Articles from the Summer 2006 issue of AE

It’s difficult for the lay person to get access to research articles. I’m always glad of free resources and, in case you share my problem and interest, want to point out some bed bug articles you may have missed.  

Check out the Summer 2006 issue of American Entomologist which is available online for free. There are several articles in this issue, an ‘instant symposium’ on bed bugs, the product of the intense interest of the 2005 ESA meeting.

This is the Table of Contents (PDF) and these are the articles:

Instant Symposium
Not Letting the Bed Bugs Bite…Bed, Lab, and Beyond (PDF)
Brian J. Cabrera and C. Kathleen Heinsohn

Bed Bugs 101: the Basics of Cimex lectularius (PDF)
Harold J. Harlan

The Perfect Storm: An Extension View on Bed Bugs (PDF)
Michael F. Potter

Bed Bugs in America: A Pest Management Industry Survey (PDF)
J. Gangloff-Kaufmann, C. Hollingsworth, J. Hahn, L. Hansen, B. Kard, M. Waldvogel

Bed Bugs: A Systemic Pest Within Society [plus a second article: Nonchemical Control of Bed Bugs] (PDF)
Stephen A. Kells:

I suspect that educating the public about prevention will be the most cost-effective procedure; however, the extent to which this information will be absorbed and used by people is unknown.

Bed Bugs – Still More Questions Than Answers: A Need for Research and Public Awareness (PDF)
Richard Cooper:

Does the presence of pesticides have any effect on host seeking behavior? In many cases, after a single application of pesticides, individuals will stop getting bitten for several weeks, despite the fact that bed bugs are still present in the environment. If pesticides are not re-applied, the clients typically begin getting bitten again 4-5 weeks later. Why is this happening?

Efficacy of Bed Bug Control Products in Lab Bioassays: Do They Make It Past the Starting Gate? (PDF)
Robin G. Todd

Foraging and Communication Ecology of bed bugs, Cimex lectularius L. (Hemiptera: Cimicidae) (PDF)
E. D. Siljander

Endosymbiotic Bacteria of Bed Bugs: Evolution, Ecology and Genetics (PDF)
Joyce M. Sakamoto and Jason L. Rasgon

I’m not sure if it would interest you but I recommend the Siljander, if only for the laundry list of substances that have been tested. Earwax. Nope, not kidding.

I guess I should say that there’s been a more recent pest management survey that is pretty much a must read. Though not a happy read.

These pages may be of related interest:

1. The wandering females
2. Bite sensitivity, ciao Johnson, post-feeding behavior, signals and more: ESA meeting abstracts
3. Walking bed bugs
4. New study of bed bug bites suggests most people do react
5. Johnson’s hut, part 1.75