What Bed Bugs Fly
Bedbugs are round, brownish insects that feed on the blood of humans and animals. Female bedbugs lay eggs in secluded locations and deposit one or more eggs a day. In their lifetime, they can lay up to hundreds of eggs. Eggs are sticky and appear as tiny dust specks when first laid. They hatch within a week when the temperature is right. The newly emerged bedbug nymphs are no larger than a pinhead and shed their skin up to five times before they reach maturity. These insects can produce two to three generations a year when conditions are right.
While bed bugs can feed on a variety of warm-blooded animals, their main meal is humans. Fortunately, their bites are not painful to humans, but they can leave red, itchy welts if they are not treated immediately. People do not have to seek professional treatment to treat bed bug bites, though some people can find relief from topical steroid creams.
Although bed bugs don’t fly, their ancestors once had wings. However, they lost their wings thousands of years ago, which made them less visible to humans. Without wings, they were able to hide in tight cracks and smaller spaces. Unlike the ladybugs, bed bugs do not have wings attached to their thorax. Instead, bed bugs have small muscles on the thorax where their wings would normally attach. These muscles are evolutionary leftovers that help them to hide when they’re not in use.