Who Bit Me? Identifying Bug Bites
Bug bites can vary from unnoticed, to annoying, to potentially dangerous. Sometimes you won’t even notice you’ve been bitten until you see the bite. Being able to distinguish bug bites is essential for you to apply the best remedy. It’s also an act of precaution: when bites from a certain type of bug or a variety of them occurs too often, it may be time to consider calling for pest control services.
Allergy to any of these bites will inevitably cause severe allergic reaction regardless of which insect administered it. Otherwise, here’s how to identify the most common types of bug bites.
MOSQUITO
Bites from these tiny vampires cause immediate swelling around the area bitten, and in the middle of the swelled portion there will be a tiny hole where the mosquito’s sucker pierced through your skin. When they suck blood, their saliva enters our blood stream and could potentially transmit deadly viruses.
FIRE ANT
If a fire ant bites you, trust us, YOU’LL KNOW. Each fire ant can bite more than once, and they often attack in swarms. Extremely aggressive, these ants will leave groups of tiny, red, swollen dots, sometimes even pus-filled, on your skin that can last to up to a week. Colonies are extremely difficult to get rid of and should only be done by a professional.
SPIDERS
Majority of the types of spiders have been reported to be venomous. Lucky for us humans, we’re somehow immune to some of them. The others however, can cause a stabbing pain, severe illness and even death. It would be easier to distinguish what type of spider bit you if you actually saw it, but symptoms such as fever, headaches, rashes, and even stomach upset can indicate if it was indeed a spider that bit you. Spider bites usually cause red swelling on the skin and two puncture marks, and take longer to heal than other insect bites.
BEDBUGS
Bedbugs don’t transmit any human disease, but are quite difficult to get rid of. They normally bite areas of the skin that are exposed during sleep, such as the face, arms, and feet. Their bites are small and pink, but tend to be in rows or groups.
FLEAS
Even households without pets can have fleas every now and then, especially if stray dogs and cats pass by. Human illness caused by fleas is highly unlikely, but the area around flea bites may become sore.
TICKS
The difference between tick and fleas are that the former are not limited to cats and dogs; they can feed off the blood of rodents, possums, reptiles, birds, and even humans. They are also capable of transmitting diseases to humans! Tick bites are usually easy to identify because, get this: the tick is still there, attached to your skin. Removing the head of the tick (not just the body) is important to help prevent risks of diseases.
While most bites are harmless and are itchy at most, scratching constantly may cause infection. Discover and deal with infestations while it’s still early; if you suspect an infestation, do not hesitate to call pest control to thoroughly check your home for you.
