THEY’RE BACK……BED BUGS
Everett Mason
Rodney Merritts
Tracy Walker
Tom McAdoo
The Pennsylvania State University
Housing Services
IN THIS SESSION YOU WILL LEARN…

A Brief History of the Bed Bug

The Nature of the Bed Bug

How to Identify a Bed Bug

How to Treat Bed Bug Infestations

How to Educate People about Bed Bugs
BED BUG HISTORY
o
Has always been an issue
o
Virtually eliminated in US
o
Rising numbers since 2001
o
Skyrocketed in last 5 years
o
EPA held 1st ever Bed Bug Summit
THEY’RE BACK… BUT WHY?
o
Increased international travel
o
Change in general pest control methods
o
Reduced available products for control
o
Lack of research and development
TRAVEL
WHO’S BEEN SLEEPING IN MY BED?
BON VOYAGE
ENJOY OUR FEATURED PRESENTATION
EVEN MY BEST FRIEND?
BED BUG BASICS
o
Feed only on blood
o
Feeding lasts 3 – 12 minutes
o
Nocturnal
o
Can detect and avoid chemicals
o
Cryptic
o
Crawl up to 20 feet to feed
JUST A LITTLE GUY
I’ll molt 5 times
before I become an
adult!
LIFE CYCLE
I may live up to a
year without feeding
I lay between 1
and 5 eggs every
day!
I’ll live about 10
months and lay
between 300 and
500 eggs!
Starting as an egg,
it takes me 30 days
to become an adult!
One Bed Bug
One Month 61
Bed Bugs
COMPOUNDING INTEREST
o
2 Months – 3,721
o
3 Months – 226,981
o
4 Months – 13,845,841
o
5 Months – 844,596,301
ALL DONE!
IDENTIFICATION
o
o
o
o
Not as small as you
might think
1.5 mm – 1 cm long, flat,
oval, with no wings
Brown to Dark Red
(Adult)
Tan (Newly Hatched)
TEMPERATURE EFFECTS
o
Below ~55˚ F Development stops
o
Above ~99˚ F Development stops
o
Thrive at temps between ~68˚ F - 80˚ F
o
Die at Temps > 111˚F or < 32 ˚F
HOW DO YOU KNOW IF YOU HAVE
BED BUGS?
Check your linens
 Look for movement
 Look at the insect
 Color? Size?
 Does it have wings?
 Is it flat and oval?
 Inspect at night

Seams of
mattress
Many
bites !!!!
PENN STATE’S RESPONSE STRATEGY
Isolate students and their belongings in the room
 Pest Control responds immediately to inspect and
treat
 Clothing and bedding treated in dryer
 Mattresses are removed, to be replaced after
treatment
 Students are relocated if possible

VACUUM THE CARPET



Thoroughly vacuum the
carpet areas
Can occur before or after
the heat treatment
Dispose of the vacuum
bag
STEAM TREATMENT


Pull the carpet back from
baseboards
Steam along all edges at
the junction of carpet and
wall
RESIDUAL APPLICATION


Apply residual
insecticide along junction
of wall and floor
Apply dust behind all
wall plates
OTHER TREATMENTS

Heat Chamber

Bed Bug Dogs
PANELS GOING TOGETHER
TOP GOING ON
HEAT CHAMBER
SO, WHAT’S THE PROBLEM?
BE PREPARED
Who will respond?
When will the call
come?
Who
When
Where
Where will your
resident stay?
How will you treat the
room?
How
What
What are you going to
say??
YOU CAN RUN, BUT YOU CAN’T HIDE
Be proactive
Educate
Be a partner
BED BUG WEB SITES

Mike Potter University of Kentucky http://www.uky.edu/Ag/Entomology/entfacts/struct/ef636.htm

Australian Medical Entomology –
http://medent.usyd.edu.au/fact/bedbugs.html

University of Minnesota – http://www.ipmctoc.umn.edu/

Harvard School of Public Health –
http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/bedbugs/#manage

Mayo Clinic – http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/bedbugs/DS00663

List of Bedbugs Resources –
http://www.utoronto.ca/forest/termite/Bedbugs/bbres.html

National Pest Management Associationhttp://www.pestworld.org/consumer/default.asp
QUESTIONS?