With late spring firmly in place and summer on the horizon, it’s peak bug time. That means that you’ll probably be seeing more insects in your garden than usual. Bugs, butterflies, bees. The whole shebang. But you’ll also see an increase in negative pests too. And one of them is a bug whose popularity is on the rise. So let’s talk about the Florida kissing bugs.
Florida Kissing Bugs: Overview
The CDC reports that there are about eleven different species of this bug found in the southern United States but occur as far north as Pennsylvania. Kissing bugs are an insect that is primarily nocturnal. These are blood-sucking parasites that feed on many different species of invertebrates and vertebrates. They’re dark-colored, usually brown or black. But many of their species have red, yellow, or tanned markings in their abdomen. They’re roughly half an inch to a little bigger on average. The kissing bug is also called the conenose bugs from their conical-shaped head.
They’re attracted to bright lights, often being drawn inside homes through windows and doors because of this. They feed on your pets as well as humans, so having one hitchhike inside from the dog’s back isn’t uncommon. Otherwise, they can wiggle in through crawl spaces, cracks, gaps, chimneys, and open windows.
The Florida kissing bugs behave similarly to bed bugs. They live and deposit their eggs in cracks and crevices around man-made structures, and emerge at night to feed upon a sleeping host. They tend to bite near the face, eyes, and lips; hence the name “kissing bugs.” You’ll find them underneath porches and cement, in piles of wood, under bark, in outdoor dog houses, and many other places in nature. This is why you must get rid of any piles of debris near your home, as those may make an attractive place to live for this pest.
Do Kissing bugs spread disease?
Kissing bugs bite humans in their sleep, and their activity increases in the spring or summer. Unlike bed bugs, they split their time between indoors and outdoors. People with skin sensitivity may have an allergic reaction or be sensitive to the saliva of this pest. However, the bites themselves aren’t really dangerous on average.
But, there is something you do have to look out for. Florida kissing bugs carry the parasite that causes Chagas disease, a potentially fatal illness. The CDC recommends not attempting to touch or squash the bugs that you find. This would lead you open to catching the parasite carried by the pest. Instead, put a container on top of them, and fill it with rubbing alcohol to kill it. Freezing will work as well.
And should you so wish, bringing the captured pest into local health departments or university labs can aid in the identification of this insect.
What is Chagas disease
Chagas disease, as mentioned above, is caused by an infection with a parasite carried by the kissing bug. This parasite is known as the Trypanosama cruzi. The insects defecate during or after feeding, and if it’s close enough to a mucus membrane such as the nose, the parasite can enter the human body. Transmission can also occur from a pregnant mother to their fetus.
Once transmission has occurred, most people experience an acute illness phase with mild symptoms that goes unrecognized. Unfortunately, after four to eight weeks, or sometimes more, individuals enter the chronic phase, and parasites are not generally detected in the blood. Without treatment, an infected person will remain so for life.
Twenty to thirty percent of individuals who catch this parasite will experience clinical symptoms such as heart damage. This can lead to arrythymias, cardionyopathy, and death. And if the parasite manages to work its way into your digestive tract, it can lead to things such as megaesophagus or megacolon. The central nervous system may also be affected.
Infected individuals should report to the hospital or their family doctor for immediate treatment.
Florida Kissing Bugs: Infestation Signs
Kissing bugs are hard insects to track. They’re very reclusive and aren’t often seen out in the open during the day. These pests fly towards lights at night. Other than that, the only real sign you may have is their distinct bite pattern that they leave around your face and neck. The issue is, many other parasites would leave similar markings, and a physician would be needed to determine where the bites came from exactly. So really, the only real tell that you have them is the frequent reappearance of bites around your face and neck, but every time this bug crawls on you, you’re at risk of catching the parasite mentioned above.
How to keep this pest out of your home
As I said above, these are bugs that love junk and small cracks. So make sure to keep your home and its immediate surroundings clean and tidy. Caulk openings for utility lines, plumbing pipes, and cables that could provide easy access to your home’s innards. Also, change your porch lights to LED bug light bulbs. These are bulbs that provide yellow lights that flying insects and bugs can’t see. But, they also provide plenty of illumination without attracting things like moths, flying roaches, and horrible parasites.
Also, when entering and exiting your home, make sure your door is securely shut. This goes beyond kissing bugs, as you’d be surprised by the strength and ability of most pest insects to force a door open or squeeze through a small crack. And whenever your pet comes inside, comb or brush them regularly while inspecting their skin to make sure that they’re bug-free. And make sure that any weather stripping is repaired or replaced, as over time they tend to crack, become more brittle, and even peel away enough for bugs to squeeze through the gaps.
Otherwise, if you believe you have an infestation of Florida kissing bugs, consider consulting a professional. And if you have the choice, try one that uses natural methods of pest control, such as orange oil, which is markedly safer than outdated and dangerous chemical methods.
