Bed bugs get their name from the fact that they are closely associated with the bed and surrounding furniture such as wooden bed frames. Bed bugs range in size from 1 to 5 mm in size and come in grey to reddish brown in colour. Upon hatching, the nymph has a translucent colour which makes it difficult to see by the naked eye. These bugs will be visible after their first meal as a result of the blood entering their bodies
There are 5 stages before a nymph bed bug become full maturity and each stage requires a blood feeding. This process takes approximately 4 weeks. A female bed bug can lay 1 – 5 eggs per day and may deposit 300-500 eggs within her lifetime, thus multiplying population very quickly Eggs hatch in 7 to 12 days depending on the temperature and conditions.