Bed Bug vs African Mud Dauber

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Bed Bug African Mud Dauber
Scientific Name Cimex lectularius Sceliphron spirifex
Order Hemiptera Hymenoptera
Family Cimicidae Sphecidae
Size 4-7 mm 20-28 mm
Habitat Underground Underground
Diet Blood Feeders Nectar Feeders
Regions Worldwide Throughout Africa
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Bed Bug

Obligate blood-feeding parasites of humans. Can survive up to a year without feeding. Have made a dramatic worldwide resurgence due to pesticide resistance and increased travel.

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Did You Know?

Bed bugs can survive without a blood meal for over a year and can withstand temperatures from near-freezing to 50°C, making them extraordinarily difficult to eliminate.

African Mud Dauber

A slender black and yellow wasp with an extremely narrow petiole waist. It constructs mud nests on walls and ceilings, provisioning them with paralyzed spiders.

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Did You Know?

A single mud nest cell may contain up to 25 paralyzed spiders stacked together as food for one developing larva.