What is the difference between bedbug and tick?
Bedbugs and ticks are both blood suckers but they come from different classes. Ticks are arachnids while bedbugs are insects. The two are confused as they both feed on blood from humans or other animals.
The two are completely different from each other as ticks prefer living outdoors while bedbugs live indoors.
The main difference between bedbugs and ticks is that bedbugs are insects as they have six legs while ticks are arachnids and they have eight legs.
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Comparison Table (Bedbug vs Tick)
| Characteristics | Bedbugs | Ticks |
| Classification | They belong to insects. | They belong to arachnids. |
| What they feed on | They mainly feed on human blood. | They mainly feed on animal blood. |
| Where they are found | They are mainly found indoors. | They are mainly found outdoors. |
| Size | They are small in body size. | They are comparatively larger in body size. |
| Color | They are reddish-brown in color. | They are dark brown in color. |
| Number of legs | They have six legs. | They have eight legs. |
| Host preference | They prefer human beings. | They prefer animals. |
| Vectors | They are not vectors to any disease. | They may transmit diseases to the host. |
What is a Bedbug?
Bedbug is members of the class insect. They have six legs hence they are true insects. They are tiny, rusty or deep red and round in shape.
They are usually found indoors and they reproduce rapidly. They can live in any type of furniture including tables, beds, and even mattresses.
They are typically found in beds and they suck blood from the host while they are asleep. The bite is a tiny prick and most people will discover it when they wake up.
They feed 3 to 10 minutes at one spot before moving to another spot. After that, they can live up to one year without feeding.
They are transported through the luggage that people carry from one place to another. You can avoid transferring them into your home by keenly checking your luggage before leaving a place.
What is a tick?
Ticks are members of class Arachnida. They have eight legs. There are various species of ticks depending on where they live.
They are external parasites and they live by sucking blood from mammals, birds, reptiles, and sometimes amphibians. They are widely distributed especially in warm, humid areas.
They find their host by detecting an animal breath and body odors. They lie and wait for the host and they use their legs o climb on their host.
Their habitat is a place where the lawn meets the forest. They deposit their eggs in such places allowing their larvae to develop. They crawl into low-lying vegetation after developing.
They go through a complete metamorphosis. The first stage is egg, larvae, nymph, and finally an adult. They can either have a one-host lifecycle or two-host lifecycle depending on the species.
They are known to transmit a number of pathogens such as bacteria, viruses, and protozoa. They harbor more than one type of pathogen making it difficult to diagnose the infection.
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Main Differences between Bedbug and Tick
- Bedbugs belong to the class Insect while ticks belong to the class Arachnida.
- Bedbugs have six legs while ticks have eight legs.
- Bedbugs feed on human blood while ticks feed on blood from various animals such as mammals, birds, reptiles, and even amphibians.
- Bedbugs live indoors while ticks live outdoors.
- Bedbugs are not vectors to any disease while ticks are vectors to various diseases.
Similarities between Bedbug and Tick
- They both suck blood from their hosts.
- Both may cause complications to the bite.
- They both bite the host in order to get blood.
- Both may feed on other animals’ blood other than humans.
- The bites from both may cause allergic reactions.
- Both do not jump or fly.
In Conclusion
Bedbugs and ticks are both blood-sucking animals. However, they are different from each other. Bedbugs suck blood from human beings while ticks mostly suck blood from other animals. Bedbugs prefer to live in warm, humid areas while ticks mostly live outdoors where they cling on grass using their legs.
The main feature that makes bedbugs different from ticks is the number of legs which makes them belong to different classes.
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