Bed Bugs – Still More Questions Than Answers: A Need for Research and Public Awareness

Abstract

American Entomologist • Volume 52, Number 2 Unless you are over 65 years of age, you may not remember what it was like to have bed bugs in the United States. Even within the entomological community, few are very familiar with this haematophagous pest. Despite the great deal of media attention bed bugs are currently receiving, many entomologists are fail to recognize the seriousness of this re-emerging pest as well as the desperate need for both basic and applied bed bug research, as well as community outreach efforts aimed at increasing public awareness. Bed bugs were essentially eradicated from the United States during the post-World War II era, but some time around 1999, they began showing up again, mostly in hotels located in major metropolitan centers. Since then, we have seen infestations appearing in apartments, college dormitories, health care facilities, various modes of transport, and in middle and upper class singlefamily residences. If we are unable to slow down the dispersal of this insect, it will become a routinely encountered pest, as it was prior to World War II; but this time, socio-economic barriers will not be the dividing line. The rapid increase of bed bugs is reflected in the number of treatments being performed by the pest management industry (Fig.1). Perhaps one of the most important factors contributing to the exponential increase of bed bug activity is a general lack of public awareness. The public is simply not aware that bed bugs exist, so when bed-bug-infested items are thrown out along the curb, they are often quickly picked up by someone else and transported into another home. This is an especially big problem at apartment complexes and on college campuses. Used or second-hand furniture, as well as rental furniture, is serving as another means of dispersal. In addition to this general lack of awareness, due to the insect’s secretive habits, it often takes several months or more for people to figure out that they have an infestation. During the early stages of an infestation, bed bugs tend to live in undisturbed environments. For example, in hotels, one of the first areas to become infested is behind wall-mounted headboards. Here, the bugs are completely protected, never disturbed, and are only inches away from a blood meal. It’s not Bed Bugs – Still More Questions Than Answers: A Need for Research and Public Awareness