Posts Tagged ‘bedbug’

Hope absence from first international summit on bedbug

October 3rd, 2010 by Tuan Thanh Nguyen

By Tuan Nguyen

The first ever international bedbug summit was organized last week in Chicago, Il. Organizers called it a success – it was sold out five weeks in advance with the attendance of hundreds of bug experts, exterminators and scientists – but all bug connoisseurs were puzzled over how to deal with the pest.

Some findings from the summit didn’t sound like good news at all:

  • Bedbugs are not only associated with squalor. Recent infestations were found in upscale hotels and resorts. Bedbugs spreading, in fact, have been assisted by air travel.
  • Bedbugs are not picky about the blood they swig and they can suck three times their size.
  • Starving isn’t a good tactic. Bedbug can endure long periods in cramped environments without eating or even moving. Yale scientist Joshua Benoit has a live bedbug he has fed once in the past two years and eight month.
  • It’s not cheap to call in professional to deal with bedbug. Home inspection can easily hit $1,000 and there is no guarantee that the insect won’t return.

This is not a good news for New York City, where bedbug complaints have risen 20 times over the last five years.