Quantitative analysis of a modified feeding method and a study on behavior of dispersion, aggregation and movement of bed bugs, Cimex lectularius
Abstract
Bed bugs must obtain a blood meal in order to develop and reproduce. Though they can reproduce at an exponential rate in the field, bed bugs can be difficult to rear in the laboratory and options to feed bed bugs artificially (without a live host) are limited. The most widely used artificial feeding method utilizes an artificial membrane system and a circulating water bath to warm the blood (water bath method). Alternatively, bed bugs are fed directly on a human or animal host. The water bath method has several drawbacks including the possibility of flooding bed bug rearing jars (with water or blood) and the need for expensive, custom made glassware. In this study, a bed bug artificial feeding system using a hot plate and Petri dish (Petri dish method) was developed and compared to the water bath method. The Petri dish method is comparatively simple to use and showed comparable numbers of bed bugs that fed and production of adult bed bugs. Previous reports indicated that bed bugs communicate using a range of pheromones including alarm, aggregation, and mate recognition. Recently published studies on bed bug behavior are lacking, therefore, assays aimed at increasing our understanding of bed bug movement and aggregation were carried out. It is hoped that improved understanding of bed bug behavior will aid the development of alternative methods to monitor and control this pest. In the present study, experiments designed to better understand bed bug aggregation behavior were carried out. Bed bugs were inactive for ten days after being introduced into a test arena. After eleven days activity started to increase possibly due to insects becoming hungry and searching for food. Also female bed bugs tended to move around more often than males. In a separate study, behavioral assays were conducted to look for evidence that adult bed bugs leave a scent trail where they walk. A volatile chemical deposited on a substrate could help bed bugs locate conspecifics and return to harborage areas after foraging, however, the data did not support the hypothesis that bed bugs deposit a scent trail where they walk.
Degree
M.S.
Advisors
Saltzmann, Purdue University.
Subject Area
Entomology
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