Biology of Bed Bugs:
Female bed bugs lay 200 - 500 eggs in her lifetime, approximately 5-8 eggs/day.
Eggs of bed bugs are laid singly or in clusters and are cemented to wood, fabrics, or other surfaces in places where the bed bugsnormally hide.
Eggs hatch in 6 to 17 days.
Bed bugs go through gradual metamorphosis: egg to nymph to adult.
Nymph bed bugs go through 5 molts during a 35 - 48 day nymphal stage. They cast their shed skin each molt. Each nymph requires at least one blood meal to develop to the next developmental instar.
Bed bug nymphs and adults stop feeding at temperatures of 56°F (13°C) or below and thermal death point for adults is 113°F (45°C). At 32°F, adults and nymphs can be killed in several days whereas eggs require at least 30 days before they become nonviable and perish.
At room temperature, the complete bed bug life cycle takes about two months. However, at optimal conditions (83-90°F and 80% RH), their life cycle may take four to five weeks.
Adult bed bugs can live for almost four to ten months, providing they have a food source. Interestingly, the studies have shown that in colder temperatures, bed bug adults may live for up to two years even without a blood meal.
There can be up to 3 to 4 generations of bed bugs per year.
Since bed bugs only food is the blood of warm-blooded animals, bed bugs are equipped with specialized sensors that detect CO2 and warmth. Studies have confirmed that CO2 is attractive to bed bugs. Hungry bed bugs can sense the presence of sleeping people by sensing their body heat via heat sensors located on their antennas.
Bed Bugs also can follow a human pheromone release (called ketones) and track it directly to a blood source.
