What Do Baby Bed Bugs Look Like?

by | Mar 28, 2016 | Bed Bugs Facts

bed bug epidemic

Baby Bed Bugs

Baby Bed Bugs: If not handled swiftly, a bed bug problem can quickly turn into a full blown infestation. You might start with only a few, but before you know it, they’ve multiplied and then your house is overrun with the little parasites. To avoid this, you must learn how to identify these insects quickly, and part of that comes down to knowing what baby bed bugs look like.

What do baby bed bugs look like?

What Do Baby Bed Bugs Look Like?

Bed Bug Nest with adult bed bugs, baby bed bugs and bed bug shells

  1. Bed bugs are different from a number of insects, because they do not have a larval stage.
  2. Once they have hatched, bed bugs look essentially the same as they will once they’re all grown up.
  3. They are simply smaller. This is an important distinction if you hope to find one during an inspection.
  4. Baby bed bugs shed their skin at least five times in their life before they become adults.
  5. When looking for bed bugs, remember that they are usually tan in color, while red indicates one that has recently fed.

Baby bed bugs go through several life cycles before adulthood

Since baby bed bugs look so much like the adults, it’s often difficult to figure out which life cycle stage one is currently at. Although this might not seem to matter to the average homeowner, it’s definitely something that you should think about when searching for bed bugs. Knowing the approximate stage that a bed bug is currently in could tell you how long they’ve been around.

baby bed bug just fed

Picture of baby bed bug just fed. We can notice when we see the red color (blood)

The life cycles are pretty much all the same, except for the size of the bed bugs. The real problem is the fact that even adult bed bugs aren’t very big, so their differing sizes as they go from one stage to another is quite negligible. For example, a baby bed bug will only be around 1.5mm during its first stage, whereas its final stage before adulthood is only 4.5mm. Although that means the bed bug has tripled in size since being hatched, the size is still extremely small.

Baby bed bugs just as annoying as adult ones

Many insects don’t seem to become a burden until they have reached their adult stage of life. Bed bugs, however, are different. In order to go from one life cycle stage to the next, they must feed on human blood. Once they’ve fed, they go through a molting stage, at which point they get a bit larger. At that point, they set out to feed once more so they can start the whole process over again.

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