Kissing bugs have that name because their bites are often found around the mouth. They usually hide during the day and are active at night when they feed. They can go for weeks without feeding.
If found inside the home, kissing bugs are often in: Bedrooms; under or near mattresses or night stands. Near pet beds. Areas of rodent infestation.
The bugs might hit anywhere on the body, including the face, head, arms, and feet. Kissing bugs are so named because they like to bite around the mouth or eyes. You'll often see 2-15 bite marks in one area and maybe redness and swelling.
Their bites are gentle and painless, and usually occur while the victim is asleep. They are generally unable to bite through clothing. On humans, blood meals are sometimes taken from the tender areas of the face (hence the name “kissing bug”).
Kissing bugs can be attracted by light. Consider turning off lights near homes and kennels at night. Kissing bugs may live with rodents. Discourage kissing bugs and rodents by removing yard debris and keeping vegetation low.
Sealing cracks and gaps around windows, walls, roofs, and doors. Removing wood, brush, and rock piles near your house. Using screens on doors and windows and repairing any holes or tears. If possible, making sure yard lights are not close to your house (lights can attract the bugs)
Only citronella oil was able to stop all probing and feeding by T. rubida. Citronella oil appears to be a promising potential repellent to prevent sleeping people from being bitten by kissing bugs.
Kissing bugs can cause patches of bites, often around the mouth. The bites are usually painless, but they may swell and look like hives. Itching from the bites may last a week.
It's best to NOT squish a bug, but sometimes it happens! After the bug is squished, do not touch the bug with your bare hands. The T. cruzi parasite may be in the feces of kissing bugs, and their bodies may have the parasite on them.
Indeed, wheel bugs and a few other true bugs continue to be misidentified on social media as kissing bugs. Two of the most common faux-kissers appearing on social media are boxelder bugs (Boisea trivittata) and western conifer seed bugs (Leptoglossus occidentalis).
The life span of kissing bugs in North America is approximately a year, perhaps longer for the large southern species, Triatoma recurva. In the temperate zone, there is usually one generation per year, whereas in Mesoamerica and parts of tropical South America, several generations of bugs may occur within a year.
Chagas disease is an emerging disease in Australia. GPs are best placed to offer opportunistic Chagas disease screening to those at risk from endemic regions as they are likely to be the first point of contact.
Kissing bugs are most commonly encountered during their dispersal season, May through July, as adult kissing bugs fly towards homes attracted by lighting (Wood 1950, Ekkens 1981). Some species actively seek out humans and domestic animals to feed on.
Kissing bugs can enter your home through: Crawl spaces. Exposed cracks. Gaps around patio doors.
Kissing Bugs or Conenose Bugs are similar in habits to Bedbugs, but when fully grown are much larger and have well developed wings. Adults can be up to 3/4 inch in length.
Kissing bugs are bloodsuckers and seek out mammals including dogs. Dogs eat bugs and will snatch up kissing bugs.
Treatment. To kill the parasite, Chagas disease can be treated with benznidazole or nifurtimox. Both medicines are fully effective in curing the disease if given soon after infection at the onset of the acute phase, including the cases of congenital transmission.
Only adult kissing bugs have wings and can fly. All kissing bugs feed on blood throughout their life. Kissing bugs can feed on people, dogs, and wild animals. They feed many times over their lives.
Clove, peppermint, thyme, rosemary, and citronella oil are just a few essential oils that can help keep bugs away.
Most Vicks products include trace amounts of menthol as a primary ingredient. Menthol, like the aforementioned linalool, is naturally produced from mint plants. Therefore, bed bugs will react to the scent of Vicks the same way they would react to the scent of lavender.
Chagas disease is endemic in 21 countries in the Americas, and affects approximately 6 million people. In the Americas, Chagas disease show an annual incidence of 30,000 new cases average, 12,000 deaths per year, and approximately 9,000 newborns become infected during gestation.
In Australia there were 116,430 persons born in endemic regions in 2011, a 46% increase since 1997, not including adoptees, visitors or second-generation immigrants. Epidemiological models suggest that 2000–3000 persons could be infected but 95% of cases remain undiagnosed.
During this time, most people are unaware of their infection. Many people may remain asymptomatic for life and never develop Chagas-related symptoms. However, an estimated 20–30% of infected people will develop severe and sometimes life-threatening medical problems over the course of their lives.
One subfamily of assassin bugs feed on vertebrate blood, and some spread the debilitating and sometimes fatal chagas disease. But these 'kissing bugs' do not occur in Australia, and the species found here are minor pests at best.