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Estimated Australian distribution of the Tropical bed bug, Cimex hemipterus, and the common bed bug, Cimex lectularius, based on identified specimens (circles). Most records are based on multiple samples, however for the three samples depicted outside their respective normal ranges, these were from single infestations. The black circles depict the location of capital cities. Locations mentioned in the text are also included.
Source publication
From 2001 to 2004, Australia experienced a resurgence in bed bug infestations involving both the common (Cimex lectularius) and Tropical (Cimex hemipterus) species. It was found that all Australian mainland states had experienced an exponential rise in bed bug infestations since 2001, with an overall national increase of 4.5%. A conservative estima...
Contexts in source publication
Context 1
... appears that the New South Wales / Queensland (QLD) border is the approximate delineation of both species; both are sympatric in the Gold Coast in south eastern QLD. To the south of this is the realm of the Common bed bug and the Tropical to the north (Figure 1). When this latter species was actually introduced into the country is not known. ...
Context 2
... 2003 and2005, bed bugs became a serious issue and rapidly spread throughout the building. Figures 10a, b and c, show the spread of the infestation, which was recorded via staff incidence reports. The first infestations was identified and treated (albeit poorly) in May 2003 and, by May 2005, 10% of the rooms were infested, which led to all rooms being inspected by a bed bug experienced Pest Manager. ...
Context 3
... first infestations was identified and treated (albeit poorly) in May 2003 and, by May 2005, 10% of the rooms were infested, which led to all rooms being inspected by a bed bug experienced Pest Manager. The final survey (July 2005 in Figure 10c) revealed that a total of almost 20% of the rooms had evidence of bed bugs (68 rooms infested). Costs in this instance included: replacement of bedding and linen (>A$7,220), pest control (approx. ...
Context 4
... the day of the experiment, the air temperature peaked at 36 o C and remained above 30 o C from 11:00am until 3:30pm. The temperature on the sun exposed side of both mattresses reached 85 o C; however, the underneath did not reach 44 o C, with the highest reading being 41.5 o C for the foam mattress ( Figure 11) and less than 35 o C for the thicker mattress ( Figure 12). These results indicated that black plastic should not be relied on for control bed bugs on mattresses and this method is thus not recommended within the CoP. ...
Context 5
... the day of the experiment, the air temperature peaked at 36 o C and remained above 30 o C from 11:00am until 3:30pm. The temperature on the sun exposed side of both mattresses reached 85 o C; however, the underneath did not reach 44 o C, with the highest reading being 41.5 o C for the foam mattress ( Figure 11) and less than 35 o C for the thicker mattress ( Figure 12). These results indicated that black plastic should not be relied on for control bed bugs on mattresses and this method is thus not recommended within the CoP. ...
Context 6
... efficacy of diatomaceous earth (DE) was tested using adult and 1 st instar nymphs of the Common bed bug, at rates equivalent to 1, 2, 4, and 8 g/m 2 . The results are depicted in Figures 13 and 14. In the case of the adult bugs, 100% mortality was achieved with the highest dose by Day 9 post exposure and by Day 15 for all doses. ...
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An infestation of a Cimicidae (Hemiptera: Cimicidae) member, especially the bed bug, can cause economic loss and impact health. A cost-effective and user-friendly method for identifying the infesting species will help with the early detection and control of infestations. A linear morphometric method is often used, but it requires the examination of...
BACKGROUND
Pyrethroid resistance in the common bed bug, Cimex lectularius L., has been reported worldwide. An important resistance mechanism is via knockdown resistance (kdr) mutations, notably V419L and L925I. Information regarding this kdr-type resistance mechanism is unknown in Australia. This study aims to examine the status of kdr mutations in...
The common bed bug, Cimex lectularius L., resurged as an important urban pest in the last 20 yr. Yet, there are no commercial repellent products labeled for bed bugs available in the United States. We evaluated the repellency of two catnip oils from newly developed cultivars, CR3 and CR9, and compared each to 10 and 25% N,N-diethyl-meta-toluamide (...
Citations
... Bed bugs (C. lectularius) were first reported in 2003, and due to poor management, subsequently spread to 20% of the 333 rooms in the building (Doggett and Russell 2008). Consequently, every room was inspected for bed bugs, and all active infestations eliminated. ...
Modern bed bugs are resistant to multiple insecticide classes, particularly the pyrethroids. The efficacy of pyrethroid-impregnated mattress liners marketed for bed bug management has been variable. This study evaluated the efficacy of a permethrin-impregnated mattress liner, ActiveGuard, against 24 bed bug strains, consisting of both Cimex hemipterus (F.) and Cimex lectularius L. A 'mat assay', employing an allethrin-impregnated mat, was used to establish the pyrethroid resistance profile of all strains. Three experiments were conducted to evaluate the effect of ActiveGuard exposure on bed bug knockdown: 1) exposing the bed bugs continuously on the liner for up to 24 d, 2) holding the bed bugs on the liner for either 4 or 6 h, and 3) placing a noninsecticide treated fabric above the liner with the bed bugs held continuously on top. Our results indicated that all modern strains (collected within the last 15 years during the current resurgence) were pyrethroid-resistant, although the magnitude of resistance was highly variable between strains. In the continuous exposure study, an incomplete knockdown was recorded for most modern bed bug strains, with some having no knockdown even up to 7 d of constant exposure. In the 4 or 6 h exposure study, the level of knockdown was reduced even further, and very few bed bugs were knocked down in the double fabric study. The results of this study indicate that pyrethroid-impregnated mattress liners are not likely to be effective in the management of most modern bed bug infestations involving either C. hemipterus or C. lectularius.
... Diatomaceous earth (DE) has often been used for controlling ectoparasites and stored product pests (Ebeling 1971). A large number of laboratory and field studies confirmed its effectiveness against bed bugs (Small 2006;Doggett and Russell 2008;Romero et al. 2009;Isman 2013, 2016;Lilly et al. 2016;Singh et al. 2016). DE causes damage of the wax layer of the insect exoskeleton through adsorption and abrasion or both, which leads to the death of insects by dehydration (Yu 2008, Akhtar and Isman 2016, Lee et al. 2018. ...
Numerous bed bug research papers have been published in the past 20 yr as a result of bed bug (Cimex spp.) (Hemiptera: Cimicidae) resurgence in the world. Yet, few of them focused on the management of the tropical bed bug, C. hemipterus (F.). Here, we describe a case of tropical bed bug infestation in two dormitory buildings and effectiveness of a tropical bed bug treatment program. The study site consisted of 125 dormitories in two buildings. An initial building-wide monitoring with ClimbUp interceptors revealed 25 infestations. The spatial distribution of bed bug infested rooms showed a significant aggregated distribution pattern with same infestation status for neighboring units sharing walls. All infested rooms were monitored every 2 wk and treated using a combination of steam and diatomaceous earth (DE) dust application if bed bugs were still found. For the 25 initially identified infested rooms, after 14 wk treatment, 44% of them no longer had bed bugs, and the mean number of bed bugs captured per room decreased by 94.1%. A combination of steam and DE dust treatment is an effective strategy for suppressing tropical bed bug infestations in dormitory environment.
... Currently, bed bug populations have been restored and are spreading globally (Romero et al., 2007). Numerous investigations have reported an increased number, intensity, and distribution of bed bug infestations in Africa (Gbakima et al., 2002), Europe (Masetti and Bruschi, 2007;Kilpinen et al., 2008;Fuentes et al., 2010;Levy-Bencheton et al., 2010), United States (Krueger, 2000;Anderson and Leffler, 2008), Canada (Hwang et al., 2005), Argentina (Cáceres et al., 2019), Australia (Doggett and Russell, 2008) and Southeast Asia Suwannayod et al., 2010). ...
... For instance, United Kingdom pest control companies reported an increase in bed bug infestations at least to 100% in only 3 years . Similarly, Doggett and Russell (2008) surveyed over 120 pest control professionals in Australia and recorded a 4500% increase in bed bug infestations between 1999 and 2006. ...
... Many factors are involved in the re-emergence of this pest: the increase in tourism travel and commercial exchange (Potter, 2005), the furniture recycling, the lack of surveillance actions, and the insufficient variety of insecticides available . In addition to the factors mentioned, resistance to insecticides is considered one of the main causes of the worldwide resurgence of bed bugs (Doggett and Russell, 2008;Romero et al., 2007). ...
Bed bugs (Cimicidae) and bat bugs (Polyctenidae) are blood-sucking ectoparasites adapted to feed on homoeothermic vertebrates. However, Cimicidae members are temporary parasites with a range of hosts, and the Polyctenidae family is only composed of permanent parasites of bats. Since some bed bugs species live in association with humans, many studies were undertaken for their relevance as urban pests. The host-parasite interaction with humans has a long story signed by several attempts for prevention and control. As a result, failures in control practices and continuous re-infestations were often reported. In the last two decades, the re-emergence of bed bugs Cimex lectularius L. and Cimex hemipterus F. was reported worldwide, and the widespread of insecticide resistance is a significant factor involved in the current increase of infestations. In this scenario, the development of new insecticide formulations and the design of alternative strategies like repellents as well as attractants to develop proper monitoring, mass-trapping, and lure and kill tools are needed to tackle quick pesticide resistance development and to improve the efficacy of Integrated Pest Management programs against bed bugs and bat bugs.
... Bedbugs infest any kind of temporary accommodations, especially hotels, serviced apartments, and cause severe problems. A resurgence of bed bugs has been reported from the United States, Canada, Australia, Europe, and some Asian countries during the past 15 years (11)(12)(13)(14)(15)(16). The reasons for the explosion have not yet been clarified; however, several factors such as increased rate of international travel, reduced use of residual insecticides indoors, and insecticide resistance may play a role (17). ...
Background:
Bedbugs are blood feeding ectoparasites of humans and several domesticated animals. There are scarcity of information about the bed bugs population throughout Iran and only very limited and local studies are available. The aim of this study is to assess the phylogenetic relationships and nucleotide diversity using partial sequences of cytochrome oxidase I gene (COI) among the populations of tropical bed bugs inhabiting Iran.
Methods:
The bedbugs were collected from cities located in different geographical regions of Iran. After DNA extraction PCR was performed for COI gene using specific primers. Then DNA sequencing was performed on PCR products for the all 15 examined samples.
Results:
DNA sequencing analysis showed that the all C. hemipterus samples were similar, despite the minor nucleotide variations (within the range of 576 to 697bp) on average between 5 and 10 Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). Subsequently, the results were compared with the database in gene bank which revealed close similarity and sequence homology with other C. hemipterus from other parts of the world.
Conclusion:
In conclusion, this study has demonstrated the ability of the COI gene to differentiate between the C. hemipterus populations from a few different locations in Iran. The current research is the first report of phylogenetic and genetic species diversity analysis conducted on C. hemipterus in Iran. These results provided basic information for further studies of molecular epidemiology, public health and pest control operators in Iran.
... 7 A resurgence of bedbugs has been reported from the United States, Canada, Australia, Europe, and some Asian countries during the past 15 years. [8][9][10][11][12][13][14] The reasons for the explosion have not yet been clarified, however, several factors such as increased rate of international travel, reduced use of residual insecticides indoors, and insecticide resistance may play a role. 15 Recent reports are claiming that several species of arthropod pests have developed considerable resistance to available insecticides, posing great danger to human life and needing immediate attention. ...
... all around the world, 5 including Europe, 36,37 Africa, 38 South America, 39 Asia, 40,41 Australia, 42 and North America. 43 It is estimated that the resurgence of bedbugs has incurred severe economic losses which cost billions of dollars, 11 including 200 million AUD in Australia since the resurgence started in 2011. 44 The incurred losses were due to eradication charges, lost revenue, and discarded infested items. ...
The present study was aimed to assess the bedbugs susceptibility to pyrethroid insecticides using molecular analysis. With the aid of pest control companies, adult bedbugs were collected from various places such as hotels, residential houses, and industrial buildings in seven cities highly crowded with domestic and foreign tourists in Iran from May 2016 to August 2017. Bedbugs were colonized in the laboratory to evaluate their resistance to pyrethroid using insecticide resistance bioassay. Genomic DNA was extracted from susceptible and resistant bedbugs. At first, specie specific primers targeting cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) gene was performed to confirm Cimexhemipterus species. Then, kdr-like gene was examined for point mutation using PCR and nucleotide sequencing. Bioassay showed that 11 out of 35 examined bedbugs were resistant to pyrethroids (31.43%; 95.00% confidence interval: 29.48-33.08%). The DNA sequencing showed that all examined bedbugs collected from Tehran province had homozygous V419L kdr-like gene mutations. The level of pyrethroid resistance found in the collected bugs from Tehran province indicated that this phenomenon has already been prevailed in the site and prompts the need to reevaluate the large use of pyrethroids to control the bedbugs.
... Given these complexities, mistaken identification of C. hemipterus as C. lectularius may be common (Naylor et al. 2018), which may in turn lead to an underestimation of infestation rates and spread outside of the natural range. Cimex hemipterus infestations outside of the tropics/ subtropics have recently been reported, including records in Russia (Gapon 2016), Sweden (Naylor et al. 2018), France (Bérenger and Pluot-Sigwalt 2017), Italy (Masini et al. 2020), Japan (Komatsu et al. 2018), southern Australia (Doggett and Russell 2008), and the continental USA (Campbell et al. 2016). However, while infestations are reported, the establishment of populations capable of local or regional spread may be dependent on the climatic conditions. ...
... The discovery of C. hemipterus in Hawaii is evidence of this species' spread and potential to be introduced into new areas, such as southern states in the United States (Campbell et al. 2016). Further, with the discovery of infestations in temperate regions (Doggett and Russell 2008, Gapon 2016, Komatsu et al. 2018, Bérenger and Pluot-Sigwalt 2017, Naylor et al. 2018, Masini et al. 2020), the species may be able to persist in areas outside the typical tropical and subtropical range previously reported. Thus, presence of C. hemipterus within temperate regions may be more common than previously considered, however whether populations can truly establish is debatable. ...
In recent years, bed bugs have experienced a remarkable resurgence on a near global scale. While reports have primarily focused on the common bed bug, Cimex lectularius (L.), which has resurged largely in temperate regions, in tropical regions the tropical bed bug, Cimex hemipterus (F.) (Hemiptera: Cimicidae), has reemerged as well. Recent reports of C. hemipterus introductions to subtropical and temperate regions, outside of the species natural distribution, suggest the potential for establishment and further spread. Establishment may be aided by insecticide resistance mechanisms, such as the presence of knockdown resistance (kdr)-associated mutations, which potentially confer resistance to pyrethroid, pyrethrin, and organochloride insecticides. Here, we present the first report of the detection and likely establishment of C. hemipterus in Honolulu, Hawaii, from samples collected in 2009 and 2019. Furthermore, through partial sequencing of the voltage-gated sodium channel, we report the presence of kdr-associated mutations in all samples. These findings have implications for the implementation of control strategies aimed at eradicating infestations.
... Bed bugs have infested all manner of domestic spaces, including hotels and motels, shelters, youth hostels, dormitories, single family houses, and multi-family residential buildings (Wang et al., 2010;Wu et al., 2014;Gounder et al., 2014;Doggett and Russell, 2008) and pose significant public health and economic concerns (CDC and U.S. EPA, 2010). Although there is no evidence that bed bugs transmit diseases in the 'wild', they are competent vectors of at least two human pathogens that cause Chagas disease and trench fever (Salazar et al., 2015;Leulmi et al., 2015). ...
... Even when utilizing effective insecticides properly, challenges with pesticide resistance can occur. Insecticide resistance has been documented in bed bugs to pyrethroids (Romero et al. 2007, Doggett and Russell 2008, Zhu et al. 2010, Dang et al. 2015, neonicotinoids (Romero and Anderson 2016), and pyrethroid and neonicotinoid mixture products (Gordon et al. 2014). Insecticide resistance to conventional sprays of organophosphates (Jang et al. 2017) and several pyrethroids (Valles 1998, Wei et al. 2001, Kristensen et al. 2005 has been documented in several German cockroach populations. ...
Bed bug, Cimex lectularius (L.) (Hemiptera: Cimicidae), and German cockroach, Blattella germanica (L.) (Blattodea: Ectobiidae), infestations are commonly found in low-income housing communities and result in negative health effects and economic burden. Integrated Pest Management (IPM) has been shown to be an effective approach for
managing these pests, yet practice of IPM in housing communities is very limited. We evaluated the effectiveness of a contractor-led bed bug IPM program and researcher-led cockroach IPM program in a high-rise apartment building for 1 yr. A second apartment building that received conventional monthly pest control service was used as control.
The bed bug infestation rate decreased from 9% at 0 mo to 3% at 12 mo (63% reduction), even though the contractor only partially followed the IPM protocol; the German cockroach infestation rate decreased from 49% at 0 mo to 12% at 12 mo (75% reduction). In the control building, no monitors were installed in the infested apartments and the
apartments received cursory treatment services from an existing pest control contractor. The bed bug infestation rate increased from 6% at 0 mo to 12% at 12 mo (117% increase); the German cockroach infestation rate decreased from 47% at 0 mo to 29% at 12 mo (39% reduction). IPM is a much more effective approach for building-wide control of cockroaches and bed bugs than conventional pest control service. This study confirms the benefit of buildingwide IPM on pest reduction and challenges existed for carrying out IPM programs in low-income communities.
... During the last two decades, bed bug, Cimex lectularius L. (Heteroptera: Cimicidae), infestations have been increasingly reported all over the world ( Boase 2001, Hwang et al. 2005, Doggett and Russell 2008, Romero 2011). Multiple factors are involved in the bed bugs resurgence, including the rise in world travel and the trade of manufactures and secondhand products ( Romero et al. 2007). ...
Bed bugs have become a common urban pest with consequences on human health and economic costs to the hotel and tourism sectors. Insecticide resistance is considered an important factor in the current bed bug resurgence, and multiple resistance mechanisms could be working in the resistant bed bug populations. In the present study, we determined the resistance profile to four insecticides with a different mode of action in Cimex lectularius L. (Heteroptera: Cimicidae) field-collected colonies from Argentina. Furthermore, the synergism effect of piperonyl butoxide (PBO) with deltamethrin was investigated to explore the contribution of detoxification metabolism to resistance. Our results showed that most of the field-collected colonies are extremely resistant to deltamethrin and propoxur, much more than to azametiphos and imidacloprid. The differences in resistance ratios among field-collected colonies could be associated with different modes of action of insecticides used in control pest and the mechanisms involved in the resistance. PBO pretreatment led to a significantly decreased RR in pyrethroid-resistant colonies, suggesting an upturn of monooxygenase activity for deltamethrin detoxification. However, the high RR detected could involve other mechanisms as part of the whole resistant phenotype in colonies of C. lectularius resistant to pyrethroids.
... Bed bugs have infested all manner of domestic spaces, including hotels and motels, shelters, youth hostels, dormitories, single-family houses, and multifamily residential buildings (Doggett & Russell, 2008;Gounder, Ralph, Maroko, & Thorpe, 2014;Wang et al., 2010;Wu, Tracy, Barbarin, Barbu, & Levy, 2014), and pose significant public health and economic concerns (Centers for Disease Control [CDC] & U.S. Environmental Protection Agency [EPA], 2010). Although there is no evidence that bed bugs transmit diseases in the "wild," they are competent vectors of at least two human pathogens (Leulmi et al., 2015;Salazar et al., 2015). ...
Problem, research strategy, and findings: There has been a dramatic resurgence of bed bug infestations in the United States since the early 2000s. Bed bugs pose significant public health and economic concerns, but cities have been hampered in their response by the ambiguity of current public health and housing regulations toward bed bugs. In this study, I analyze municipal ordinances for more than 8,000 local governments, describe the responses of cities to the bed bug crisis, and examine the different approaches that cities have taken and the political–ecological processes underpinning these varying approaches. Few municipalities have addressed bed bugs in their codes. Most cities that have addressed bed bugs have sought to clarify that bed bugs are to be treated like other pests but, rather than crafting policies specific to bed bugs, have relied on existing code enforcement procedures. Only a handful of U.S. cities have taken a comprehensive approach to addressing the bed bug epidemic. Interests representing apartment owners have pushed back strongly against municipal and state action, complicating the response. It is still too early, and monitoring data are insufficient, to conclusively evaluate the success of municipal ordinances, but I describe potentially successful approaches based on considerations of public health response to infectious disease.
Takeaway for practice: Because human dwellings are the habitat of bed bugs, infestations are intimately tied to issues of housing affordability, insecurity and quality, eviction, and mobility. Cities should consider passing ordinances that specifically recognize bed bugs in the sections of their code that address public health, property maintenance, and landlord–tenant rights and responsibilities. Ordinances should be tailored to the specific challenges in addressing bed bug infestations and should include provisions for tenant protection, enforcement, and monitoring.
