In Brief: Buggy bedfellows
In Brief
Buggy bedfellows
You've probably heard about the return of bed bugs, those small, wingless bloodsucking insects that, as advertised, live around beds and like nothing more than a warmblooded companion to feed on at night.
Explanations for the comeback of Cimex lectularius include increased foreign travel, so bed bugs from overseas have more opportunities to hitch a ride into American homes on luggage and clothes of tourists. More limited use of pesticides may be another factor. "But these are just speculations," says Richard Pollack, a research associate at the Harvard School of Public Health and a bed bug expert. "Only the bedbugs know for sure — and they're not offering an explanation."
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