Kissing bug

Kissing Bug

The kissing bug, scientifically known as Triatominae, is a family of insects found in the Americas, particularly in Latin America where they are known to transmit the potentially fatal Chagas disease. They are also known as cone-nose bug, blood sucker, or triatomines.

Description

Kissing bugs are named for their habit of biting humans on the face, particularly around the lips. They are typically dark brown or black, and have a cone-shaped head. The adult bugs can be up to an inch long.

Habitat

Kissing bugs are primarily nocturnal and hide during the day in a variety of places, including under porches, between rocky structures, under cement, in rock, wood, brush piles, beneath bark, in rodent nests or animal burrows, in outdoor dog houses or kennels, and in chicken coops or houses.

Feeding

Kissing bugs are hematophagous, meaning they feed on the blood of vertebrates, including humans, birds, and pets. They are attracted to their hosts by carbon dioxide, heat, and certain odors.

Disease Transmission

Kissing bugs are vectors for the Trypanosoma cruzi parasite, which causes Chagas disease. This disease can cause serious cardiac and gastrointestinal complications in humans.

Prevention and Control

Prevention of kissing bug bites involves sealing cracks and gaps around windows, walls, roofs, and doors, removing wood, brush, and rock piles near the house, and using screens on doors and windows.

See Also

• Chagas disease
• Vector (epidemiology)
• Hematophagy