normal conditions the food of the common bedbug is obtained from human beings only, and no other unforced feeding habit has been reported. It is easily possible, however, to force the bedbug to feed on mice, rats, birds, etc., and probably it may do so occasionally in nature in the absence of its normal host. ”

“ When engorged, the body becomes much bloated and elongated and brightly colored from the ingested blood. The wings are represented by the merest rudiments, barely recognizable pads, and the simple eyes or ocelli of most other true bugs are lacking. The absence of wings is a most fortunate circumstance, since otherwise there would be no safety from it even for the most careful of housekeepers. ”

“ It thrives particularly in filthy apartments and in old houses which are full of cracks and crevices, in which it [4] can conceal itself beyond easy reach. As just noted, the old-fashioned, heavy, wooden-slatted bedsteads afford especially favorable situations for the concealment and multiplication of this insect, and the general use in later years of iron and brass bedsteads has very greatly facilitated its eradication. Such beds, however, do not insure safety, as the insects are able to find places of concealment even about such beds, or get to them readily from their other hiding places. ”

“ The abundance of this insect in houses which have long been untenanted may occasionally be accounted for by such other sources of food, but probably normally such infestation can be explained by the natural longevity of the insect and its ability to survive for practically a year, and perhaps more, without food.”
“Influence of Temperature.
“As a messmate of human beings in dwelling houses, the bedbug is normally protected from extreme cold and is known to be an abundant and serious pest far north. In fact, it is often more troublesome in north temperate latitudes than farther south. ”

“ The bedbug is normally nocturnal in habits and displays a certain degree of wariness, caution, and intelligence in its efforts at concealment during the day. Under the stress of hunger, however, it will emerge from its place of concealment in a well-lighted room at night, so that under such circumstances keeping the gas or electric light burning is not a complete protection. It has been known under similar conditions to attack human beings voraciously in broad daylight. ”

“ The inflammation experienced by sensitive persons seems to result chiefly from the puncture of the skin by the sharp piercing setæ which constitute the puncturing element of the mouth parts, as there seems to be no secretion of poison other than the natural fluids of the mouth. ”

“ Like nearly all the insects parasitic on animals, however, it is degraded structurally, its parasitic nature and the slight necessity for extensive locomotion having resulted, after many ages doubtless, in the loss of wings and the assumption of a comparatively simple structure. Before feeding, the adult is much flattened, oval, and in color is rust red, with the abdomen more or less tinged with black. ”

“ Notwithstanding the minor rôle which must be assigned the bedbug as a carrier of disease, its presence is an offense against sanitary decency. Its bites are quite poisonous to some people and its odor is most disagreeable ”

“ These would require, first, the presence of great numbers of microparasites on the skin or in the blood of a man or animal sick with some disease transmissible to man by subcutaneous inoculation; second, it would probably be necessary that there should be many bugs biting in order that one or more of them should bite some healthy person within a rather short space of time after these insects had fed on the infected individual. ”

“ It is also possible that in rare instances the bedbug may transmit plague or European relapsing fever to man. On the other hand, there is no convincing evidence that the bedbug is the usual and ordinary insect transmitter of these or any other diseases at present known to us. ”

“ Of these simple methods of control perhaps the most efficient is in very liberal applications of benzine or kerosene, or any other of the lighter petroleum oils, introduced with small brushes or feathers, or by injecting with syringes into all crevices of beds, furniture, or walls where the insects may have concealed themselves. ”

“ Living always in houses as it does and being well concealed, the bedbug is not normally subject to much if any control by natural enemies. Certain other household insects, however, do occasionally prey upon the bedbug, as, for example, the house centipede and the [6] common little red house ant. ”

“ The maintaining of high temperatures may be an even more efficient method of control. The activity of the bedbug is at its greatest between 60° and 70° to 75°. As indicated elsewhere, in a temperature of 96° to 100° F., accompanied with a high degree of humidity, newly hatched bedbugs perish within a few days, and, if this temperature is raised to 113° F., in a few minutes. ”