A Brief History Of The Bed Insect

Mar 24
09:13

2010

Parson's Staff Writer

Parson's Staff Writer

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You might not visualize an animal like the bed bug of having a history, but this one does. Actually, it has been discovered that this is one of the strongest species of animals present on the Earth because of what it has accomplished. While most humans would be okay with the bed bug being extinct this is anything but what is likely to happen over the next years.

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You might not visualize an animal like the bed bug of having a history,A Brief History Of The Bed Insect Articles but this one does.  Actually, it has been discovered that this is one of the strongest species of animals present on the Earth because of what it has accomplished.

While most humans would be okay with the bed bug being extinct this is anything but what is likely to happen over the next years. 


A Look Back

Taking a look back, it can be found that the bed bug has been discovered in ancient writings.  It is normally believed that the bed insect has been all-around for thousands of years, possibly as long as humans have inhabited Earth as well. 

The bed bug was first called a vermin in the 17th century.  They came to the Americas just as the colonists did.  They traveled with them on board the shipping vessels that were used by immigrants.  With each new wave of colonists came a new wave of bed bugs.


The 1940’s and 1950’s

In the 1940’s and the 1950’s, the United States was using a product called DDT.  This is known as the initial type of pesticide that was used.  It was initial developed in the early period of World War II.  Its purpose was to stop the spread of infectious diseases such as malaria and typhus by killing off the mosquitoes and other pests that helped to spread the disease. 

DDT was used throughout the military but it was also used by everyday people as well.  This allowed it to be used heavily and virtually everywhere in the United States readily.  It was even used as an agricultural insecticide.

Thus, what does this have to do with the bed insect?  DDT in fact almost caused the extinction of the bed insect in North America.  During the middle of the 20th century, it was hard to find a bed insect.


Are They Gone, Then?

Unfortunately for most people, the bed insect did not die out during this time period but over the last various decades has staged a come back that is large enough to bring about them to re-infest many areas quickly.  North America has seen a tremendous growth of bed bugs in the last ten or as a result years. 


But, there is something numerous this time around….


DDT is no longer used today as a pesticide.  It was banned from use, as were other products that are similar to it, as it was found to be dangerous not only for the bed insect and other vermin but also to the human population itself. 

This poses as bit of a struggle for those that are trying to treat bed insect infestations today.  Many of the products that are used today are just no effective at treating these pests.  Truly, the bed insect can be just as hard to treat and terminate as that of the cockroach.    In short, there is no 100% guaranteed method to treat an infestation of bed bugs. 




More Reasons

There are additional reasons that the bed bug has made somewhat of a comeback over the last few years.  This reason has to do with the type of products being used to treat vermin.  Because of all the health risks of DDT, many products have a lower toxicity level than those that were as soon as used. 

They are also more of a gel based product.  Vermin are less likely to respond to the gels but have been shown to respond to the spray products that are again, not in use. 

On top of all of these things, the bed bug has developed, big muscles, for that reason to speak.  Really, the bed insect has learned to adapt to these insecticides and thus they are almost immune to them.  This is due to the fact that many of these rodent and insect control products were used thus heavily to treat other insects that they have learned to just adapt to them. 

Really, today, there are no gel based insecticides that do truly have any effect on the bed bug.  These are the most common kinds of insecticides that are used in the industry today.


Feeding Traps

With some other types of insects that have developed immunity against sprays and gel based products, the most efficient treatment tool is that of the use of food baits.  The bug is lured into the trap because it smells of a product that seems to be that of food.  The rodent and insect enters the bait trap and carries the food back to his colony.  The food is generally poisoned. 

This is the most efficient way to treat animals such as ants and other hard to kill insects.  But, can you guess what happens with the bed bug here?

The bed insect does not and cannot react to these sorts of traps.  There is one simple reason for this.  The bed insect does not feed off of those kinds of products.  The bed bugs main food source is that of blood, in most cases, human blood.  Hence these kinds of traps are ineffective at treating bed bugs.

In 2005 and 2006, there has been a lot of attention paid to the bed insect.  The goal is to educate those that have the potential for subjection to the bed insect to know about it.  Because bed bugs have not been around heavily since before 1940, most people don't realize what they are, where they are or what they are capable of doing.

The Trained professional Vermin Management Association is an advocacy group in the United States that is providing the campaign for this information to be presented to the general public in a way to educate them about this possible infestation.


Why Realize History

It is key to realize the history of the bed insect for a variety of reasons.  Like any other type of history wisdom, we can discover from the mistakes and the trails and errors of the past.

With bed bugs, it is basic to notice where they lived, how they spread as well as what they did to the public. 

By looking at the use of DDT and other chemicals, we can better see what will work on the bed bug, but we can also see the effects of harmful products on the human population as well.


The Future

As you look at the past of the bed bug, you should take note of the likely future as well.  It has been shown that the bed bug is likely to continue in their growth and infestations.  With more and more people traveling from place to place on airplanes, it is even more likely that the bed bug will go with them.

For this reason, it is basic for you to recognize as soon as you may have a possible infestation and to help you to terminate them; you need to understand how to do as a result.

Luckily, you will learn that here.