What the sources say
Bed BugCimex lectularius
Every figure, record and mechanism on the Bed Bug profile was written from a source, and this is the working table behind it: 41 claims checked word for word against these sources. The left column is what the page says. The right column is the source's own words, copied, not paraphrased; a ... marks a cut and[brackets] an insertion. Open any source and check it yourself.
Profile updated
Source
01
Stutt & Siva-Jothy 2001
Stutt & Siva-Jothy (2001). Traumatic insemination and sexual conflict in the bed bug Cimex lectularius. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
- The page saysThe flat, blood-drinking insect that mates by piercing the female's abdomen and can go months between meals.
- The source says
the male pierces the female's abdominal wall with his external genitalia and inseminates into her body cavity
Note: tagline, mating half - The page saysThe bed bug, Cimex lectularius, has a mating method called "traumatic" insemination.
- The source says
The bed bug, Cimex lectularius, has a unique mode of copulation termed "traumatic" insemination
- The page saysthe male pierces the female's abdominal wall with his genitalia and injects sperm into her body cavity.
- The source says
the male pierces the female's abdominal wall with his external genitalia and inseminates into her body cavity
Note: "external genitalia" shortened; "inseminates" glossed as injects sperm. - The page saysA 2001 study showed this costs females.
- The source says
traumatic insemination results in ... (iii) reduced longevity and reproductive success in females
Note: 2001 is the reference's year field. - The page saysTraumatic insemination reduced their longevity and reproductive success
- The source says
reduced longevity and reproductive success in females
- The page saysthe authors concluded that it is probably a coercive male strategy that results in a sexual conflict of interests.
- The source says
We conclude that traumatic insemination is probably a coercive male copulatory strategy that results in a sexual conflict of interests.
Source
02
Benoit et al. 2016
Benoit et al. (2016). Unique features of a global human ectoparasite identified through sequencing of the bed bug genome. Nature Communications.
- The page saysThey evolved an organ that reduces the physical trauma of mating, built from a dense patch of resilin, a super-elastic protein.
- The source says
Females evolved a novel organ that reduces the physical trauma of copulation by means of a dense aggregation of the super-elastic protein resilin
- The page saysThe bed bug genome shows a recent expansion in pro-resilin genes, the ones that build resilin.
- The source says
our genome analysis revealed a recent expansion in pro-resilin genes
Note: "the ones that build resilin" glosses pro-resilin. - The page saysUnlike most blood-feeding insects, bed bugs can survive long periods of starvation
- The source says
unlike most other blood-feeding insects, bed bugs can survive long periods of starvation between blood meals
- The page saysBlood is short on some vitamins.
- The source says
micronutrients that are deficient in vertebrate blood
Note: The paper names B vitamins as what Wolbachia supplies. - The page saysThe bed bug carries a bacterium called Wolbachia, which supplies a cocktail of B vitamins that are critical for its reproduction and development.
- The source says
Wolbachia provides the bed bug with a cocktail of specific B vitamins that are critical for reproduction and development
Source
03
Delaunay et al. 2010
Delaunay et al. (2010). Bedbugs and Infectious Diseases. Clinical Infectious Diseases.
- The page saysFed Females Are the Target
- The source says
Males preferentially direct their sexual interest to recently fed females
- The page saysMales prefer recently fed females, which undergo about 5 traumatic inseminations per feeding.
- The source says
Males preferentially direct their sexual interest to recently fed females, which undergo ∼5 traumatic inseminations per feeding
- The page saysAdults are reddish-brown, flat, wingless ovals of 4 to 7 millimetres, which one medical review compares to confetti.
- The source says
Adult C. lectularius and C. hemipterus are reddish-brown, flat, wingless ovals (4–7 mm) resembling confetti
Note: The review gives this for adults of both the common and tropical bed bug. CDC gives 1 mm to 7 mm across Cimex species. - The page saysNewly hatched nymphs are 1 to 3 millimetres long.
- The source says
yielding the nymphs, which are 1–3 mm long
- The page saysA review of the medical literature says both sexes of the common and tropical bed bug can survive 12 months without a meal, and 1.5 to 2 years in colder places.
- The source says
Both sexes are hematophagous and can live for 12 months without feeding and even 1.5–2 years in colder environments.
- The page saysEach adult female produces 200 to 500 eggs in her lifetime.
- The source says
Each adult female produces 200–500 eggs in her lifetime.
- The page saysEvery molt needs a blood meal, and with a host around a nymph can move up a stage every 3 to 7 days.
- The source says
Each molt requires a blood meal, which can last 10–20 min, to grow to the next stage every 3–7 days if a host is available.
Source
04
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
About Bed Bugs. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
- The page saysThe flat, blood-drinking insect that mates by piercing the female's abdomen and can go months between meals.
- The source says
Bed bugs ( Cimex species ) are small, flat insects. ... feeding on their blood. ... They can live several months without a blood meal.
Note: tagline, flat, blood and months half - The page saysNot Evaluated
- The source says
Bed bugs ( Cimex species ) are small, flat insects.
Note: The prefetch found no IUCN assessment DOI for Cimex lectularius and GBIF holds no category for it; no IUCN reference is cited. The quote only anchors the row, as in the fruit-fly precedent. - The page saysSurvives for months without a blood meal, and injects an anesthetic and an anticoagulant when it bites
- The source says
They can live several months without a blood meal. ... When bed bugs bite, they inject fluids (anesthetic and anticoagulant) that prevents a person from feeling the bite when it happens.
Note: stats.superpower - The page saysBed bugs feed on blood
- The source says
feeding on their blood
- The page saysA feeding bed bug injects an anesthetic and an anticoagulant, a chemical that stops blood clotting.
- The source says
When bed bugs bite, they inject fluids (anesthetic and anticoagulant) that prevents a person from feeling the bite when it happens.
Note: The clotting gloss defines anticoagulant. - The page saysMost people do not notice the marks until one to several days later.
- The source says
Most people do not notice the bite marks until they appear from one to several days after the initial bite.
Note: CDC says 'appear'; the body's 'marks until ... later' is the same statement. - The page saysA bed bug's slim, flat body slips into very small spaces.
- The source says
Their slim flat bodies allow them to fit into very small spaces.
- The page saysBy day it hides in spots such as mattress seams, bed frames, headboards and behind wallpaper.
- The source says
The bugs hide during the day in places on or around the bed. They can hide in The seams of mattresses Box springs Bed frames and headboards Dresser tables Inside cracks or crevices Behind wallpaper
- The page saysIt can travel over 100 feet in a night, yet tends to live within 8 feet of where people sleep.
- The source says
Bed bugs can travel over 100 feet in a night but tend to live within 8 feet of where people sleep.
- The page saysthe CDC says they can live several months without a blood meal.
- The source says
They can live several months without a blood meal.
- The page saysThe CDC, writing about Cimex bed bugs in general, says they turn up from North and South America to Africa, Asia and Europe, even in five-star hotels and resorts.
- The source says
Bed bugs ( Cimex species ) are small, flat insects. ... You can find bed bugs anywhere, from North and South America, to Africa, Asia, and Europe. Bed bugs are in five-star hotels and resorts.
- The page saysHow clean a place is does not decide whether they are there.
- The source says
How clean a place is does not determine whether bed bugs are present.
- The page saysThey ride in the seams and folds of luggage, clothes and furniture.
- The source says
Bed bugs spread by getting into the seams and folds of luggage, overnight bags, folded clothes, bedding, furniture, and anywhere else they can hide.
- The page saysThe CDC says bed bugs are not known to spread diseases to people.
- The source says
Bed bugs are not known to spread diseases to people.
- The page saysTheir bites can itch and cost people sleep, and rarely cause an allergic reaction.
- The source says
Bites can cause itching, loss of sleep, and, rarely, allergic reactions.
- The page saysdangerLevel: Low
- The source says
Bed bugs are not known to spread diseases to people. However, they cause irritation, itching, and loss off sleep.
Note: Low = a nuisance; bites itch, rarely allergic. - The page saysinjects an anesthetic when it bites
- The source says
When bed bugs bite, they inject fluids (anesthetic and anticoagulant) that prevents a person from feeling the bite when it happens.
Note: vibe.reason, animal half - The page sayswhose bite marks most people do not notice until one to several days later
- The source says
Most people do not notice the bite marks until they appear from one to several days after the initial bite.
Note: vibe.reason, animal half
Source
05
University of Florida IFAS Extension (EDIS)
Bed Bug, Cimex lectularius Linneaus (Insecta: Hemiptera: Cimicidae). University of Florida IFAS Extension (EDIS).
- The page saysHuman dwellings, bird nests and bat caves
- The source says
Human dwellings, bird nests, and bat caves are the most suitable habitats for bed bugs
Note: stats.habitat - The page saysBlood of people, chickens, bats and, occasionally, domestic animals
- The source says
blood-feeding parasites of humans, chickens, bats, and occasionally domesticated animals
Note: stats.diet - The page saysthe University of Florida lists people, chickens and bats as hosts, with domestic animals occasionally.
- The source says
blood-feeding parasites of humans, chickens, bats, and occasionally domesticated animals
- The page saysBesides homes, they live in bird nests and bat caves.
- The source says
Human dwellings, bird nests, and bat caves are the most suitable habitats for bed bugs
- The page saysAfter its eggs hatch, a nymph needs five molts to reach maturity.
- The source says
After five molts, which take approximately ten weeks, the nymphs reach maturity
Note: IFAS's 'approximately ten weeks' was cut: five molts at Delaunay's 3 to 7 days a stage (FAQ 3) is 15 to 35 days.
How the table was made: a writer drafted the profile from these sources and logged each claim with its quote, a reviewer with nothing but this table checked every sentence said no more than its quote, and a script confirmed each quote appears word for word in the source. The method is in the site'sAbout page.