BED BUGS ARE BACK

Good night, sleep tight and don’t let the bed bugs bite. That grandmother’s bedtime warning may make a comeback if bed bug infestations continue to escalate. Called the "new scourge of America" by one expert, this blood-feeding insect has been spotted increasingly in cities that have an influx of international tourists. Infestations have been reported in hotels and motels, and it’s not just the rundown, seedy ones.

Unlike the cockroach, which thrives on unkempt environments, the bed bug is an equal-opportunity pest, invading $1,000-a-night hotels with the same fervor it lends to flophouses.

Phil Koehler, an urban entomologist with the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, said the bed bug’s preferred food source - a sleeping human - is available no matter how clean the environment.

"Bed bugs are associated in the public’s mind with filthy living conditions, but that’s not the case," Koehler said. "They can be brought into any environment and are very good at hiding, so even upscale hotels can have infestations."

Increased tourism has contributed to the problem because bed bugs are transported in luggage from overseas.

The U.S. Department of Commerce reported the United States had a record 51 million international tourists in 2000, up from 48 million in 1999 and up 14 percent from 1995 when 43 million visited. The steady increases coincide with strengthening economies in Asia and South America.

In Florida - where pest control companies reported a 10-fold increase in bed-bug service calls from 1999 to the present - the state had 9 million international visitors in 2000, which accounted for almost 20 percent of the U.S. total for that category. Infestations have been reported in major cities including Atlanta, Orlando, New York and San Francisco.

Koehler said that in addition to increased tourism, a change in pest control techniques has aided the insect’s comeback.

THE GORY DETAILS. The bed bug, or Cimex lectularius, has not been a serious problem in the U.S. since the early 1940s, when DDT came into widespread use. After DDT was banned in the early 1970s, organophosphates, carbamates and pyrethroids took up the slack.

But now, most PCOs have practically eliminated sprays. At the same time, they have dramatically increased their use of baits and IGRs. "The new techniques looked like a win-win situation," Koehler said. "But ironically, the safer, technologically advanced approach to pest control has aided the bed bug’s resurgence."

Mel Whitson, technical manager for Steritech Group Inc., Charlotte, N.C., said it’s the nature of the business.

"When you suppress insects such as cockroaches in a targeted manner with insect baits, it allows for other parts of the insect ecosystem to rise up," Whitson said. Enter the troublesome bed bug.

Harold Harlan, senior entomologist with the National Pest Management Association, Dunn Loring, Va., said adult bed bugs are about the size of a small ladybug and are flat, oval and wingless. They are brown unless engorged with a meal, which is when they turn a mahogany-red, hence the nickname "red-coats." Adults feed regularly but can live six months without feeding, making them difficult to eradicate.

Harlan said that although bed bugs can harbor about 20 human pathogens, they are not disease transmitters. He said people often don’t know they’ve been bitten.

"When people are first bitten, the body does not mount a response, so there’s no itch," he said. "But after repeated bites, human antibodies will cause the area to itch like a mosquito bite."

Harlan said people who suffer numerous bites can develop a "sensitivity syndrome," which can cause nervousness, lethargy and paleness. "Physiologically, you won’t be doing as well," he said.

As far as inventing a bait trap for the bed bug , UF’s Koehler said the bug does not have traditional mouthparts, so a trap is an unlikely solution.

"The bed bug doesn’t eat food like an ant or cockroach," Koehler said. "It acts like a mosquito, feeding on the blood of a host by using a piercing mouthpart."

He said the best preventive treatment is to inspect rooms and caulk holes in walls, furniture and other hiding spots. He also said a pesticide dust can be helpful, but noted current treatments are insufficient. "No simple solution exists," Koehler said.

He said education is the best defense. "It’s been 50 years since we’ve had a serious problem with bed bugs, so most hotel workers don’t know what to look for," Koehler said.

Experts say the bed bugs are back and won’t go away soon. Koehler said the bed bug’s nocturnal and secretive behavior makes it difficult to treat.

"This bug is tough to eradicate," Koehler said. "Until we develop a new weapon, bed bugs will be with us."