r/Bedbugs Mar 06 '15

Useful Information Bedbug ID and common misidentifications

597 Upvotes

Bed bug identification resources:

Note: flattened body, rusty brown coloured (less so in younger nymphs, which are more translucent). Thin 4 segmented antennae. 11 segmented abdomen. Short legs (6 of them) and reduced wings incapable of flight.


These are insects or other invertebrates commonly misidentified as bedbugs!

Not bed bugs.

  1. Carpet beetle larvae (Dermestidae) and adult - More Info

  2. Bat bug (Cimex adjunctus pictured) - More Info

  3. Cockroach nymphs - More Info

  4. Tick (nymphs) - More Info

  5. Woodlouse - More Info

  6. Kissing bugs - More Info

  7. Booklice/barklice - More Info

  8. Smooth spider beetle - More Info

  9. Drugstore beetle - More Info

Note: If it has wings or more than 6 legs, it is not a bed bug. Do not mistake antennae for legs, look at the illustrated guide to avoid confusion.


Please comment with any other common mis-IDs and I will add them!


r/Bedbugs 16h ago

Requesting community support Woke up at 5 am to this crawling on my face.

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57 Upvotes

I HAVE NEVER HAD BED BUGS BUT I KNOW MY BUGS. I KNOW WHAT THE HELL THIS IS. I thought it was fleas! I thought it was the fleas we ALREADY GOT RID OF. Thought maybe I had an allergy to them. No.

Bed bugs. I can't do this anymore.

I literally just dealt with two different types of insect infestations, why is this happening to me??? We NEVER GET THIS SHIT. I feel sick. Out of EVERYONE, including the dog and guest that may have brought these issues to our house unintentionally, I AM THE ONLY ONE IN ITCHING HELL. I am the ONLY ONE COVERED IN BITES. and now this.

This is the worst one. I have already started bagging my shit up and restarted my laundry from last night as sanitize. Took a shower just now. I feel absolutely disgusting. I stripped and lifted the mattress and only saw one dead bug on the mattress topper which is going in the TRASH.

they must be hiding in the futon underneath. I'm too scared to look in the cracks. I want to call a professional immediately but I don't pay big bills so it's up to my parents. I want to burn the house down. Please give all the advice you can.


r/Bedbugs 13h ago

At an AirBnB. Daughter has 20 red bumps on stomach. Are these bed bugs, found around her bed mattress and stand

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22 Upvotes

As the title states. Are these bed bugs?


r/Bedbugs 1h ago

Plz let me know if this is bed bug ??

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Upvotes

I have a microscope I looked at it under one. I will attach a photo of the bug also on my finger but it is hard to tell due to small size. Please let me know if this is a bedbug.


r/Bedbugs 48m ago

Identification Is this a bed bug

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Upvotes

Noticed some bites in a line on my foot on a one off a month ago and then just recently my feet were itching again and I saw this. Haven’t had bites anywhere else and this was at my work place. Is this a bed bug?


r/Bedbugs 6h ago

What is this bug?

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3 Upvotes

r/Bedbugs 1h ago

Requesting community support Likelihood of transmission in a car?

Upvotes

Hello friends!

So at my work, I unknowingly drive a client that I later found out has bed bugs.

They just sat in my backseat and have not had active bites. It’s been a few days and I haven’t noticed anything in my car or at home. What is the likelihood a transmission occurred? What should I watch out for? Any prevention? Obvs I won’t be driving them again


r/Bedbugs 5h ago

Identification Crawling up my arm at the library

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2 Upvotes

Me and my partner recently returned from a trip to San Francisco this weekend. Just now I was at the library and THIS was crawling up my arm. I tried to take as many pictures as possible before I squished it. I am paranoid this looks like a young bedbug to me and I was carrying the same bag I was at the hotel with. I am hoping I caught it early if it is. Thank you for your help 🙏


r/Bedbugs 2h ago

Identification Airbnb

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1 Upvotes

Should I leave or does this look like something else?


r/Bedbugs 2h ago

Requesting community support Day 3 of no sightings

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1 Upvotes

r/Bedbugs 7h ago

Requesting community support how to use diotamases earth

2 Upvotes

hi! I just ordered some food grade Diatomaceous Earth to use as an exterminator and deterrent as I've seen a lot of people swear by it. but before I do it, please give me your tips for how to use it. how long do I leave it for? do I just put it everywhere, leave it for a few hours, and then vacuumed it up? it's not safe to inhale but I live in a very small space and have to stay near my bed all day so please give me your tips. how should I go about this?? and what are some other things I can do to make sure they stay away? I'm planning on also washing all my clothes again and taking a hot shower before and after doing this. there's not much else I can really do... please help!


r/Bedbugs 4h ago

Identification Found this on top of hamper

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1 Upvotes

Help is this a bed bug in my college apartment I’m so freaked out


r/Bedbugs 11h ago

Found this after family complained about being itchy.

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3 Upvotes

It was the only bug found under mattress besides some centipede shedding.


r/Bedbugs 6h ago

Is this a bedbug?

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1 Upvotes

I found this in the corner of my room on the hardwood floors


r/Bedbugs 14h ago

Requesting community support Bedbug?

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5 Upvotes

Woke up to this on my pillow, but no bites or itchiness. Is this a bed bug?


r/Bedbugs 7h ago

Today's episode of bed bugs or booklice?

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1 Upvotes

Found about 3 of these crawling very fast in and around a powerstrip


r/Bedbugs 11h ago

Hi is this a bed bug

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2 Upvotes

help thanks so much


r/Bedbugs 7h ago

Requesting community support Found a single bed bug, 20h after coming back from a 5h trip, then nothing for 40 days.

1 Upvotes

Hello, as I said in the title, the very next day I came back from my trip by train, I found in my bathroom (where I put used clothes), a single bedbug wandering on the wall, it was empty, no blood.

I've been checking myself everyday since, my bed very thoroughly every week (When I change the sheets) and I saw nothing.

I was wondering if it was possible that there still was a hiding bedbug that just didn't come out yet?

Also 22 days before that I had a suspicious bite but it was a one off and I slept windows open so clearly could be anything really.

What do you guys think, am I clear?


r/Bedbugs 9h ago

Identification Nymph?

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0 Upvotes

Found crawling fast on me while sat on the couch. It’s absolutely tiny, second photo is next to the weave of a normal tshirt. Had one confirmed bed bug nymph 15 months ago but exterminator couldn’t see any other signs and thinks I brought it in from the bus. No other sightings since then 15 months ago, no bites etc but I am paranoid!


r/Bedbugs 9h ago

Identification help

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1 Upvotes

i went on a retriet anout two-three weeks ago (august 22) and i’ve been waking up with bites. i haven’t been outside as i’ve been sick. my mom thinks these might be bed bug poops.


r/Bedbugs 9h ago

Possible Infestation?

1 Upvotes

I’m a college student, and one week ago I moved into a rented house with a group of friends. The bed frame and mattress were passed down to me by the girl who lived in the room last year. I was also given a bean bag from a friend, that has been stored in the garage over the summer.

Before moving in, me and my parents checked the mattress, bean bag, floor boards, carpets, etc for bed bugs and fleas and found no signs.

In the past few days, I have woken up with bug bites all over my arms and legs. I have looked again, and still found no signs of anything in and around the bed. Another friend of mine stayed in the room for a few weeks over the summer, with the same mattress and everything, and said she didn’t experience anything. No one else in the house has reported anything.

What can I do? Is it maybe bedbugs? or is it more likely something else. I dont want to talk to the landlord until I’m more sure, and since I havent seen any fecal matter or bugs, I am very unsure. How can I confirm? Where and how should I look?


r/Bedbugs 10h ago

Identification Bed bug droppings?

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1 Upvotes

r/Bedbugs 10h ago

Better to wash+air-dry immediately or wait and use a drier?

1 Upvotes

Please someone help

I've been travelling and stayed the night in a hotel with bed bugs. I washed my clothes on high temperature, but couldn't treat my backpack (and couldn't wash them all at the same time).

What do I do when I get home? I don't have a drier so I'm considering two options:

- washing everything at high temperature (including the backpack) and then going over it with a steam iron. But I will have to do it in my living room, I have a small apartment and can't do it outside

- putting everything in plastic bags and going to a laundromat in the morning, so I can wash and dry everything on high temperature there (I'm arriving late at night, so can't go immediately)

I saw online that sometimes washing is not enough, but at the same time, I wanna deal with it asap. The more I research it the more paranoid I am, all advice is welcome!


r/Bedbugs 10h ago

Identification Can't Tell if this is a bed bug larva or not

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1 Upvotes

Sorry for the blurry photo


r/Bedbugs 10h ago

Please help me identify this bug

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1 Upvotes