Phil Pellitteri: keep bed bugs at bay
Phil Pellitteri, UW Insect Diagnostic Lab
Department of Entomology
College of Agricultural and Life Sciences
pellitte@entomology.wisc.edu
(608) 262-6510
Time – 3:09
0:18 – What bed bugs are
0:33 – What makes bed bugs so annoying
1:00 – How the bed bug situation has changed
1:27 – Life cycle of the bed bug
1:54 – Precautions you can take
2:59 – Lead out
TRANSCRIPT
There are bed bugs and they’re biting more and more. We’re visiting today with Phil Pellitteri, from the department of entomology, University of Wisconsin and Extension in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Madison, Wisconsin… and I’m Sevie Kenyon.
Sevie: Phil, welcome to our microphone. Start out by telling us what bed bugs are.
Phil: They are a blood feeding insect, much like a mosquito, they’re associated with humans, in particular in our bedding, mattresses, in fact the, the easiest place to find them in most cases is on box springs.
Sevie: And Phil, can you tell us why they’re so annoying?
Phil: You know, they bite and the bite reaction in about 2/3 of the population is similar to a mosquito. It itches, and it can even last for a number of days. I think just the thought of something sucking your blood at night is something that most people have a hard time relating to and accepting. Because they live in such close quarters with us and if not controlled the numbers can become staggering.
Sevie: Phil, can you tell us how the bed bug situation has changed?
Phil: We see them common enough that I would get two or three inquiries a day. And, throughout the state, the larger metropolitan areas are more infested. But as people move around, whether you’ve been traveling and picked them up or somewhere else and bring them home with you, or you bought used furniture, or your kids have been going to school and have come back for the summer, those are all ways they can get introduced into your home.
Sevie: Phil, can you go ahead and describe the life cycle of this insect?
Phil: The life cycle typically will take about eight weeks. The bed bug will come and feed, but then they won’t feed for about seven to ten days…when they’re digesting the blood and getting ready. The eggs are laid back in these cracks and crevices where they are hiding and usually what you’ll see is clusters. They’re not nests, but they would remind somebody of nests. And what’s interesting is their peak activity time is between about midnight and four in the morning when we’re the quietest.
Sevie: Are there precautions people should take to prevent bed bugs?
Phil: Well, I think we just have to be a little bit more careful. When you’re traveling I highly suggest people put their suitcase in the bath tub. Another thought is that people could just take big, plastic garbage bags and wrap their luggage.
Be careful when you buy used furniture. The tell-tale sign of bed bugs is when they’re feeding they leave these black waste spots and that usually will be seen on the back of a night-side stand and something similar. If you’re ever concerned about things, there’s a couple ways of killing them. To be honest, they respond to cold, but we need something close to 15 below and so throwing something in the freezer for a couple of days will work. On the heat side anything above 112 degrees kills them and so for cases that people are concerned that they have infested clothing, just putting it in the dryer, medium heat for 15 minutes will take care of things.
One of the reasons we’ve gotten into this problem is that the chemicals that we often use to control insects indoors, they’re relatively resistant to it. It is one of those few problems that’s beyond the average person taking care of it themselves. This is one where I do think people need to seek professional help and people who’ve got experience with dealing with bed bugs.
Sevie: We’ve been visiting with Phil Pellitteri, Department of Entomology, University of Wisconsin Extension in the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, Madison, Wisconsin… and I’m Sevie Kenyon.