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Mystery bug found in mattress - Austin, TX #858371
Asked February 02, 2024, 5:12 PM EST
What is this tiny creature? I was vacuuming my mattress and the vacuum pulled some tiny black and brown specks through the mattress protector. I have a microscope I use as a hobby so I put a couple of these items on a slide and looked at them under 100x magnification. I took some pictures with my iphone through the microscope, I hope they’re clear enough to be identified.
This looks to me like some kind of larva or pupa but I have no idea what the organism would be and why it’s in my mattress. I have dogs so it’s possible they tracked something in from the yard but I really have no idea what I’m looking at and how concerned I should be about it. It looks like there might be eggs on one end too? Yikes. I have a mattress protector that’s supposed to protect it from bedbugs but these things are small enough to fit through the weave of the waterproof fabric material. I’m attaching some pictures so you can see their size (slide and cover glass for scale) and what they look like close up. I am a little creeped out and I’d appreciate some help! Thank you!
Travis County Texas
Expert Response
Hi, Erika
I would be creeped out, too. I'm sorry you must deal with this.
How many photos did you attach? I received 3 and all 3 are too close to see the entire thing.
If I get an image that shows the entire creature, I'll reach out to our entomologist. However, it's possible she may not be able to identify just a larvae. It is something, it appears, because I can see the hairs.
I doubt you can see bedbug larvae from vacuuming, but anything is possible. However, if you have bedbug larvae (my instinct isn't leaning that way) them you would have adults. Lift you mattress and shine a flashlight under. Inspect all the sewn crevices. Also check in the middle of the night when they would be active. Another sign is they will leave tiny, dark specks on the fitted sheet. When they feed and you move around, it crushes them. It's all not pleasant, but it's also to say, you may not have them.
You say you have a mattress protector that should protect against bedbugs, but these things came from the fabric weaving. I wonder if what you are referring to is a dust mite protector... which would also protect against bedbugs since dust mites are smaller. What is sold in most stores as dust mite protectors, are truly not weaved small enough. If you contact an allergy doctor, they should be able to provide you with some companies that sell quality dust mite mattress covers that do have a tight enough weave. They range from $120-200.
Even still, bedbugs will still congregate under the mattress, along the seams, and in any small space whether fabric, wood or other material, so thr mattress.
There are only so many things that would take residence near a mattress. My next suspicion is flea larvae. Here is a link to see if any of these match the description.
https://pestweek.com/tiny-worms-in-bed/
Let me know what you think or if you have a photo of the entire insect.
