Bedbugs Feeding Facts

Did you know that bed bugs can go without eating for 20 to 400 days depending on the weather and other conditions?

Bed bug adults can only survive about three to five months without a blood meal if they occupy an environment that resembles normal room temperature and relative humidity. In cooler environments, they may live longer.

What Do Bedbugs Eat?

Bed bugs are known to feed on their hosts’ blood through a direct and active process. Bed bugs have been documented feeding on human blood, which is why we hear about bed bug bites so often.

Bed bugs, however, will also eat the flesh of other warm-blooded animals such as cats, dogs, rodents, birds, and even bats.

When Do Bedbugs Normally Feed?

Bed bugs are well-known for feeding at night, and it is generally accepted that they feed during the dark hours.

However, there have been reports of bed bugs feeding during the daytime, particularly if the host is sleeping during the day.

Bed bug bites are usually not felt until after they have punctured the skin and withdrawn blood.

How Long Is The Feeding Process?

The feeding process takes about five to ten minutes.

During this time, the bed bug will inject its saliva into the host, which numbs the area and prevents the host from feeling any pain.

The bed bug will then withdraw blood through its beak-like mouthparts.

How Often Do Bedbugs Feed?

The feeding frequency of bed bugs, like many other insects, is determined by a number of variables including:

• Host availability
• Population size
• The condition of the home or apartment they infest.

Bedbugs Feeding Schedule

Another important thing to keep in mind when attempting to get rid of bed bugs is that they do not feed on a set schedule; however, they do so when there is a viable host available.

The adult stage feeds once a week on average in a setting that is comparable to a typical central air heated and cooled home or apartment.

It takes at least five feedings for a nymph to mature into an adult.

It can take as little as two months for them to develop into an adult under ideal circumstances.

When a nymph and an adult bed bug feed, they only do it once every week or so. The majority of the bed bug population is feeding rather than actively looking for another blood meal.

Because they are a domestic, indoor-dwelling species in Singapore, bed bugs do not endure the extremes of temperature that insects that live outdoors and thus have a different feeding experience.