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Author Topic: Insect Bites  (Read 4431 times)

Offline Tom Lowenhaupt

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Insect Bites
« on: October 11, 2011, 12:28:04 PM »
We're too familiar with bed bugs in my building, but lately we've seen another insect that's eating my wife. (Luckily they don't like me.)

The bites look like those of a mosquito but each bite gets worse - itchier - with time. But we don't see any mosquitoes. At least not the obvious type. We do see tiny - fruit fly size - flying bugs.

Anyone else getting odd bites?

Tom Lowenhaupt
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Offline bellabella

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Re: Insect Bites
« Reply #1 on: October 11, 2011, 12:43:52 PM »
could be fleas but most likely bedbugs. Sometimes they prefer one "host" over another. Look everywhere.
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Offline Shelby2

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Re: Insect Bites
« Reply #2 on: October 11, 2011, 11:06:54 PM »
I had what looked like a fruit fly flying around in my living room last night.  I found it strange that it was in the living room and not nearby any food.  It also landed on my arm at one point --which I also found uncharacteristic of a fruit fly.  I killed it when it landed on my arm so I don't know whether it was a biting insect or not.
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Offline dotley

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Re: Insect Bites
« Reply #3 on: October 12, 2011, 06:31:01 AM »
Sounds like fleas to me.  Bedbugs don't fly.
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Offline toddg

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Re: Insect Bites
« Reply #4 on: October 12, 2011, 07:45:22 AM »
I got some bites this week like Tom describes.  In my case, they were definitely late-season mosquitoes.

I saw a few unusual types of flies after the hurricane blew through.  Perhaps some are still kicking around.
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Offline Lilybell

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Re: Insect Bites
« Reply #5 on: October 12, 2011, 02:17:33 PM »
This always happens when summer turns to fall - I think it's tiny gnats that can get through screen gaps very easily.  I never notice when they bite me until I start itching the next day. 

You mentioned that they look like mosquito bites, which is good - bedbug bites look more like flea bites. 
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Offline marjorie

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Re: Insect Bites
« Reply #6 on: October 16, 2011, 04:32:30 PM »
Most probably are gnats. Bites resemble mosquito bites and are very annoying. Bedbug  bites are usually in clusters and yes, they do not fly.
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Offline missmarty

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Re: Insect Bites
« Reply #7 on: October 18, 2011, 09:20:37 PM »
I'm tormented by every type of bite too. I showed my sons bites to his doctor, who informed us that flea bites tend to be in little clusters.
We have the little gnat things on our houseplants. (A new occurance) Also, I recently found a small, narrow black bug that I think is the culprit. Haven't figured out what it is yet, but it isn't a flea or a bedbug. ( I brought one to the hardware store trying to find a spray to kill them.
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Offline Shelby2

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Re: Insect Bites
« Reply #8 on: October 20, 2011, 12:17:25 AM »
Quote from: missmarty on October 18, 2011, 09:20:37 PM
I'm tormented by every type of bite too. I showed my sons bites to his doctor, who informed us that flea bites tend to be in little clusters.
We have the little gnat things on our houseplants. (A new occurance) Also, I recently found a small, narrow black bug that I think is the culprit. Haven't figured out what it is yet, but it isn't a flea or a bedbug. ( I brought one to the hardware store trying to find a spray to kill them.


It's possible that a small narrow black bug could be a type of grain beetle, but I don't think grain beetles bite.
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Offline Lilybell

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Re: Insect Bites
« Reply #9 on: October 20, 2011, 12:15:12 PM »
I had some of those little black bugs too!  At first I panicked and thought they were bedbugs, but they are a bit too large.  There was a little group of them living under my favorite rug and I panicked and threw the rug away.  Which was stupid because it was ridiculously expensive and sentimental and I should have just had it cleaned. 
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Offline theplanesland

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Re: Insect Bites
« Reply #10 on: October 20, 2011, 08:10:49 PM »
If there are little black bugs living under a rug, they're probably carpet beetles. Go look them up. They don't bite, but you can be allergic to their shed skins, I think. We had a bunch living in our boxspring at one point and we thought, oh no! Bedbugs! But then we were relieved to find out we just had some carpet beetles. Got rid of them nonetheless.
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Offline Lilybell

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Re: Insect Bites
« Reply #11 on: October 21, 2011, 09:40:23 AM »
Thank you!  I just looked them up and that's what they were.  Yuck.  Luckily I didn't have too many and I haven't seen any since I chucked the carpet. 
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