How Many Bed Bugs in an Egg?
WouterOne of the first questions you may have is, “How many bed bugs in an egg?” Bed bugs are a tiny insect with a life cycle that begins with an egg. These eggs are about the size of a grain of table salt and are laid by female bed bugs. The female can lay five or six eggs per day and will hatch about 70 to 90% of the eggs she lays. The eggs hatch in ten to fifteen days, depending on temperature. After hatching, the bugs go through five or six nymphal stages that require a blood meal before they can molt. Then, they go through a life cycle that can take anywhere from five weeks to four months to reach adulthood.
The number of eggs a bed bug lays will depend on how frequently and how much blood the bedbug feeds on. One blood meal will produce between five and twenty eggs, depending on the species and location. In order to lay more eggs, the bed bug must have more blood or undergo traumatic insemination.
The first time you find bed bugs in your home, it may be hard to see them. The tiny bugs are not visible to the naked eye, but they can be easily identified with a hand-held magnifying glass. Look for dark spots and shed skins. You might also smell rotten meat, which is a sign of bed bug infestation.
