New York and New Jersey pest control experts agree that bed bug infestations are a huge problem for travelers from coast to coast.  A hotel is particularly susceptible to bed bug infestations because hotel guests come and go.  Even with the best inspection procedures in place, a hotel can be bed bug free one day, and infested the next.  It only takes one pregnant female bed bug to cause an infestation in a hotel room that left untreated will quickly spread to other areas of the hotel.

WMBF News reported on January 2, 2011 that a family from North Carolina got more than they bargained for when they stayed the night at a hotel in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.  The family claims that they awoke to find what appear to be bed bugs crawling around the bathroom sink.  The hotel management was quick to move the family to a second room, but upon entering that room, the family claims that the same type of bugs were found in the doorway.  The family claims that when a third room was requested, they were told by the hotel’s manager that they must leave the property.  The video provided shows the bugs quickly scurrying around the sink, and it is difficult to identify if they are indeed bed bugs.  You may read the article and view the video here.

Bed bugs typically have a difficult time crawling around on slick surfaces because they have claws instead of pads on their feet.  These claws are used to climb and latch onto soft items so that they can easily again access to luggage, purses, backpacks, clothing, bedding, etc.

It is difficult to protect yourself fully from encountering bed bugs when you travel.  The key is to educate yourself about how to look for the bloodsuckers and know where they could potentially be hiding.  If you awake with red itchy bite marks on your exposed skin, it is very likely that bed bugs are present someplace in the hotel room.  NY and NJ pest control professionals recommend that you contact a pest control expert who is trained in bed bug removal services if you think you have encountered bed bugs while you travel.

It could be perhaps the biggest news to hit in 2012…never mind that 2012 just began!  It looks like New York City pest control professionals may be winning the battle against the creepy blood sucking vampires that attack each night.  2010 was a bad year for NYC bed bugs.  The unwelcomed guests appeared in courthouses, office buildings, retail stores, schools, libraries, college dorms, colleges, jail houses, hospitals, taxi cabs, nursing homes, hotels, motels, single family homes, and multi-unit housing units.  Not even the intimate apparel of Victoria’s Secret was off limits to these creepy little parasites in 2010.  With the help of NYC pest control experts, city residents and business owners went on full attack of the bugs to knock their numbers down.

In New York, it only takes one bed bug being found by an inspector to be issued a violation.  According to Crain’sNewYorkBusiness.com, bed bugs finally might just be losing their stronghold on residents of New York City.  New numbers just released by the Department of Housing Preservation and Development show a decline in bed bug reports in apartment buildings throughout all of the NYC boroughs except one.  Queens is the only borough that had an increase of violations reported, up 17 violations written from last year.

Reports of bed bug violations dropped by 344 instances in 2011 in NYC.  Additionally, New York City’s 311 help line received 22% fewer calls about bed bugs from January through November 2011 than they did in 2010.  You may read the article here.

If you use NYC as a gauge as to how bed bug infestations are affecting others in the United States, this decline is great news!  New York City pest control professionals believe that NYC bed bugs are a still a huge problem, but the fact that their numbers are going down rather than up could be an indication that the extensive work that NYC pest control experts are putting forward to eradicate the bloodsuckers in the city is working.

For expert bed bug removal services in NYC, New Jersey and New York, contact Stern Environmental Group.

New York City and New Jersey pest control professionals know first-hand how difficult it can be to treat bed bug infestations.  Creepy bed bugs will hide in the smallest of cracks and crevices and come out to feed during the wee hours of the morning when you are fast asleep.  No person is off-limits to a hungry bed bug and no hiding spot is off limits once they are finished feeding which is why these bugs are so difficult to locate.

Out of panic, many people choose to discard their mattress immediately upon discovering bed bugs.  This however will not solve the problem because bed bugs can and will live and breed in other locations within a room.

Mattresses, box springs, nightstands, dressers, curtains, floorboards, electrical outlets, headboards, books, picture frames, and carpet can all harbor bed bugs in a home.  Cluttered living spaces make for a perfect living environment for bed bugs as well.  Stern Environmental Group has many products that will help keep bed bugs from biting you at night so you will receive a good night’s sleep.

Whether you have bed bugs or not, it is highly recommended that you use a mattress encasement that is specifically designed to keep existing bed bugs from biting.  The Protect-A-Bed Mattress Encasement has a miracle membrane that won’t allow bed bugs to bite through the fabric.   Its seamless design means that bed bugs will not be able to hide within the piping or stitching areas on the mattress.  This mattress encasement’s easy installation, and the many sizes to choose from, makes it the perfect choice for homes and hotels alike.

You can find the Protect-A-Bed Mattress Encasements as well many other useful bed bug prevention, travel, monitoring, and treatment products available at Stern Environmental Group.

Could it be possible that we (humans) have actually helped the bed bugs ability to thrive inadvertently?  NYC and NJ Pest Control professionals think that it’s likely.

Bed bugs are a close cousin to bat bugs.  Bat bugs resided in caves thousands of years ago.  As humans became more adept at survival skills, we eventually stopped sleeping in makeshift outdoor shelters and instead moved indoors.  At that time, the shelter that we moved into was a cave.  Bat bugs, which were feeding upon the warm blood of cave bats, quickly developed a taste for human blood and the annoying relationship was born then that still exists today.

As cave dwelling humans grew more advanced in the skills, we can only assume that they had a desire to improve their living conditions.  Eventually more favorable living conditions were created outside of the caves.  The bad thing is that once the cave dwellers moved out, so did the bat bugs!

In order to feed properly, bat bugs had to adapt their feeding habits.  Instead of feeding during the daytime hours, like they were when they were feeding upon bats, they had to change to feed upon humans during the nighttime hours.  In addition, research has shown that bat bugs changed in other ways as well.  Because of the thickness of human skin, the bat bug had to change its length on its mandibles so that it could locate a blood vessel faster.  Additionally, the mandibles had to widen to support the platelets in our blood which is wider than those of the bats.  The widened mouthpart allowed the bed bug easy access to blood flow without the blood clogging in the blood vessel.

Humans moving into caves so many years ago, began the cycle of bed bug encounters.  Now is the time to rely on a NYC or NJ Pest Control professional like Stern Environmental Group for bed bug eradication services.

NYC pest control professionals expect to see a rise in bed bug incidents once people return to their homes after visiting family, friends, hotels, and motels.  Bed bug infestations throughout the United States continue to be on the rise.  These hard-to-detect bloodsuckers were once under control within the United States thanks to DDT, but they have slowly crept their way back into our lives.

The hustle and bustle of the holiday season may cause some people to let their guard down when it comes to looking for bed bugs.  NYC pest control professionals warn that bed bugs can put a damper on your holiday fun.  In the past, some retail stores have suffered bad publicity due to complaints about bed bugs.  Shoppers need to be aware that bed bugs can be lurking in clothing, boxes, or other packing material that is at a retail store.  All clothing that is purchased should be immediately placed in the dryer on high heat for at least 20 minutes to kill any hitchhiking bed bugs or their eggs.

Traveling is a difficult task during the holiday season, but it is exasperated because in addition to the presents that you tote along with you on your journey, you must also worry about picking up bed bugs along the way.  According to the National Pest Management Association’s report, 80 percent of pest control professionals say that they have treated hotels for bed bug infestations, which is up by 13% in comparison to last year.  Bed bugs are transient creatures that hitchhike from person to person, place to place to place.  A hotel can be bed bug free at one moment and infested upon the arrival of the next guest.

NYC pest control experts say that you cannot rely on hotel personnel to check for bed bugs for you.  It’s imperative that you look for bed bugs or the signs of bed bugs immediately upon checking into any hotel.  If you think you have taken any of these bloodsuckers home with you, contact a licensed pest control professional like Stern Environmental Group immediately.