Bed Bug Eggs Pictures: Identifying How the Eggs Look Like

Yes, looking at bed bug pictures might help you in identifying the adult ones but looking at pictures of their eggs will help you determine if you should expect another treatment any time soon. This is something you should consider doing especially if you are resorting to the use of chemicals against these critters.

However, you could save yourself from all the worries if you considered using heat treatment. This treatment is an effective solution that will kill not only the adults but also the eggs. 

If you are unfamiliar with what a bed bug egg looks like, then here are some characteristics that you can keep in mind. Bed bug eggs are smaller than the adult bug and are about the same size as a grain of salt or a pinhead.

It has a pearl-white colour and is usually found in clusters. A sticky substance is usually covering these eggs, which makes them stick to any surface wherever the female decides to place them on.

Look at some of the close-up pictures of these critters’ eggs:

In this image from sports.yahoo.com, you will see that each egg has an eyespot. Not all insect eggs have this characteristic. Once you notice these grain-like things on any corners, you can assume that you have bed bugs living in your home.  

Notice the differences of these eggs from the first 6 days till it reaches 10 days in this image from Disinpest.com. As days pass, they are more ready to hatch and become nymphs that can already suck the blood out of you.

In the image from Griffin Pest Solutions, you will notice the difference in size between a full-grown bed bug, nymphs, and eggs. The side by side comparison will help you identify how small these eggs are. As you can see, the eggs are smaller than the nymphs while the adult bugs are reddish-brown and are oval-shaped.

With the image above from Bed Bug Bites, you will notice that the eggs are shiny. You can easily tell if the eggs are hatched or not depending on their shine and fullness. Unhatched eggs are usually full and shiny while empty eggs or most likely the eggshells are flat and dull in colour.

This image from pestkill.com includes a millimetre scale. You can see the difference between full eggs from hatched eggs. It is also showing how a hatching egg looks like, the viable eggs, and the nymph.

These photos will give you an idea of how the eggs look like and help you determine whether a reinfestation is about to start, or your treatment is doing well.

A female bed bug will start to lay eggs about 3 or more days after her blood meal. In a week, a female can lay around 8 eggs. They can lay as many as 12 eggs each day.

When you are planning to kill bed bugs, you should include killing the eggs. These are usually laid in areas where they will not be disturbed until they hatch. Because of the sticky secretions that come with the eggs, they are sure to stay in place unless you find them and kill them before they hatch. 

In a span of 6 to 16 days, the eggs will start to hatch, and the nymphs will feed off you immediately. Once they reach the adult phase, they can stay alive for long periods even without feeding.

Their life span is about a whole year or a year and a few months. In one year, without treatment, they can produce a total of 3 generations and infest your entire home and affect everyone’s life.

Because of the tragic way of mating, females are known to lay lesser eggs when they are not able to get enough time to recuperate. Females require a lot of time for their healing process and for them to produce more eggs. A female that mated many times will produce 75% less than a female that only mated once. 

This is the main reason why females tend to move to other places to get more food before they can lay eggs. They usually opt for places where there are fewer males to mate with. Since a female can keep the eggs for a maximum of 6 weeks, it gives her enough to move places and find a place for laying eggs. 

The most common areas where you should check for eggs is the bed frame since it is where the adults prefer staying to get easy access to their food source. It makes feeding easier as well.

When inspecting, check the bed sheets, mattress, and box spring. Their hiding spots can also include any furniture near the bed. Check all narrow spaces where these eggs can be stuck and are not easily seen. 

One way to effectively kill the eggs is by using heat treatment. We recommend the use of heaters or steam cleaners. The use of ZappBug Heater or BRIO 225CC.

These are effective products that can help you in heat-treating various items conveniently. Other products we recommend are:

To make sure that remaining eggs that may hatch in a few days will not spread further, you can apply diatomaceous earth in all cracks and crevices. Once the nymphs get in contact with the powder they will die after a few days. Thus, preventing a possible reinfestation.

We also recommend the use of bed bug active monitors to keep track of their presence even after treatment. Some of these are:

Dealing with bed bugs requires combining the use of different products. This way, you can guarantee that all traces of the bugs are killed and not a reinfestation is prevented.