How To Tell Bed Bugs From Fleas

An overview of fleas bed bugs fleas are a common name given to ctenocephalides fellis cat flea pulex irritans human flea and xenopsylla cheopis rat flea and are parasites that feed on blood.

How to tell bed bugs from fleas. Inspect each bite carefully. If you see any kind of bugs in your home continuously please call professional pest control services. If you see a cluster of bites around the torso then you have bed bugs. Of course both bugs are parasites depending on an external host for sustenance but bed bugs bites generally appear on a victim s upper body neck arms and shoulders.

The bed bug scientifically called cimex lectularius is also a flightless parasitic insect that has troubled man since the beginning of civilization like fleas they feed on blood. The bites that come from bed bugs and fleas can be awful however only flea bites can actually be harmful to you and your pets health. Fleas are commonly mixed up with bed bugs but there are significant differences between the two that can help you determine which pest you have in your home and what to do about it. Fleas bite around the feet ankle and leg region.

The fact is that if you suffer a flea bite you ll know instantly. It is easier to control flea infestation in the home than it is to get rid of bed. Here s how to tell if you ve caught bed bugs or fleas. Fleas and bedbugs can loosely be labeled as nocturnal meaning they are usually more active at night.

Sometimes the bites are noticed before the bugs are which is why being able to tell the difference between the two bites is so important. Inspect your body for bites. Predominance is observed in cats in which they are. Flea photo they normally prefer human beings as their host but are also dominant in household pets such as cats dogs rodents and opossums.

Adult bed bugs are a brownish color. The bed bug anatomy. Fleas are tiny blood sucking insects. This makes it harder to spot them especially if you don t have any itchy red bites.

Fleas can t fly but they can jump up to 18 centimeters. Fleas can even transmit infectious diseases. The difference between a bedbug bite and a flea bite is that the center of a bedbug bite is red. While bed bugs are commonly found in a home mattress and furniture fleas usually infest furry hosts like cats and dogs bed bugs and fleas are both parasitic insects that can cause severe problems to humans ranging from itchy bites or rashes to psychological effects.

They range from 1 5 mm to 5 mm long. Bed bugs are reddish brown flat and seed shaped. A bed bug bite on the other hand won t begin to hurt for a number of hours. Fleas and bed bugs look very similar.

Five percent of the flea population lives on pets which is generally how humans get flea bites. Both bugs can live for quite a long time without blood from a host fleas for up to 100 days and bedbugs for up to a few weeks.