IPM in the South

Initially, dry ice, hand warmers, and chemical lures may not seem to have much in common, but according to researchers at Rutgers University, together they make a good bed bug trap. According to a 2009 refereed article published in the Journal of Economic Entomology, an effective attractant for bed bugs may help detect early infestations or confirm that populations have been eliminated.

Bed bugs (Cimex lectularius) are small, flattened insects and are often confused with ticks and cockroaches. Adult bed bugs are oval in shape, just under ¼ inches long and reddish-brown in color. Although bed bugs travel well, they are typically reclusive and elusive. They prefer human hosts, but they will also feed on other warm-blooded mammals when humans are not available. They are primarily nocturnal and are most active one hour before sunrise, although they may feed any time of day or night.  Bed bugs can live for months with no food, so they are often found in unoccupied houses. Ironically, bed bugs can live anywhere, so they’re not just confined to bedding.

Bed bugs are challenging to control because they can live in almost any crack or crevice. Research in Virginia in 2005 found that chemical sprays killed only 50 percent of bed bug populations. Many IPM professionals recommend intense heat to eradicate bed bugs rather than chemicals. A 2009 Florida study led by entomologist Phil Koehler found that bed bugs can be killed at temperatures of 113 degrees Fahrenheit, hot enough to kill the insects but not damage items that may house the insects.

However, Rutgers entomologist Changlu Wang found that even after treatments of hot steam and insecticidal spray, special baited “pitfall” traps still caught small numbers of bed bugs—proof that some bugs had been able to avoid both the deadly heat and chemicals.

Wang and fellow researchers tested sources of CO₂, heat, and chemical lures to draw bed bugs out of hiding. The team created a pitfall trap consisting of a cup of dry ice, a hand warmer, and a chemical lure filled with octanol. Researchers tested several combinations of the three elements. According to the team’s findings, CO₂ was the most attractive to bed bugs, followed by heat.  In fact, in controlled studies, CO₂ in combination with either heat or the chemical lure trapped at least 50% of the bed bugs overnight, making it a cheap and effective way to detect even small bed bug populations.

The regional IPM Centers are currently working with the US Department of Housing and Urban Development to conduct IPM trainings for residents of multifamily housing. These trainings, developed under the Healthy Homes Initiative, teach residents, pest management professionals and housing managers how to prevent and control pests without increasing the risk of pesticide exposure.