What is this bug on my new mattress?

September 16, 2022 1:25 PM

I bought a new mattress, and this dead-ass little dude was squashed on the front of it. What is he?

I am concerned it’s a bedbug, obviously, although I can’t find any online that have that V shaped marking near the head. He’s about a quarter of an inch long and kind of orange-ish brown in the light.

Imgur gallery of pictures here.

Any ideas? Thank you for the extra sets of eyes!

posted by ceramicspaniel to Home & Garden (11 answers total)

I think its to big for a bed bug.
Looks like it has wings,bed bugs don't fly.
posted by LOOKING at 1:47 PM on September 16, 2022

Pretty sure it's not a bedbug. It's got wings, right?

And on preview, I agree-- a bed bug is about half that size.
posted by geegollygosh at 1:50 PM on September 16, 2022

Not a bedbug. Sadly I know far too well what they look like.
posted by brookeb at 1:59 PM on September 16, 2022

Response by poster: I can’t actually tell if it has wings! There’s certainly lines that seem wingish to me, but I can’t actually tell if they separate.

Here are a few more photos. Sorry for the picture quality, my camera is terrible.

Two more photos.
posted by ceramicspaniel at 2:04 PM on September 16, 2022

I don't know what it is, but you should try posting at /r/whatsthisbug.
posted by mezzanayne at 2:15 PM on September 16, 2022 [2 favorites]

It seems like a beetle of some kind. Not unexpected; a warehouse isn't a cleanroom (but obviously your apprehension is valid.)
posted by DarlingBri at 2:32 PM on September 16, 2022

It’s some kind of mirid bug. Almost certainly not this exact species but something like it.

(and just to make it explicit: completely harmless and innocuous)
posted by Bloxworth Snout at 2:38 PM on September 16, 2022 [3 favorites]

Carpet beetles have fully scleratized elytra. It does look beetly.

Those are wings, which rules out bedbugs (and many beetles) and I agree with Bloxworth Snout that it's a true bug in the family Miridae.

PS always include your location when asking for help with ID :)
posted by SaltySalticid at 3:43 PM on September 16, 2022 [3 favorites]

New mattresses hold no attraction for bedbugs.
posted by theora55 at 4:06 PM on September 16, 2022 [2 favorites]

I think it's a roach.
posted by james33 at 4:52 AM on September 17, 2022 [1 favorite]

For anyone interested in how to recognise insects beyond just vibes, here’s one thing you can see, as well as the wing details which SaltySalticid mentioned:

You can see on the photos that although this insect has long antennae, they have a small number (4-5) of elongated segments with visible ‘joints’ between them. That is typical of the true bugs.

That compares with i.e. cockroaches which have long, smooth looking antennae; they are segmented, but they have many many tiny segments so it doesn’t look like it. Beetle antennae are more variable in form but don’t look like this.
posted by Bloxworth Snout at 1:59 AM on September 18, 2022 [1 favorite]