These look pretty big to be bedbugs... [a: bed bugs]

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These look pretty big to be bedbugs... [a: bed bugs]

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AnneElizabeth

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Posted 10 months ago
Mon Jul 16 2012 15:29:33
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Hello,

I'm hoping someone can give me a tentative ID. I found these little suckers under my box spring cover: http://www.flickr.com/photos/78552451@N02/

My boyfriend and I were both bit for the past 2-3 months. About a month ago, he went to a Dermatologist who diagnosed him with Scabies. We did two rounds of promethian cream and the bites/ itching went away...

Until two weeks ago. My friend came to stay in our house and watch our cat for a week while we were on vacation. After the week, she was covered in huge, terrible bites- nothing like the scabies bites that we had gotten. She went to a doctor who tentativly diagnosed her with Scabies but retracted his definition when the skin scrape came back negative. I felt terrible but assumed they were spiders/ mosquitos. Then this morning I woke up with three welts on my right leg- nothing like the Scabies stuff from before.

I also found some smeared red spots on my sheets. I lifted up the box spring and immediately found about 4 big bugs and 8-10 smaller ones. They didn't seem very startled or try to move. But when I squish them there definitely appears to be a blood-like residue.

I assume that they're bedbugs, but one thing that throws me off is the size. They're the length of a pinky fingernail and half the width. Are these super monster bedbugs, or something else?

Thanks for any help--

Best,
Anne
bed-bugscouk

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Posted 10 months ago
Mon Jul 16 2012 15:35:05
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Hi,

They are bedbugs.

What happens is that as bedbugs feed they extend the segments in the abdomen and take on the well fed shape as you have documented. First time I saw them I was also shocked and did not think they were bedbugs either but that was well over 10 years ago.

They return to the more normal flat and round shape after 3 - 7 days when they have digested the blood.

Time to read the FAQ's and get your action plan in place.

David Cain
Bed Bugs Limited
AnneElizabeth

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Posted 10 months ago
Mon Jul 16 2012 15:43:20
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Ugh, thank you. I have someone coming on Thursday. Time to begin the prep...
loubugs

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Posted 10 months ago
Mon Jul 16 2012 15:51:38
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Yes, as David said, they become distended with blood from feeding; the unfed or already fed and digesting bug will be more round in outline, though not so much an adult male. There have been posters depicting elongated bed bugs as males when, in fact, they were females. Elongated bodies occur in both male and female bed bugs after a feeding sequence.
loubugs

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Posted 10 months ago
Wed Jul 18 2012 7:10:05
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Here, look at the picture I just uploaded. It shows 2 females and one male, but the body of one female is distended as is the one male. One bug also shows the articulated wings as they connect to its thorax.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/lou_bugs_pix/7596374272/in/photostream/