“Bedbugs want to be as unnoticed as possible, which is why they retreat to the deepest, darkest crevices in your home, your apartment, or your hotel,” says Eric Braun, an Entomological Society of America–certified entomologist and technical services manager at the pest-control company Rentokil Terminex. “If they’re observed or spotted, they don’t have any means to escape quickly, with the exception of crawling back to the cracks and crevices where they came from.”
What Do Bedbug Bites Look Like?
It’s easy to mistake bedbug bites for bites from fleas or mosquitoes. That can make it tough to know if you have bedbugs in the first place.
- Small mark
- Slightly swollen red area
- In a straight line
- Random positioning
- Itching and irritation
Where Do Bedbugs Bite You?
The bites can show up on any part of your body that bedbugs can get to while you’re sleeping, including your back, neck, face, arms, hands, and legs. That’s a key difference between bedbug bites and flea bites, which tend to show up only around the lower legs and ankles.
Do Bedbugs Leave a Trail?
- Shedded skin that is translucent or light-colored, says Jerry Lazarus, owner of Braman Termite and Pest Elimination in New England
- Brown or red fecal spots, especially on mattresses or sheets
- Bedbug carcasses
Do Bedbugs Smell?
Bedbugs may have an odor, which Lazarus describes as sickly sweet, like the smell of rotting raspberries. Braun says that this smell usually only accompanies a serious infestation.
Some dogs may be trained to detect bedbugs, just as they sniff out drugs or bombs, he says.