Bed bugs : how to deal with the invasion

jareynolds/epictura

Published the 20.07.2017 at 17h22

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Nothing that their name gives chills and itching. Bed bugs, those blood sucking insects human, have put their little paws in France. Finally, and more precisely in the bed of thousands of French.
Although no statistical study has identified the number of victims of the pest, the professionals in the sector are formal : the infestations explode since the years 2000. The Chambre syndicale, disinfection, disinsection, deratization (CS3D), would have been at least 200 000 infested sites.

On the camino de Santiago

“In fact the bed bugs are back since the ban of products dangerous to humans such as DDT,” says Stéphane Arm, spokesperson of the CS3D. In fact, this plague had been eradicated in the 1950s with this product neurotoxic. But this poison, turned out to be for the environnementl was prohibited in the 1970s.

Since then, the critters proliferate everywhere in the world by “taking advantage of international food trade and people,” explains Stéphane Arm. Today, they can be found everywhere. Hotels, cinemas, transport, retirement homes… All the places where people will be able to relax.” They are also very present in tourist sites such as the camino de Santiago. The phenomenon is such that sites providing guidance to the pilgrims and publish testimonials.

Two years without feeding

In addition to the red buttons and lined up that appear at the alarm clock on the back, arms, or legs, their presence is noticeable by the small spots of blood on the sheet. At the foot of the bed, small black marks, similar to the tasks of the ink, can report their presence. “In recent testimony to the digestion of a blood meal,” explains the professional. On the other hand, bed bugs do not rhyme with dirt. It is not a sign of unsanitary conditions.

If the box spring or the mattress are home privileged, their small size, between 4 and 7 mm – allows them to hide in the sofa, the baseboards, wooden flooring, wallpaper, electrical outlets… all the dark places where they will be protected from the light.
And they can stay there for long. “The females can survive without feeding for up to 2 years,” says Stéphane Arm. And unlike the mosquitoes that come to disturb the nights of summer, the bugs are active throughout the year.