Do Bed Bugs Have Wings? Debunking Myths & Facts in 2024

Do Bed Bugs Have Wings?

No, bed bugs don’t have flying wings! It may look like they’re trying to grow wings, but they’re wingless bugs. Maybe if Red Bull drank wings instead of blood! But sadly no. Bed bugs are crawling creatures. They have six legs to get around. The only way these bugs can fly is to have it on an aircraft.

While their prehistoric ancestors may have wings, modern bed bugs have wing pads that do not develop and are not suitable for flights. Bed bugs also can’t jump, so they rely on climbing or crawl to reach the host.

Every year, bed bugs cause misery for thousands of people worldwide. If you’re one of them, it’s important you take action to get rid of them as soon as possible. Although this job is not simple and may even require a pest control expert’s assistance, The Bug Squad has a range of guides to support you wherever possible, and I urge you to check them out if you are battling an infestation. However, in this post, we’re going to address a very frequent question I get from my readers about flying bed bugs. Will bedbugs fly in? Let’s know!

Bed Bug Identification Tips

Illustration bed bugs have thin, flat, oval-shaped bodies. You’re wingless. Adults have wing vestiges called wing pads, but they don’t completely grow into usable wings. Adults are colored brown, while their bodies redden after feeding. Full-grown bed bugs move very slowly, measuring 4-5 mm. Homeowners often misunderstand that bed bugs are too small to see naked. The nymphs may be small and hard to see, but with the naked eye, the adults are detectable and can be found in the cracks and crevices they hide.

What Do Bed Bugs Look Like?

Bug eggs are white, pear-shaped. When they first hatch, bed bugs are transparent and color lighter. When they mature, they get browner. Adult bed bugs are red-brown, flat, oval. Looking closely, you can see tiny, golden-colored hairs. Bedbugs aren’t wings. They offer a musty, sweet scent. They’re bloated and dark red after feeding.

Do Bed Bugs Have Wings And Can They Fly?

Busted Bed Bug Myths That You Can Share With Friends

You may have read about bed bugs having wings online, so it’s a fair assumption they should be able to use them for flight. Do bed bugs use them? No, the fact is that once fully grown, an adult bedbug has only wing pads, which cannot be used for flight. They appear just above the abdomen, under the head, and as you see in the picture, they’re very small. Only note that nymphs (baby bed bugs) don’t even have wing pads on their body so it’s not a perfect way to spot bedbugs. Thanks to Ecologic Entomology for the great picture showing these pads.

Can Bed Bugs Fly And Do They Have Wings?

Bedbugs travel. False, this myth was addressed in this post, please let me know if you have any questions in the comment section below and I’m happy to help. You can just find bed bugs on your mattress. False, they’re often found in your room, so if you find an infestation in your bed, make sure you investigate other areas too! Bedbugs only eat at night. Fake, they feed whenever hungry. If you’ve taken a daytime nap on a bed with many bed bugs, they’ll come for you! A bedbug spray is enough to kill them. False, unless the infestation is extremely small, most sprays will not be enough and can cause more problems if misused.

The Bug Squad has a good bed bug spray guide to read for more details on this subject. Bugs hop around your house. Fake, bedbugs don’t hop like other insects (fleas, etc.) In conclusion, bedbugs do not fly or leap to their desired destination. Though not very mobile, however, they can fly long distances by “catching a lift” with humans, either on your body or in your personal belongings. Lastly, despite having wing pads, they can’t fly them and if you see a bug flying around your bedroom, be confident that it’s not a nasty bed bug. I hope you enjoyed my article and please consider sharing this article on Facebook, etc. Thank you for reading!

How Do Bed Bugs Get Around So Easily? Let’s Find Out.

Do Bed Bugs Have Wings?

Whether you’re living in a big metropolitan area or only traveling, you’re now more likely to meet them than you’ve been at most in the last 50 years. Although bedbugs aren’t deadly, they’re irritating. Moreover, spreading a bed bug infestation is easy, since it’s easy to move and hard to kill.

Do Any Species Of Bed Bugs Fly?

Busted Bed Bug Myths That You Can Share With Friends

Bedbugs spread easily from room to room, house to house, and even building to building. How do such small insects make such large journeys? One of the most popular bed bug myths is flight myth Many people are afraid of the possibility of bed bugs flying in and around their house.

How Did Bed Bugs Lose Their Wings?

No bedbug species have wings. That’s why they can only fly on an airplane. There are comparable organisms. Bat bug, swallow bug, lice, and carpet beetles are all related species to bed bug; but none of them has wings.

Busted Bed Bug Myths That You Can Share With Friends

Bugs that can fly have three sections: head, thorax, and abdomen. Wings are normally attached to thorax muscles. Bugs normally fold over their abdomen when not in use. They can shell them like a ladybug. Bedbugs have head, chest, and abdomen. They have a shell, though it’s not sturdy and shiny, and can’t open shells like other bugs can. They have no wings attached to their thorax (or anywhere else). They have one aspect of their flying anatomy, however. They also have small thorax muscles where wings will normally connect. An evolutionary leftover. Ancestor species of bedbugs used to fly.

But centuries ago they got rid of their wings. They were able to hide in smaller cracks without messing with their wings. Therefore, bedbugs have wing muscles, but no wings. You can’t see them with the naked eye. You’d need a microscope to spot. But bed bugs have no wings, and never try to fly any other way. The initial ancestors of bedbugs possibly fed on plant sap. There are already thousands of species resembling bed bugs. Some species began feeding on animals, and that’s where bed bugs evolved. Bedbugs’ ancestors took bats to eat, and only bats. They lived in caves the bats roosted. Here, they were protected from the weather and had hosts they could snack on. The problem was bats eating bugs. So, if a bat ever saw one of those bugs crawling or feeding, it’d eat it immediately. They needed to change to be safer.

They started hiding in the cracks of the caves they lived in. They learned to flatten their bodies. But their wings were in the way. They’re probably scraped and hurt. But this didn’t matter as the bugs didn’t fly anywhere. Over time, bugs without wings had an advantage. They could fit in tighter spaces, and wouldn’t get hurt to crawl inside. When people started living in caves, they started feeding on us instead. As several different species of household insects and rodents have wings and can fly, this draws attention to having much brainstorming belief that bed bugs can fly, causing discomfort to thousands of people worldwide.

Infestation of bedbugs requires a crucial measure to eradicate them as soon as possible. Pest control and home remedies are required to combat infestation of bed bugs. The immediate explanation why bed bugs fly is their smooth movement from place to place. This article discusses and tests the bug’s ability to fly commonly asked question. Have bedbugs wings? They can fly? Let’s know!