A field study of mating between two species of bedbug in northern KwaZulu, South Africa

D E Walpole; K Newberry

doi:10.1111/j.1365-2915.1988.tb00198.x

A field study of mating between two species of bedbug in northern KwaZulu, South Africa

Med Vet Entomol. 1988 Jul;2(3):293-6. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2915.1988.tb00198.x.

Authors

D E Walpole¹, K Newberry

Affiliation

¹ Department of Tropical Pathology, School of Pathology, South African Institute for Medical Research, Johannesburg.

PMID: 2980185
DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2915.1988.tb00198.x

Abstract

The interspecific cross-mating of female Cimex lectularius Linnaeus with male Cimex hemipterus (Fabricius) results in a visible mark developing in the female ectospermalege. This mark has been used to record the frequency of mating between female C.lectularius and male C.hemipterus in sympatric wild populations in a DDT-sprayed area of northern KwaZulu, South Africa. A high percentage (11/16 = 69%) of C.lectularius females were marked, showing that these two species mate in nature.

MeSH terms

Animals
Bedbugs / physiology*
Female
Male
Nutritional Status
Sexual Behavior, Animal
South Africa