Bed Bug vs Pallidipes Tsetse Fly

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Bed Bug Pallidipes Tsetse Fly
Scientific Name Cimex lectularius Glossina pallidipes
Order Hemiptera Diptera
Family Cimicidae Glossinidae
Size 4-7 mm 9-14 mm
Habitat Underground Woodlands
Diet Blood Feeders Blood Feeders
Regions Worldwide East Africa, from Ethiopia to Mozambique
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.

💡

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.

Pallidipes Tsetse Fly

A large savanna tsetse fly with a distinctive pale brownish coloration, found in woodland habitats of East Africa. It is a major vector of nagana (animal trypanosomiasis) and can also transmit human sleeping sickness. It feeds primarily on wild game and domestic livestock.

💡

Did You Know?

Traps baited with cow urine and acetone can catch thousands of G. pallidipes per day, forming the basis of community-based control programs.