Bites & stings
Bed Bugs
Start with a specimen or physical evidence near a sleeping place.
Cimex lectulariusPhoto credit
A field guide collection
Bites & stings
Find physical evidence, reduce exposure and know when to get help.
Bites & stings
Fire Ants
Keep people and pets away from a suspected fire-ant nest and arrange identification without disturbing it.
Solenopsis invictaPhoto credit
Bites & stings
Fleas
Confirm a flea on an animal or in the environment, then coordinate veterinary care with cleaning where animals rest.
Ctenocephalides felisPhoto credit
Bites & stings
Lice
Head, body and pubic lice require different checks and responses.
Pediculus humanus capitisPhoto credit
Bites & stings
Kissing Bugs
Photograph a suspected kissing bug and keep it safely contained if this can be done without contact.
Triatoma sanguisugaPhoto credit
Bites & stings
Mosquitoes
Start with water-holding containers and protection from bites.
Aedes aegyptiPhoto credit
Bites & stings
Scorpions
Keep your distance from an unidentified scorpion and check likely contact points such as shoes, bedding and stored materials.
Centruroides sculpturatusPhoto credit
Bites & stings
Spiders
Most household and garden spiders are predators that can be left alone or moved out of the immediate activity area.
Parasteatoda tepidariorumPhoto credit
Bites & stings
Ticks
An attached tick needs prompt removal before identification work.
Ixodes scapularisPhoto credit
Bites & stings
Wasps
A foraging wasp, a solitary mud nest and a busy social colony need different responses.
Polistes dominulaPhoto credit