All cimicids are small, oval-shaped, and flat in appearance, although their bodies bulge after feeding.
They do not fly, but have small, non-functional wing pads.
They have beak-like mouthparts with which they pierce the skin and suck the blood of their hosts.
They are often considered to be ectoparasites because, although they move away from the host after feeding, they remain within the confines of their host's roost, nest or dwelling; however, under a different definition, they may be considered to be micropredatory bloodsuckers.

Reproduction in cimicids involves traumatic insemination; although the female has a normal genital tract for laying eggs, the male never uses it (except in the species Primicimex cavernis), instead piercing the female's abdominal wall with his intromittent organ and injecting sperm into the spermalege, a storage structure; the sperm then migrate through the female's paragenital system to reach the eggs.
This practice may have evolved as males competed with each other to place their sperm closer and closer to the ovaries; the last inseminating male sires more offspring than his predecessors.
Males will mount any recently-fed bug, regardless of sex, and start probing its abdomen in the region of the spermalege, thus receiving tactile, morphological and behavioral cues revealing the sex of the mounted bug.
Females occasionally die from a ruptured gut after insemination; insemination via the female reproductive tract does not normally occur, except under restrictive laboratory conditions.

Feeding is required for egg production in females and probably for sperm production in males.
Egg-laying behavior varies among species.
C. lectularius stops laying fertile eggs about 35 to 50 days after the last insemination.
The American cliff swallow bug, Oeciacus vicarius, hibernates after mating in autumn and begins laying in spring, to coincide with the return of their migratory hosts.

The five nymphal instars (stages) must each take a blood meal to develop to the next stage.
An undisturbed bug may take 3–15 minutes to ingest a full meal depending on its life stage.
They can survive long periods of time without feeding, reappearing from their hiding places when hosts again become available.
Adult bedbugs have been reported to live three to twelve months in an untreated household situation.
All cimicids are small, oval-shaped, and flat in appearance, although their bodies bulge after feeding. They do not fly, but have small, non-functional wing pads. They have beak-like mouthparts with which they pierce the skin and suck the blood of their hosts. They are often considered to be ectoparasites because, although they move away from the host after feeding, they remain within the confines of their host's roost, nest or dwelling; however, under a different definition, they may be considered to be micropredatory bloodsuckers.
Reproduction in cimicids involves traumatic insemination; although the female has a normal genital tract for laying eggs, the male never uses it (except in the species Primicimex cavernis), instead piercing the female's abdominal wall with his intromittent organ and injecting sperm into the spermalege, a storage structure; the sperm then migrate through the female's paragenital system to reach the eggs. This practice may have evolved as males competed with each other to place their sperm closer and closer to the ovaries; the last inseminating male sires more offspring than his predecessors. Males will mount any recently-fed bug, regardless of sex, and start probing its abdomen in the region of the spermalege, thus receiving tactile, morphological and behavioral cues revealing the sex of the mounted bug. Females occasionally die from a ruptured gut after insemination; insemination via the female reproductive tract does not normally occur, except under restrictive laboratory conditions.
Feeding is required for egg production in females and probably for sperm production in males. Egg-laying behavior varies among species. C. lectularius stops laying fertile eggs about 35 to 50 days after the last insemination. The American cliff swallow bug, Oeciacus vicarius, hibernates after mating in autumn and begins laying in spring, to coincide with the return of their migratory hosts.
The five nymphal instars (stages) must each take a blood meal to develop to the next stage. An undisturbed bug may take 3–15 minutes to ingest a full meal depending on its life stage. They can survive long periods of time without feeding, reappearing from their hiding places when hosts again become available. Adult bedbugs have been reported to live three to twelve months in an untreated household situation.
Cimicidae