Part 1

Transcriber Note

Text emphasis denoted as Italics and =Bold=.

+-------------------------------------------------------+ | UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE | | | |[Illustration] =FARMERS' [Illustration] | | BULLETIN= | | | +-------------------------------------------------------+ Washington, D. C. 754 October 14, 1916 --------------------------------------------------------- =Contribution from the Bureau of Entomology, L. O. Howard, Chief.=

=THE BEDBUG.=

By C. L. Marlatt,

Entomologist and Assistant Chief of Bureau.

Cimex lectularius L.; order Hemiptera, suborder Heteroptera, family Cimicidae.

=CONTENTS.=

Page.

Introduction 1

Origin; common names; distribution 2

Varieties and related insects 3

General characteristics 3

The "buggy" odor 4

Habits and life history 4

Food and longevity 7

Influence of temperature 8

The bite of the bedbug 9

The bedbug and human diseases 9

Natural enemies of the bedbug 10

Remedies 11

=INTRODUCTION.=

The presence of the bedbug (fig. 1) in a house is not necessarily an indication of neglect or carelessness; for, little as the idea may be relished, this insect may gain access in spite of the adoption of all reasonable precautions. It is very apt to get into the trunks and satchels of travelers, or into baskets of laundry, and may thus be introduced into homes. Unfortunately, also, it is quite capable of migrating from one house to another and will often continue to come from an adjoining house, sometimes for a period of several months, gaining entrance daily. Such migration is especially likely to take place if the human inhabitants of an infested house leave it. With the failure of their usual source of food, the migratory instinct of the bedbugs is developed, and, escaping through windows, they pass along walls, water pipes, or gutters, and thus gain entrance into adjoining houses. In these or other ways anyone's premises may be temporarily invaded.

=ORIGIN; COMMON NAMES: DISTRIBUTION.=

As with nearly all the insects associated with man, the bedbug has had the habits now characteristic of it as far back as the records run. It was undoubtedly of common occurrence in the dwellings of the ancient peoples of Asia. The Romans were well acquainted with it, giving it the name Cimex. It was supposed by Pliny--and this was doubtless the common belief among the Romans--to have medicinal properties, and it was recommended, among other things, as a specific for the bites of serpents. It is said to have been first introduced into England in 1503, but the references to it are of such a nature as to make it very probable that it had been there long before. Two hundred and fifty years later it was reported to be very abundant in the seaport towns, but was scarcely known inland.

One of the old English names was "wall-louse." It was afterward very well known as the "chinch," which continued to be the common appellation for it until within a century or two, and is still used in parts of this country. The origin of the name "bedbug" is not known, but it is such a descriptive one that it would seem to have been very naturally suggested. Almost everywhere there are local names for these parasites, as, for illustration, around Boston they are called "chintzes" and "chinches," and from Baltimore comes the name "mahogany flat," while in New York they are styled "red coats," and in the west "crimson ramblers."

The bedbug has accompanied man wherever he has gone. Ships are very apt to be infested with it and have been the chief means of its wide distribution. It probably came to this country with the earliest colonists; at least Kalm, writing in 1748-49, stated that it was plentiful in the English colonies and in Canada, though unknown among the Indians.

=VARIETIES AND RELATED INSECTS.=