What do Bed Bugs Look Like to the Human Eye?
Magnified Picture of Adult Bed Bug
What do adult bed bugs look like?
Bed bugs have small, flat, oval-shaped bodies. They are wingless. Adults do have the vestiges of wings called wing pads, but they do not fully develop into functional wings.
Adults are brown in color, although their bodies redden after feeding. Full-grown bed bugs move relatively slowly and measure between 4 to 5 mm. Homeowners sometimes have the misconception that bed bugs are too small to see with the naked eye. The nymphs may be small and difficult to see, but the adults are detectable with the naked eye and may be found in the cracks and crevices they use to hide.
What do bed bug nymphs look like?
Newly hatched nymphs are approximately the size of the head of a pin and are white or tan until they feed. They often are described as being about the size and shape of an apple seed.
Two large Bed Bugs close up
Signs of Bed Bugs in Your Home
Indicators of a bed bug infestation include the presence of blood spots on bedding, bed bug droppings, which are reddish-black, and shed skins also known as shells or casings from molting.
What do bed bug shells look like?
Bed bug shells, or casings, are the insect's exoskeleton. A nymph will outgrow and shed its shell during each stage of its life cycle until it reaches adulthood. Bed bug casings are usually translucent and vary in size depending on how old the nymph is. During an infestation, these can usually be found near different parts of the bed including the mattress and headboard.
Bed Bug Control
How to identify bed bugs?
Learn what bed bugs look like, and how to detect if you have a bed bug Infestation.
How do you get bed bugs?
Find out how bed bugs infiltrate your home and where they are attracted to.
How serious are bed bugs?
Learn about bed bug bites, their feces and how they can impact your health.
What Orkin does
Learn how Orkin handles bed bugs, homeopathic cures and the cost of bed bug extermination services.
Schedule an inspection with an Orkin Pro to put your bed bug problem to rest so you can sleep at night.
