Bed bug Cimex lectularius

They travel in luggage and furniture, not on the wind — bed bugs can’t fly or jump, so they spread between rooms and properties by hitching a ride, which is why they turn up as readily in a single let, a guesthouse or student accommodation as in a family home. Small blood spots on bedding and a pattern of bites appearing overnight are usually the first sign, often before anyone’s actually seen one.

Because they hide deep in seams, frames and skirting during the day, an inspection has to be thorough rather than a quick look at the mattress, and treatment is planned around where they’re actually harbouring rather than just where the bites are showing up.