2016 Richard Alan Cooper ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

224 Pages·2015·2.88 MB·English

©2016
Richard Alan Cooper
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
BEHAVIORAL ECOLOGY AND CONTROL OF BED BUGS, CIMEX
LECTULARIUS L., IN MULTI-FAMILY HOUSING COMMUNITIES
By
Richard Alan Cooper
A dissertation submitted to the
Graduate School-New Brunswick
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
In partial fulfillment of the requirements
for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy
Graduate Program in Entomology
Dr. Changlu Wang, Committee Chair
and approved by
_______________________________________
_______________________________________
_______________________________________
_______________________________________
New Brunswick, New Jersey
January 2016
ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION
Behavioral ecology and control of bed bugs, Cimex lectularius L.,
in multifamily housing communities
by Richard Alan Cooper

Dissertation Director:
Changlu Wang

After nearly a fifty-year absence, the bed bug (Cimex lectularius L.) has
reemerged as a very important urban pest affecting persons of all economic strata. My
research was conducted in affordable housing communities for the elderly. These
communities suffer disproportionately high infestation rates compared to other housing
communities. In my first study, I evaluated the accuracy of commercially available
canine scent detection teams to detect bed bugs in apartments and compared the results to
detection using pitfall-style traps. The mean detection and false positive (false indication
of bed bugs) rate among 11 teams was 44% (10 – 100%) and 15% (0-57%), respectively.
In comparison to dogs, placement of traps detected 93% of the infested apartments. The
poor performance of canine teams under field conditions reveals the need for further
investigation of factors affecting the accuracy of canine detection. In my second study, I
used mark-release-recapture (m-r-r) technique to study bed bug movement within and
between apartments. I demonstrated that bed bugs travel extensively throughout
apartments regardless of their release location (at or away from host feeding sites).
Marked bed bugs were also recovered in one or more apartments neighboring 4 of 6 m-r-r
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units 14-15 days after release. My third study evaluated the effects of various
interventions, including mass trapping with traps, in apartments with low-level (≤ 10 bed
bugs) infestations. In the first experiment, bed bugs were eliminated without any control
intervention (other than traps) in 96% of the apartments with newly identified bed bugs
and 96% of those that had recently been treated after 22 weeks. A second experiment
demonstrated that the mass trapping contributes to the control of low-level populations.
Last, I developed and implemented a model integrated pest management (IPM) program
that successfully managed bed bugs at the community-level in an affordable housing
community where previous control efforts had failed. The infestation rate was reduced
from 15 to 2% within 12 months. Of the existing bed bug infestations, 72% were detected
during proactive community-wide inspection of apartments. Proactive inspections and
implementation of a rigorous elimination protocol played a major role in the success of
the program.
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DEDICATION
In memory of my father Theodore (Ted) H. Cooper. I wish you were here with all of us to
share this accomplishment. I know you are with me in spirit.

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Completing my PhD has been a personal dream of mine since I received my
Master’s degree in Entomology 25 years ago. Achieving this goal would not have been
possible without the support and assistance of many people whom I wish to recognize
and thank.
I would like to thank my work family at Cooper Pest Solutions and BedBug
Central for the sacrifices they made on my behalf. Attaining my PhD would not have
been possible without their support. My brother Phil, made it possible for me to pursue
my PhD, just as he did when I left to complete my MS degree. My return to Rutgers also
would not have been possible without the support from the leadership and management
teams, along with the rest of the staff at Cooper Pest Solutions and BedBug Central.
Reaching this goal took longer than I expected and placed a great deal of pressure on my
Cooper Pest and BedBug Central families. I owe you all a great debt of gratitude and
look forward to my return. Thank you!
I would also like to thank my major advisor, Dr. Changlu Wang who encouraged
me to return to Rutgers University to pursue my Doctorate in Entomology. His patience,
open door policy, and constant encouragement, were invaluable as I progressed through
my program. I have learned a great deal from Dr. Wang during this process and look
forward to our continued relationship in the future. I would also like to thank my
committee members, Dr. George Hamilton, Dr. Mark Robson, and Dr. Coby Schal for
their support, valuable insight, and review of manuscripts. I owe a tremendous amount of
gratitude to our lab’s postdoc, Narinderpal Singh. I can’t thank you enough for your
guidance, support, and friendship over the past four years. It would not have been the
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same without you as part of our lab team. Various other members of the Wang laboratory
also contributed greatly with field work, lifting beds, moving furniture, and inspecting
interception devices, and entering data. In particular, I would like to thank Marcus
Kwasek for his extraordinary work ethic and dedication to our lab and all of the lab’s
projects and Sara Miranda for data entry. I would also like to acknowledge the Headlee
Fellowship for supporting my dissertation.
I enjoyed being part of the graduate student community and sharing the Graduate
experience with my fellow graduate students. I especially enjoyed my friendship with
Lauren Widener, who I watched grow from a tentative young graduate student into an
amazingly confident and accomplished scientist. I know you will do amazing things!
Finally, and most importantly, I would like to thank my family, starting with my
wife and best friend, Louise, along with our two wonderful daughters, Julia and Andrea
who encouraged me to go back and pursue my personal dream. I thank Louise and my
girls for dealing with the many hours I spent in front of a computer, and for often being
preoccupied by my research. Louise thank you for always having my back, and knowing
me better than I know myself. I could not have done this without your love, patience, and
support. I know it felt like I would never finish. My brother, Phil has always made
personal sacrifices in order for me to continue my education. I can never thank you
enough. Finally my mom, Sybil, is one of my biggest fans and has always been there for
me, her constant love and support are greatly appreciated. Although my father, Ted
Cooper, is no longer with us I know he would be proud and I dedicate this dissertation in
his memory.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION ........................................................................... ii
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .................................................................................................. v
TABLE OF CONTENTS .................................................................................................. vii
LIST OF TABLES .............................................................................................................. x
LIST OF FIGURES .......................................................................................................... xii
INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................. 1
CHAPTER ONE Literature Review ................................................................................... 4
History and Background of the Bed Bug Resurgence ............................................ 4
Bed Bug Biology and Life History ......................................................................... 7
Behavioral Ecology ............................................................................................... 13
Medical and Social Relevance .............................................................................. 17
Detection of Bed Bugs .......................................................................................... 20
Current Challenges in the Control of Bed Bugs ................................................... 29
CHAPTER TWO Accuracy of Trained Canines for Detecting Bed Bugs ....................... 35
Abstract ....................................................................................................................... 35
Introduction ................................................................................................................. 36
Materials and Methods ................................................................................................ 38
Apartments ............................................................................................................ 38
Canine Detection Teams ....................................................................................... 39
Determination of Accuracy of Dog Inspections ................................................... 42
Statistical Analysis ................................................................................................ 50
Results ......................................................................................................................... 51
Experiment I. Blind Evaluation in Preselected Apartments ................................. 51
Experiment II. Informed Inspection of Preselected Apartments .......................... 53
Experiment III. Informed Building-wide Inspection ............................................ 55
Experiment IV. Detecting Planted Hides in Apartments ...................................... 62
Discussion ................................................................................................................... 62
Acknowledgements ..................................................................................................... 71
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CHAPTER THREE Mark-Release-Recapture Reveals Extensive Movement of Bed
Bugs (Cimex lectularius L.) Within and Between Apartments .................................. 72
Abstract ....................................................................................................................... 72
Introduction ................................................................................................................. 73
Materials and Methods ................................................................................................ 76
Laboratory Bioassays ............................................................................................ 76
Field Experiments ................................................................................................. 79
Results ......................................................................................................................... 90
Discussion ................................................................................................................. 104
Acknowledgements ................................................................................................... 113
CHAPTER FOUR Effects of Various Interventions, Including Mass Trapping with
Passive Pitfall Traps, on Low-level Bed Bug Populations in Apartments ............... 114
Abstract ..................................................................................................................... 114
Introduction ............................................................................................................... 115
Materials and Methods .............................................................................................. 116
Experiment I. Trap Catch in Untreated and Treated Apartments with Low-
level Infestations ........................................................................................... 116
Experiment II. Impact of Interceptors on Low-Level Bed Bug Infestations ...... 119
Statistical Analysis .............................................................................................. 121
Results ....................................................................................................................... 121
Experiment I. Trap Catch in Untreated and Treated Apartments with Low-
level Infestations ........................................................................................... 121
Experiment II. Impact of Interceptors on Low-level Bed Bug Infestations ....... 127
Discussion ................................................................................................................. 131
Acknowledgements ................................................................................................... 138
CHAPTER FIVE Evaluation of a model community-wide bed bug management
program in affordable housing .................................................................................. 140
Abstract ..................................................................................................................... 140
Introduction ............................................................................................................... 141
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Materials and Methods .............................................................................................. 145
Study site ............................................................................................................. 145
Education of the apartment community .............................................................. 146
Proactive procedure for new residents ................................................................ 148
Initial inspection of apartments ........................................................................... 149
Treatment of infestations .................................................................................... 149
Evaluation of the effectiveness of the IPM program .......................................... 152
Cost of the IPM program .................................................................................... 153
Statistical analysis ............................................................................................... 154
Results ....................................................................................................................... 155
Education of the apartment community .............................................................. 155
Initial inspection results and treatment of apartments ........................................ 157
Inspection results and evaluation of IPM program at the conclusion of six
and twelve month inspections ....................................................................... 158
Cost of the IPM program .................................................................................... 167
Discussion ................................................................................................................. 168
Acknowledgements ................................................................................................... 179
CONCLUSION Application of findings in the management of bed bugs ..................... 180
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF PUBLICATION ............................................................ 185
LITERATURE CITED ................................................................................................... 186

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