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Home » Frass
Photo#1703802
Is this a bed bug?
Copyright © 2019 Toby Bartels

Is this a bed bug?
Lincoln, Lancaster County, Nebraska, USA
July 30, 2019
Size: 3 mm
I had some potentially infested clothing (and shoes) in a bathtub, and just after I bagged them to wash, I spotted this little fellow running away. I put it in a plastic food container and snapped a photo as close up as my phone could get.

Is this a bed bug? From its length, it would be a nymph if so. Compared to pictures here and elsewhere on the Web, it certainly looks similar. However, it seems too thin (even for a nymph), and the antennas don't have the outward crook that all of the pictures (even of nymphs) seem to have. Also, at the time that I took the picture, it could not have fed on blood in the previous 12 hours (although that would explain the thinness if it had fed).
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Contributed by Toby Bartels on 1 August, 2019 - 8:16am
Last updated 12 September, 2019 - 1:35pm

Frassed - not needed for guide.
Moved from ID Request.

Image is not clear enough to take the identification any further.
… Ken Allison, 12 September, 2019 - 1:36pm login or register to post comments

Not a bed bug :)
This is a perfectly harmless springtail. You can read about them here. Be sure to scroll down to the Remarks section for advice on dealing with springtails in the home.

Welcome to BugGuide!
… Ken Wolgemuth, 1 August, 2019 - 9:15am login or register to post comments

 
Thanks!
Thank you, Ken! I have since also had it suggested to me that it may be a thrips instead of a springtail. If we can be sure that it is a springtail, should I try to get this picture added to the gallery?
… Toby Bartels, 6 August, 2019 - 2:21pm login or register to post comments

 
It's definitely a springtail.
However, I doubt that any ID beyond order (Entomobryomorpha) will be possible from this image. I'd suggest sending it to Frass.
… Ken Wolgemuth, 6 August, 2019 - 2:40pm login or register to post comments

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