Jody Gangloff-Kaufmann is a Long Island-based Cornell University entomologist and internationally known bed bug expert. She is a New York State Integrated Pest Management Program field expert and served as a member of New York City’s specially created Bed Bug Advisory Board. She comments on recent reports that bed bugs are turning up in library books:
Gangloff-Kaufmann says:
“Since bed bugs are transported by humans, on our belongings and clothes, it makes sense that borrowed books could be a method or vehicle of bed bug movement. Bed bugs will not stay on books on the shelf for very long — they need to be around their host — so the most vulnerable time for a book to have bed bugs is when they are returned to the library from a bed bug-infested home or area. A simple inspection of the cover, the spine, and edges of pages would be sufficient to make sure a book was not carrying a bed bug.
“Here’s some advice for a librarian or borrower if you suspect a book is infected: Place the book in a Ziploc bag of the appropriate size and put it aside or return the item to the library and have the librarian put it aside. Eventually, and by that I mean within 1-2 weeks or sooner, bed bugs that are hiding on the book will start wandering around the bag looking for a way out. The eggs will have hatched. Keeping the item in a warm, sunny area (as opposed to a cool, dark area) will speed up their death from dehydration.”
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