Can You Guess Which City Was Named America's Bedbug Capital?

Contrary to their name, bedbugs are not unique to beds. Nor are they unique to specific areas, although a new report issued by Terminix Global Holdings TMX has determined that some major cities have more bedbugs than others.

What Happened: In a bedbug-specific data analysis compiled between Jan. 1 and Aug. 20 from Terminix branches across the country, Los Angeles ranked as the top city for reports of bedbug infestations. Cleveland, Philadelphia, Detroit and New York City rounded out the top five cities for this problem.

Thirteen states had more than one city on Terminix’s top 50 list of bedbug-infested cities: Alabama, Arkansas, California, Florida, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and Texas.

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Why It Happened: “Bedbugs go where people go, so they can be virtually anywhere,” said Rick Cooper, senior director of bedbug services at Terminix.

“Bedbugs move from infested structures — whether that be hotels, airports, schools or college campuses. They can tag along on someone’s clothes or backpack.”

Cooper noted that bedbug infestation is particularly acute at this time of year as college students move into dormitories. Among the advice offered to students moving into a new dorm room includes inspecting mattresses and moving furniture to detect living or dead bedbugs, as well as investigating used textbooks.

Photo: Max Pixel.