Bedbug Disclosure Law, Signed by Gov. Paterson, Forces Landlords to Reveal Apartment Infestations http://blogs.wsj.com/metropolis/2010/08/30/news-bedbug-law-forces-landlords-to-reveal-past-infestations/ New York, Darwin, and Cimex Lectularious http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2010/08/in_1913_the_department_of.html Bedbugs: MayoClinic.com http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/bedbugs/DS00663 Bed Bugs: University of Kentucky Entomology http://www.ca.uky.edu/entomology/entfacts/ef636.asp The Bed Bug Registry http://bedbugregistry.com/ Perhaps some of you remember the admonition "Don't let the bedbugs bite"; if recent reports are any indication, it would appear that bed bugs are biting quite a few people in the United States. These tiny creatures (whose Latin name means "bug of the bed") are confounding pest control experts, hotel owners, and even sage entomologists. Bed bugs have sought out humans for thousands of years, and they are also the rare insect that doesn't seem to transmit any disease as they move from host to host. Not much was heard about bed bugs in the United States from the late 1950s to the late 1990s, and some have attributed this to the successful use of DDT, though this explanation is quite problematic. Some scientists are now suggesting that the resurgence of these tiny creatures may be due to their importation from overseas visitors. Once a bed bug infestation starts, it can be very expensive to rid any dwelling or property of their presence, as such a treatment requires everything from ripping up carpets to dismantling furniture. The first link will take visitors to an article from this Monday's New York Times about the curious bed bug and its dramatic return to cities big and small. The second link leads to a post from the Wall Street Journal's "Metropolis" blog, which talks about New York's efforts to compel landlords to reveal their apartments past bedbug infestations. Moving on, the third link leads to a piece from New York magazine about the recent increase in bedbug infestations around the city. The fourth link will whisk users away to a useful fact sheet from the Mayo Clinic about bed bugs. The fifth link leads to another helpful fact sheet from the University of Kentucky's entomology department. The final link leads to a public database of user-submitted bed bug reports from across the United States and Canada. Users can search for bed bug reports by hotel name, street address, or city, and they also have a Twitter feed as well.