Is Bed Bug Visible

Bedbugs can vary slightly in appearance by region. They usually have a few similarities, though, including:

• Size. Their eggs are roughly the size of a pinhead. Adults are the size of an apple seed.
• Color. Bedbugs are brown to reddish-brown.
• Shape. They may have an oval-shaped or elongated body.
• Smell. They have a musty smell.
• Wings. Although they have wings, bedbugs don’t fly.

It’s important to know that young bedbugs aren’t visible to the naked eye (unless they’ve eaten recently). They’re usually very small and translucent to whitish-yellow in color.

Share on Pinterest

Where to find them

Sometimes, you may not see the bugs themselves, but instead the remains they leave behind. This includes:

• red or rust-colored stains on bedsheets or mattress due to the bedbugs being crushed
• bedbug poop, which looks like dark dots that may appear blurry
• small eggs or shells of eggs

You may spot these remains when cleaning or changing bedding. Bedbugs can hide virtually anywhere that’s large enough to fit a credit card. Therefore, you can find them not only in a bed, but also:

• in curtain folds
• in drawer joints
• under loose wallpaper
• in chair seams

Bedbugs prefer to feed off humans (lucky us). They usually feed at night while you’re sleeping, so you’re less likely to be aware of them. However, some bedbugs will feed during the day.

Some ways you can recognize a bedbug bite include:

• a curved-shape pattern to the bedbug bites of usually three to four bites
• intense itching, usually in the morning
• bites that are usually about 2 to 4 millimeters in size
• bites that occur mostly on the arms and legs
• bites that have small blisters on top of them

Bedbug bites may also cause allergic reactions. This can include itching, redness, and swelling at the bug bite site.

If you aren’t sure whether a bite is from a bedbug, see your dermatologist or primary care doctor. The bites can look like flea, mosquito, scabies, or body lice bites.

Share on Pinterest

Getting bedbugs doesn’t have anything to do with how clean your home is.

Bedbugs are “hitchhikers” that many people can pick up accidentally while traveling. They can get onto your clothes while staying in a hotel or at another person’s home, and you bring them home.

You can also accidentally bring bedbugs home when purchasing used furniture.

Bedbugs can survive for up to 1 year without feeding. It’s important to inspect your items, even when they’ve been in storage for some time.

Treating bedbugs usually involves a comprehensive approach where you not only treat bedding, but also clean up any clutter and other items where bedbugs and their eggs may be.

Sometimes, if an infestation is severe, you may have to call a professional.

Here are some recommended approaches to removing these unwelcome critters.