Bed Bugs Vs Carpet Beetles
Sometimes it could be a real struggle to figure out where the pests are coming from, why they have shown, and most importantly how to get rid of them as some of them are incredibly mysterious. Any type of pests can cause every London homeowner a lot of stress and cost a lot of money, trying to deal with them on their own. In fact, bed bugs and carpet beetles are among the most confusing pests in London.
Bed bugs and carpet beetles have enough similarities that can confuse people. But these two pesky pests are quite different. When you want to deal with pest-related issues on your own it is really important to be able to tell them apart so you can handle them accordingly. In this blog, the London exterminators from Archers Pest Control will share with you the difference between them and how Archers Pest Control can save you and your home from both.
Bed bugs and carpet beetles have enough similarities that can confuse people. But these two pesky pests are quite different. When you want to deal with pest-related issues on your own it is really important to be able to tell them apart so you can handle them accordingly. In this blog, the London exterminators from Archers Pest Control will share with you the difference between them and how Archers Pest Control can save you and your home from both.
Carpet Beetle Vs Bed Bugs: Characteristic, Behaviour and Appearance
Carpet Beetle
Carpet beetles have oval shape bodies. Adult carpet beetles can reach up to 4mm long. Depending on their type these pests may vary in colour. Common carpet beetles have yellow, black and white patterns, while the furniture beetles are black with yellow spots. Black carpet beetles like their name suggest are very dark brown to black. The carpet beetle larvae are black, hairy and slightly bigger than the adults.
Usually, carpet beetles can enter your home through open windows, doors, or even from infested furniture or other objects brought inside. These pests can hide in places near food sources such as hair, fur, dead skin cells and of course carpets and rugs. This means carpet beetles are capable of destroying anything that's made of organic fibers and other organic products.
Usually, carpet beetles can enter your home through open windows, doors, or even from infested furniture or other objects brought inside. These pests can hide in places near food sources such as hair, fur, dead skin cells and of course carpets and rugs. This means carpet beetles are capable of destroying anything that's made of organic fibers and other organic products.
Carpet Beetle Life Stage
- Eggs - Their life stage starts with the egg stage. Female carpet beetles prefer to lay their eggs indoors, but however, they can thrive outside. In many cases, if a female carpet beetle finds a rodent or bird nest, they can breed too. The eggs are white and can reach up to 0.5mm in length with an oval shape. In this stage, the carpet beetle infestation is hard to detect. Their eggs could be found anywhere around carpets and other fabrics. Usually, the eggs hatch in about 2 weeks when the room temperature is 24-26 C.
- Larvae - Carpet beetle larvae reach up to 0.6 in length. They have oval shape bodies. The varied carpet beetle larvae have black and white stripes and hair on their bodies. The black carpet beetle larvae are dark brown to a black color and are not covered with bristles. The furniture carpet beetle larvae are usually white but during growth, they often change their colour into red and also have brownish stripes across their bodies.
- Pupae - Next stage is when larvae grow into pupae. Depending on the temperature the pupal stage can last between 2 and 3 weeks. During this period the larvae hibernate and develop in a white cocoon. In fact, carpet beetle pupae emerge into adults during spring and summer seasons. The pupal stage happens near the larval source of food.
- Adult- Carpet beetles reach the adult stage for about 9 months up to 2 years. When carpet beetles become adults, they could possibly survive only a few months. They are less harmful than larvae. Carpet beetles can easily enter your home through open doors and windows by flying inside.
Bed Bugs
Adult bed bugs are wingless insects and their size is around 5mm. When unfed their colour is yellowish or brown but after a full feed, they become dark brown. As any bed bug exterminator in London would know, bed bugs feed on blood to survive, so they go where humans or even animals live. A single female bed bug is able to lay up to 10 eggs per day and 300-500 eggs in its lifetime. These pesky pests have 5 immature nymph stages and a final mature adult stage. In fact, they need at least one blood meal in order to proceed to the next stage of development. Bed bugs also shed their skin every time they grow.
Bed Bugs Life StageAdult bed bugs are wingless insects and their size is around 5mm. When unfed their colour is yellowish or brown but after a full feed, they become dark brown. As any bed bug exterminator in London would know, bed bugs feed on blood to survive, so they go where humans or even animals live. A single female bed bug is able to lay up to 10 eggs per day and 300-500 eggs in its lifetime. These pesky pests have 5 immature nymph stages and a final mature adult stage. In fact, they need at least one blood meal in order to proceed to the next stage of development. Bed bugs also shed their skin every time they grow.
- Eggs - As we previously mentioned a female can lay up to 10 eggs in places where they usually hide. The eggs are yellowish or white in color and about 1 mm long. Some 300 eggs can be found in cracks and crevices of buildings and furniture. The eggs usually hatch after 8-11 days.
- Nymph - The newly hatched bed bug is pale yellow in color and resembles an adult but is much smaller in size. There are 5 nymphal instars. This period commonly lasts for 5-8 weeks.
- Adult - Adult bed bugs can live 6-9 months without food and they can also withstand a long period of starvation up to 500 days. Under laboratory conditions, adult bed bugs may live up to 4 years.
For more information, check out our Pest Library and learn how to identify different pests that may infest your property.
