Inspect and identify the target pest when combating bat bugs and bed bugs

Gary Riggs

Ensystex

Bat bugs and bed bugs are nearly identical to the naked eye. Proper identification is critical to managing either of these pests successfully. Arm your inspectors with everything they need, including training, resources like a smartphone app or physical identification guide, a flashlight and a magnifier.

Inspect, inspect, inspect. Always identify the target pest; it’s crucial — especially because the visible differences between these two pests are subtle.

Customers may tell you they have bed bugs, and they may be correct. But collect several samples from different rooms and examine them carefully, to help determine what you’re dealing with. You must look at the hairs on the side of their pronotum (thorax) and compare the length to the width of their eyes. Bed bugs have very short hairs that are always shorter than the width of their eyes. Bat bugs have hairs longer than the width of their eyes. You may find bed bugs, bat bugs or even other bugs in the Cimicidae family. There are 91 described species in all, although it’s unlikely that you’ll encounter the majority of them.

The presence of bed bugs will lead you in setting up treatment protocols that will eliminate them in the home. If there are questionable findings, or just to give peace of mind to customers, monitor the “bat cave” (which is usually the attic). Bat bugs prefer to feed on their winged hosts, but in the absence thereof, they will come down and feed on humans.

If a bat infestation is found, then conduct a proper exclusion first, followed by a thorough crack-and-crevice treatment within wall voids using dusts and residual sprays labeled for bat bugs, anywhere you can. This may take a few treatments to work them out of their harborages. If the bats have deserted their roosting area, then treatment can begin immediately. But everything begins with the inspection.

Proper identification can save you and your customers hundreds of dollars in treatments and services. You may not wear a cape and mask, but you’ll be the superhero to customers if you solve their issues in a timely and professional way.

<p>The post Inspect and identify the target pest when combating bat bugs and bed bugs first appeared on Pest Management Professional.</p>

from Pest Management Professional https://www.mypmp.net/2024/09/18/inspect-and-identify-the-target-pest-when-combating-bat-bugs-and-bed-bugs/
Sacramento CA