Do bed bugs jump or fly? No, they do not
First, the good news. No, bed bugs do not fly – and for a very simple reason. They don’t have wings. Phew! And let’s top off that good news with some more good news – no, bed bugs can’t even jump. Why not? Because, unlike fleas or grasshoppers, it’s just not the way they evolved.
Rather, bed bugs evolved to have a particularly flat body – ideal for lying low and hiding in tight spaces. The more highly evolved parts of their anatomy are those powerful mouths – perfect for piercing our skin and sucking the blood from within. In the animal and insect communities, they’re known as ‘sit-and-wait’ or ‘crawl-and-wait’ predators that are happy to patiently pass the time before it’s time for your bedtime.
6 alternatives to the ol’ bed bug jump
Do bed bugs jump or fly? No, they do not. However, there’s still plenty to be worried about because these blood-sucking little critters are still highly active and mobile. They don’t even need to jump or fly! That’s because:
1. They crawl
Can bed bugs fly? No – but they can crawl! And they do it at a surprisingly rapid pace! They won’t just crawl across the floor, either, because they’ll crawl:
- Up a wall
- Over furniture
- Onto the ceiling
- All throughout your home.
2. They hitchhike
Can a bed bug fly? No, it cannot. But it can hitchhike! Each of those six tiny legs has powerful claws at the end of them, enabling bed bugs to grip onto rough surfaces like fabric, wood, and anything porous. Those legs also have sticky pads on them, enabling bed bugs to traverse horizontally or vertically across smooth surfaces like windows and plastic.
Do bedbugs jump? No, they hitchhike:
- On clothes
- On luggage & bags
- From hotels to homes
- From one room/location to the next.
3. They’re nocturnal
Does a bed bug jump? Nope – and even if it did, you probably wouldn’t see it. That’s because they’re nocturnal, waiting for the sun to go down and our eyes to close before getting into action. It means we hardly even notice these tiny, secluded, shy creatures when they’re in their daytime hiding places, making even noticing a massive infestation often very difficult to spot apart from the bites on your skin.
4. They hide
Because they’re about the size of an apple seed when fully grown, and even smaller when they are immature (nymphs), bed bugs could hardly be better at hiding. They’ll slot themselves into tiny cracks, crevices, and furniture & mattress seams, making them hard to notice, hard to find, and hard to eradicate.
5. They rapidly reproduce
Do bed bugs jump like fleas? No – and it could be because they’re too busy to be bothered with a time-wasting activity like that! It might horrify you to learn that a single female bed bug can lay as many as 7 or so eggs every single day. Once they hatch, as they do every 6-10 days, the newborn nymphs need immediate and regular blood meals to start growing up fast. And that’s bad news for our blood!
6. They’re resilient
So while you won’t see a bed bug jumping, it’s because their evolved strategy is to sit, hide and wait. As a result, they’ve developed a strong resilience to the environment around them – even to many types of insecticides.
So how do you get rid of bed bugs? It will require a combination of:
- Thorough assessment/inspection
- Preparation for treatment
- Chemical sprays, bed bug steamers, and other expert treatments
- Follow-up inspections & additional treatments
- Monitoring & prevention
- Homeowner education.
Ask Pest Control Heroes for help with your bed bugs
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Serious about saying bye-bye to those pesky, blood-sucking bed bugs? Enter your details at Pest Control Heroes and we’ll do the rest.
