Knowing what to look for is the first step in identifying and controlling bed bugs. There are many bugs that look like bed bugs, so an accurate identification is a critical first step to avoid costly treatment for the wrong bug.

Bed bugs progress through three main stages: egg, nymph, and adult. The eggs take 6 – 9 days to hatch. Bed bug nymphs progress through 5 phases, or instars, before they reach adulthood. Between each instar, they must molt and take one blood meal. Adult bed bugs may live for 3 to 9 months, laying up to 6 eggs per day.

It’s not impossible to see a bed bug egg with the naked eye, but you’d have to look quite hard to spot them. Typical bed bug eggs are less than 1mm long. They are an elongated oval shape, like a piece of short-grain rice (though much smaller). Bed bug eggs are a whitish colour and slightly translucent. If you look hard enough, you may be able to see a small dark dot in one end.

Adult bed bugs look a lot like apple seeds. They are approximately the same size – between 4.5mm and 7mm long. They are the same colour as apple seeds – a deep mahogany brown, with hints of red.

Like their younger counterparts, adult bed bugs have six legs, two short antennae, and oval-shaped abdomens. Their bodies are very clearly segmented when viewed from above. This can help to distinguish them between other similar-looking bugs, such as spider beetles and carpet beetles.

In laboratory studies, it’s been found that adult bed bugs can live for up to 300 days – that’s almost 10 months. Pesticide treatment has been the most effective method of bed bug eradication for decades.