What Do Bed Bugs Look Like?

The question, what do bedbugs look like?” is one that a lot of people are seeking answers to as they do not know whether they have a bedbug infestation problem to deal with or something else. This article aims to inform and point out what bed bugs look like; so, if you would like to know the answer to this question, continue to read this article.

Bedbugs are insects that feed on blood and are found on humans. Bed bugs bite and cause rashes to the skin. They are mostly found in warm places, cracks and crevices of furniture, bedding and mattresses. Before you start treating your living space for bedbugs, it is important to know what bedbugs look like because there are a lot of other insects that look like bedbugs which may require other methods of treatment. Bedbugs are visible, and you will always notice them if your living space is infested with them. So, the only thing you have to do is to know exactly what they look like.

Bedbug Size

Bedbugs are tiny insects, and their sizes vary according to their life cycle stage. Whether a bedbug is at the immature or nymph stage, its typical length is usually between 2mm and 5mm while a fully grown adult bedbug has the size of an apple seed. 

Bed bugs are blood sucking insects with a flat body that has an oval shape. They don’t have wings. However, adult bugs have wing-like pads that are undeveloped.

Though having a brown color, their body color turns red after feasting on blood. Nymphs or juvenile bed bugs will typically range from the size of a bed bug egg (0.09 inches, 2.5mm) to the size of full-grown adult bed bug at (0.18 inches, 4.5mm). Some homeowners erroneously believe bed bugs can’t be seen with unaided eyes. Though baby bugs, called nymphs can sometimes be difficult to see with the eyes, adult bugs are big enough to be seen with the eyes. They often hide in crevices and cracks.

Nymphs are about the size of a grain of white sand, having a white color when hatched. Bed bugs have semblance of an apple seed, both in shape and size.

Young bed bugs also called nymphs generally have a whitish-yellow translucent color and if it has not fed on blood recently, can be invisible to the naked eye because of its color and size. Bedbugs have a sweetish musty odor as a result of the secretions that come out of their glands located at the lower part of their body. The size is one characteristics to look out for if you are trying to answer the question, “What do bed bugs look like?”

Bedbug Shape

An adult bedbug has an oval-shaped, flat body. Bedbugs have two antennae and six legs but do not have wings.

Bedbug Color

Bedbugs at the Nymph stage have a translucent color. Once a nymph bedbug feeds, the color of its abdomen turns into a bright red translucent color which turns to brown and then black after the meal has digested. When nymph bedbugs grow into adults, their color turns into dark brown. Adult bedbugs have a rusty red/brown color while the eggs they lay are light cream in color. Bedbug eggs are tiny, about the size of a pinhead with a pearl-white color. A bedbug egg that is older than five days has a dark mark on it similar to that of an eye.

Where are bedbugs mostly found?

Bedbugs are quite common all over the United States, especially in cities. They are also common in remote locations and small towns. If you think you have bed bugs and you have been asking the questions, “What do bed bugs look like?” we hope that this article has answered your question sufficiently. Now, when you see a bed bug, you should be able to identify it from other insects.