506 MEDICAL ENTOMOLOGY 



This species is distributed throughout Europe and North America ; 

 it is also found in Suez, Egypt, the Soudan, the North West Frontier 

 of India, China, South Africa, Australia and in some parts of West 

 Africa. 



Ciinex rotundatus, Signoret (macrocephalus, Fieb.). (Plate LXIII, 

 figs. 4, 6 and 7). Body flattened, dark mahogany in colour and covered 

 with fine hairs. The head is not as broad or as long as that of lectularius. 

 Prothorax narrower and shorter, and rounded to the margin. The 

 abdomen is less orbicular and is broadest at the level of the second 

 segment. 



This bug is a tropical and subtropical species. It is distributed 

 throughout India, Burma, Assam, the Malay Peninsula, Aden, the 

 Islands of Mauritius, Reunion, St. Vincent and Porto Rico. It is 

 widely distributed in Africa and is probably the common species asso- 

 ciated there with man ; the Entomological Research Committee have 

 received specimens from the following localities : Nyasaland : North 

 Rukuru River, Zomba, Blantyre ; N.-E. Rhodesia, various localities; 

 Northern Nigeria : Zunguru ; Southern Nigeria: Benin City. The senior 

 author has received specimens from Sierra Leone. 



At one time it was believed that the Indian species was Cimex 

 macrocephalus, Fieber, and that rotundatus was localized to the Island 

 of Reunion. After examining a large number of bugs from all parts 

 of India, as well as a collection from the Islands of Reunion and 

 Mauritius, the senior author found that the Indian bed bug was rotunda- 

 tus', this species was described by Signoret in the year 1852, whereas 

 Fieber described macrocephalus in 1857. 



Cimex lectularius and C. rotundatus are essentially domestic insects, 



and among civilized people their presence in a house is considered to be 



a sign of neglect of cleanliness on the part of the 



Bionomics of lectu- OCCU p an t s> i n tropical countries this is not always the 



larius and rotundatus / < r 



case, for often m spite of every precaution rotundatus 



will find its way into houses, chiefly on the persons of native servants. 

 In European countries lectularius is only to be found in the poorer 

 localities in the large cities, rarely in country cottages and practically 

 never in the houses of well-to-do people. 



As its popular name implies, the bed bug chiefly lives in the bed of its 

 host, man, all the stages collecting together in crevices and holes in the 

 framework or among the bedding. Cimex rotundatus, though common 

 in similar places also collects in large numbers in corners, cracks 

 and small holes in walls, doors, chairs, tables, screens, etc., in fact 



