BEDBUG

any member of the approximately 75 species of nocturnal insects of the family Cimicidae (order Heteroptera) that feed by sucking the blood of humans and other warm-blooded animals. The reddish brown adult is broad and flat and 4 to 5 mm (less than 0.2 inch) long. The greatly atrophied, scalelike, vestigial wings are inconspicuous and nonfunctioning. The distinctive, oily odour of bedbugs results from a secretion of the scent, or stink, glands. Each female lays an average of 200 or more eggs during a single reproductive period, and three or more generations may be produced in a year. Bedbugs are among the most cosmopolitan of human parasites. They are found in every kind of dwelling place, hiding during the day and coming out at night to feed; afterward, they retreat to their hiding place to digest the meal, which may require several days. Adult specimens have lived for at least a year without food. Although the bedbug has an irritating bite, it is not known to transmit diseases to humans. Cimex lectularius, which occurs in temperate regions, and C. hemipterus, which is common in the tropics, attach to humans. The species C. pilosellus lives on bats; species of Oeciacus, on swallows and martins; Cimexopsis nyctalis, on chimney swifts; and Haematosiphon inodora, on poultry, although it has been known to feed on humans and pigs as well.