New Bug Taking the Place of Annoying Bed Bugs
As some of you probably know, there has been quite a stirring about these new “bugs” that are taking over. They look like pesty stink bugs but are a lot more dangerous.
According to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there’s a potentially deadly insect making it’s way into the southern United States. This bug is known as the dangerous, “kissing bug”.
According to the CDC, there have been reports of The Kissing Bug in California as well. California actually has four of the eleven different species of the bug. Talk about scary!
The bug, like a mosquito almost, usually feeds on the blood of mammals. It’s not really picky, it can feed from humans and even your pets. They usually bite the animals in the lip area. If the bug has parasites and defecates in the would then it can cause “Chagas” disease. The disease can actually lead to death if it goes un-treated. The CDC says that the transmission of the disease isn’t exactly easy to spread between the insect and the human.
Some of the symptoms of Chagas is: Fever, Fatigue, Rash, Diarrhea, as well as vomiting. Chagas can go as far as causing heart failure and intestinal damage.
They’re quickly connected to stink bugs because they kind of look like them, but they are also associated with bed bugs because once they find a shelter, they usually find a place to hide in crack or under the beds and mattresses. Of course, they’re not prejudice, they will hide in the pet bedding as well. They also mainly come out at night, just like bed bugs.
According to the CDC, the little bugs have cause quite a public health problem in Latin America. The bugs make their nests in the cracks of the substandard housing. The officials estimate that around eight million people in Mexico, Central American, and South America have suffered from Chagas.
To keep your home safe, the CDC recommends:
- sealing all cracks and gaps around windows, walls, roofs, and doors and screens
- checking in and around your pet’s bedding
- removing wood, brush, and rock piles near your home
- turning off outdoor lights at night, which attract bugs.
Kissing bugs are hard to kill, as typical bug sprays do not work. Instead, trap the bug in a jar and drown it in rubbing alcohol or freeze it in water to get rid of the insect.
In other words, these bugs are hard to get rid of and are very dangerous. Please tread lightly if you come in contact with any of the little beasts.
Kissing Bugs
Kissing bugs have several different species. People have nicknamed them the kissing bug due to the face that when they bite their victims, it’s usually near their mouth. They come out at night and bite near the mouth while their victim is asleep. Why? Well kissing bugs apparently like the “odors” we exhale. Our face is usually the biggest exposed part on us as we sleep as well. They don’t usually “burrow” under the blankets like some other bugs.
Kissing bugs can sometimes be called “cone-nose” bugs. They are also called Mexican bed bugs in some parts of the United States. Kissing bugs are known as blood suckers. They usually only feed after the sun goes down. They are however attracted to lights, such as a moth or other insects at night.
In Arizona the kissing bugs are mainly found in packrat nests. The nests provide the nasty little bugs a ready supply of blood. It also gives them cover from other things that might eat insects. It’s kind of funny they live in a packrat nest since, a packrat is a known predator of the kissing bug.
According to the research about the Kissing Bug, the adult females usually lay their eggs in the months of May through September. The eggs hatch rather quickly, just three weeks after being laid.
Daniel A. Gibalevich
DAG Law Firm
