New York City is experiencing a bedbug infestation, with the critters back in the news for munching on humans at a movie theater and even the Empire State Building. We expect to hear about bedbugs in densely populated urban areas like New York and San Francisco, but NPR reports that the critters are showing up nationwide.

According to one expert, bedbugs may become as commonplace in America and western Europe as they were centuries ago.

“We’re now in the era where people travel everywhere,” [entomologist Michael] Raupp says. “They just don’t go to major cities like London or Paris. We have people going to second world countries and third world countries, where frankly, bedbugs are commonplace. And these guys are real troopers – they’re hitchhikers and stowaways.”

“So whenever we travel, there’s always a possibility that we can bring bedbugs home with us. And bedbugs don’t discriminate. This is not a matter of poor sanitation or poor housekeeping or uncleanliness.”

Bedbugs Aren’t Just Back; Now They’re Spreading [NPR]

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