As an integral part of the earth's eco system, insects and other pests are each beneficial in their own way, but also problematic when they infest a house. Spring is the season when folks have to be vigilant to the stepped-up activity of insects such as ants, spiders and termites. Some can cause damage to your home’s structure while others can cause bodily harm. Some can spread diseases while others just bite.

One insect that has been a problem for centuries is the bed bug. The extensive use of pesticides that began back in the 40s helped to reduce bedbug populations through the proceeding decades, but the use of certain insecticides decreased due to environmental and health hazards.  Since then, the rate of travel and the incidents of bed bug infestations have increased dramatically.

Adult bed bugs grow to be small, oval, wingless insects that reach about 1/4 inch in length. They’re flat, reddish-brown bodies may be mistaken for a tick or small cockroach. They don’t develop wings, so they can’t fly. They do their thing mostly at night – biting unsuspecting victims as they sleep. The bit itself isn’t painful, but the saliva injected under the skin could lead to itchy, swollen areas, which can become infected when scratched.

The bed bugs are crazy hitchhikers sometimes latching on to consumer products like new clothing.  While sanitation is a factor, bed bug infestation can be found in any home. Mattresses, box springs and other upholstered furniture are primary targets, but folks and exterminators are finding them even in places like televisions sets, computer keyboards and electric switches.

They reproduce quite rapidly; female bed bugs can lay five eggs a day. Newly hatched nymphs are a little more than a dot. They can reach maturity in a month or so and feed on blood from humans or animals.