CONENOSE BUGS
Conenoses are blood-feeding insects common in the
foothills and deserts of California. They
are of medical importance because they sometimes bite humans. The
bite from California species is painless and usually results in a localized
reaction. In a person who has been sensitized by previous bites the
injected saliva may cause a severe reaction requiring medical attention. Most
of the bites occur in the home, often when the person is asleep, and most often
during the late spring and summer months. If
the bite produces a severe reaction, see your doctor. He
may prescribe medicines to reduce the reaction or recommend desensitization
antigens.
The
most common conenose is the Western Bloodsucking Conenose, Triatoma
protracta. This conenose is a dark
brown flattened insect 3/4
inch in length with an elongated head. Other conenoses in California (T.
rubida uhleri and Paratriatome hirsuta) are similar but lighter in color.
The
eggs of conenoses are laid in nests of animals, such as wood rats.
Immature insects require
a blood meal each of the five times they molt. The young resemble their parents except that they
are smaller
and have no wings. Certain non blood-feeding bugs similar in 
size and shape to
conenoses may inflict painful bites. One of the most common, the Western
Spotted
Corsair (Rasahus thoracicus) is orange and black, with an orange
spot on each wing. Triatoma and other closely related bugs carry
the organisms causing Chagas' diseases which occur throughout much of Central
and South America. While only one case of this disease is known to
been contracted in California, the causative organism (Trypanosoma cruzi) has
been widely found in Triatoma and in certain rodents, including wood
rats.
Conenoses
are sometimes called Kissing bogs, steel pin bugs, China bedbugs, cross bugs,
diamondback bugs, or Wallapi tigers.
Widespread
control of conenoses is very difficult, but there are some things you can do to
lessen the chance of being bitten:
1.
Destroy sources of bugs and their hosts around your house
-
eliminate wood rat houses near your house
-
eliminate animal harborage under your home and in the attic
-
stack logs, lumber, and firewood in neat piles at least six inches off the ground
2.
Make your home insect- and rodent-proof.
-
caulk all cracks and openings through which bugs can enter
-
make sure window screens fit tightly
-
weather-strip outside doors
-
screen chimneys and vents
3.
Avoid accidentally carrying the bugs into your house on
pets, laundry,
firewood, and outdoor furniture
4.
Do these things to avoid being bitten while you sleep.
-
move beds at least a foot away from walls and other objects
-
check for bugs in and around beds before retiring
-
enclose beds in mosquito netting and tuck it in all around the mattress
-
wrap bed legs with adhesive tape sticky side out
5.
Ask your local health department farm and home advisor, or agricultural
commissioner for advice on the use of pesticides.
-
use dusts in areas such as the attic and beneath the home
-
use sprays where the bugs hide in the house; around baseboards, in closets, around fireplace masonry, and similar places.
BE
CAREFUL with insecticides
For More Information:
(530) 365-3768
The information in this web page is also available in a brochure.