17 Pictures of Common Bug Bites and Symptoms to Look For

What it looks like: Mosquito bites present as small, puffy, round bumps that are lighter or redder than the surrounding skin. Bites often center around ankles, hairlines, and the backs of knees and necks, and they’re likely to be isolated—not part of a cluster (unless you were hanging out in prime mosquito territory during dawn or dusk).

Symptoms to note: As you most likely know, mosquito bites are painless at first, then very, very itchy. Some people suffer from “skeeter syndrome,” which causes the bites to grow into painful, swollen welts. Mosquitoes do carry a risk of certain diseases like West Nile and Zika, so monitor for cold- or flu-like symptoms after a bite.

What they look like: Often confused with mosquito bites, bed bug bites are small, red, puffy bumps that appear in lines or clusters, usually three or more. They can have distinct red marks at their center, and they often appear on exposed skin that touches the bed at night, including the arms, neck, or trunk of the body. With close examination of your room, you can often find the bugs (or their droppings) in your mattress, particularly around the corners, the head end, and the cord that encircles it.

Symptoms to note: Bed bug bites aren’t too painful, but they can be very itchy and swollen. The parasites don’t spread diseases like ticks do; however, they’re difficult to remove and won’t stop biting you until they’re eradicated from your home.

What they look like: Another too-close-for-comfort pest are head lice, which leave patches of red, abraded spots on the scalp and surrounding skin. Although their bites are small, the body’s reaction to them makes them grow. You might not even see the bites first—the initial giveaway might be tiny lice eggs (a.k.a. nits) first.

Symptoms to note: Lice bites are quite itchy, and an infestation can even feel like something is moving or tickling in the hair. This can actually cause trouble sleeping. Sores caused by scratching can also develop easily. The only solution is getting rid of the bugs A.S.A.P.

What they look like: Like bed bug or lice bites, flea bites are red bumps that appear in lines and clusters. They’re small, and they often have reddish halos surrounding them. Fleas tend to bite around the ankles and in warm places like the knees, groin, and armpits—but they usually prefer your pets.

Symptoms to note: Flea bites are very itchy, and they might even become sore or painful, causing a rash around the affected skin. Scratching the bites could cause these symptoms to worsen or even lead to infection.

What it looks like: There are a few major fly species that bother people in the United States, including deer, horse, stable, and black flies. Bites vary by species and person, but they’re often raised, red bumps or welts. Some might even bleed. Blackfly bites also might swell. (Pictured here is a horse fly bite.)

Symptoms to note: More often than not, fly bites are going to hurt. After the pain subsides, some may also become itchy, but most fly bites are innocuous.

What they look like: Sand fly bites are distinct from those of other flies. They can appear alone, but often present in groups of small, red bumps or blisters.

Symptoms to note: Sand fly bites are generally painful and may start to itch. In certain parts of the world—including the tropics, subtropics, and southern Europe–they can transmit leishmaniasis, a parasitic infection that causes skin lesions and ulcers.

What they look like: Also known as berry bugs or harvest mites, chiggers are those tiny, red mites that are almost invisible to the naked eye. Their bites take the form of flat, red patches or raised, red bumps, and they sometimes might even become blisters or pustules. Chiggers often bite the ankles, wrists, thighs, groin, and waist.

Symptoms to note: Contrary to popular belief, chiggers don’t burrow into your skin or suck blood—but that doesn’t make their bites any less itchy. The severe discomfort can last up to two weeks, but mites don’t spread disease, at least within the United States.

What they look like: Fire ants can bite and sting. The bugs are reddish orange in color, compared to the typical dark brown of your regular picnic-invading ant. They’re also more common in the southern states. Before they sting, fire ants will actually bite you so they can hold themselves against your body—and then proceed to sting with their backend. The result can cause a pimple-like pustule, although some people don’t react at all.

Symptoms to note: Fire ant stings are very painful due to the potency of their venom, and since ants don’t lose their stingers when they attack, you’ll probably end up with multiple wounds. The inflammation and pain can take days or weeks to go away, and sometimes checking in with a doctor is needed.

What they look like: Black and brown garden ants are pretty recognizable. “All ants can bite but they rarely do unless harassed,” Jody Gangloff-Kaufmann, Ph.D., associate director of community & urban integrated pest management at Cornell Integrated Pest Management previously told Prevention. If they bite, they may do so in succession, creating a rash like pattern. Of all ants, fire ants are the most likely to attack.

Symptoms to note: Pain, swelling, and itching are all normal. You can use topical antibacterial and anti-itch ointments to treat symptoms. Secondary infection can occur due to scratching. If you have concerns about your healing process, contact your doctor.

What it looks like: Bee stings vary from person to person. Some people exhibit only a small, light spot, while others get a larger, red welt. There also might be a white spot at the center where the sting occurred. In the case of a honey bee sting, the barbed stinger is often still attached—which will keep pumping venom into your body until you remove it.

Symptoms to note: Bee stings cause moderate pain, which should subside within a few hours. All insect stings can cause life-threatening allergic reactions, and bee stings are no exception. Monitor your symptoms after a sting and call 911 if you notice the signs of anaphylaxis, including swelling beyond the sting site, tightness in the chest or throat, or trouble breathing.

What it looks like: Scabies is a skin infestation caused by a mite. Untreated, these microscopic mites can live on your skin for months. They reproduce on the surface of your skin and then burrow into it to lay eggs. This causes an itchy, red rash to form on your skin. The extremely itchy rash may be pimply, made up of tiny blisters, or scaly.

Symptoms to note: After the initial exposure to scabies, it can take 2 to 5 weeks for symptoms to appear. If you've had scabies before, the symptoms usually develop more quickly, often as soon as 1 to 4 days after exposure. The hallmark symptoms of scabies include a rash and intense itching that gets worse at night. Continuous scratching of the infected area can create sores that can become infected. If this occurs, reach out to your doctor; additional treatment with antibiotics for the skin infection may be needed.

What it looks like: Wasp stings can be uncomfortable, but most people, without wasp sting allergies, recover quickly and without complications. Typical wasp stings cause sharp pain, redness, swelling, and itching or burning at the sting site. Often, a raised welt will appear around the sting site. A tiny white mark may be visible in the middle of the welt where the stinger punctured skin. Usually, the pain and swelling recedes within several hours of being stung.

Symptoms to note: More concerning reactions to wasp stings that may indicate some level of allergy include extreme redness and swelling that increases for two or three days after the sting. Nausea and vomiting can also occur. Most times, these reactions will subside on their own in about a week. You should let your doctor know right away if you have a more concerning reaction after a wasp sting.

Some people with severe wasp allergies may go into anaphylactic shock, which can be life-threatening. If you experience any severe swelling of the face, lips, or throat; hives or itching in areas of the body not affected by the sting; breathing difficulties, such as wheezing or gasping; loss of consciousness; nausea or vomiting; or weak or racing pulse, seek emergency medical help immediately.

What it looks like: Similar to wasps and bees, when a yellow jacket stings you, it pierces your skin with its stinger and injects a poisonous venom that causes sudden pain. After being stung, you may also experience swelling or redness around the sting for a few hours. Fatigue, itching, and warmth around the injection site are also common.

Symptoms to note: Some symptoms warrant emergency medical attention. These may include: coughing or wheezing; problems breathing or swallowing, or tightness in your throat; changes to your skin, such as breaking out into hives; feeling lightheaded or dizzy, or passing out; or vomiting or diarrhea. These symptoms may indicate a severe allergic reaction or anaphylaxis. If you or someone near you exhibits these symptoms, seek emergency medical help right away.

What it looks like: The brown recluse spider, or violin spider, is about 1 inch long and has a violin-shaped mark on its upper back. It is often found in warm, dry climates and prefers to stay in undisturbed areas such as basements, closets, and attics. It is not an aggressive spider, but will attack if trapped or held against the skin. When the brown recluse bites, it’s usually painless—then skin reddens, turns white, develops a red bullseye shape, blisters, and then the pain sets in. Venom from the brown recluse spider usually causes local tissue damage, as pictured.

Symptoms to note: Moderate to severe pain and itching at the site of the bite is typical and usually occurs two to eight hours after the bite. Rare complications include fever, body aches, nausea, vomiting, hemolytic anemia (a blood disorder), rhabdomyolysis (a breakdown of muscle tissue that is then released into the blood), and kidney failure. In rare cases, these bites can be deadly. If you suspect that you’ve been bitten by a brown recluse, seek medical care. If you can, bring the spider, or a picture of the spider with you for positive identification.

What it looks like: Scorpions are eight-legged arachnids with large pinchers and long, segmented, stinger-tipped tails carried in a forward curve over their backs. Several species with varying levels of toxicity exist worldwide. These stings will quickly become red and swollen within minutes, usually accompanied by a great deal of pain.

Symptoms to note: Intense pain, tingling, numbness, and swelling usually occur around the sting. Rare symptoms include breathing difficulties, muscle twitching, drooling, sweating, nausea, vomiting, an increased heart rate, and restlessness Severe symptoms are more likely to occur in infants and children than adults. Nevertheless, if you start to experience any severe symptoms, seek medical attention.

What it looks like: Deer flies and horse flies are in the same family, deer flies being the miniature version. They often have spotted eyes and a dark-spotted pattern on their wings, according to the Missouri Department of Conservation. Both insects are determined and blood-seeking and use fang-like appendages to puncture skin and drink blood from their hosts. Because of this, bites will often look like cuts that bleed pretty instantaneously.

Symptoms to note: Only female flies bite, and the bites are often painful and itchy—some people liken them to the feeling of a bee sting. The flies’ saliva may also cause a reaction in humans, like pain and itching, and some people may exhibit significant allergic reactions. At minimum, though, the flies are known for causing uncomfortable welts in humans and livestock, hence their animal-related names.

The irritation and swelling from bites usually disappear in a day or so, reports the University of Kentucky Department of Entomology. However, secondary infections may occur when bites are scratched. Keeping the bite clean and treating it with anti-itch creams and the like should suffice, but if you experience an allergic-type reaction, including hives and wheezing, seek medical attention. In rare cases, deer flies can pass on the bacterial disease tularemia (which may cause a painful ulcer).

What it looks like: Hornets are a type of wasp, according to Joshua’s Pest Control. They have six legs, wings, and typically three body segments. They can be white, red, brown, and/or orange. Unlike bees, hornets don’t lose their stinger after attacking, which means they can come back for more after an initial sting.

Symptoms to note: Stings are usually raised, inflamed, and red, often displaying a small red point where the stinger was inserted with a yellow or white circle around that point, and then red patchy skin radiating out from there, which signals the body’s attempt to flush out venom. Hornet stings may also cause dangerous—even lethal—allergic reactions, resulting in shortness of breath, tightness in the throat, swelling of the lips, eyes, or tongue, wheezing, or dizziness. If you experience any of these symptoms after a sting, seek medical attention immediately.

What it looks like: Triatomine bugs, also called kissing bugs, tend to reside in Mexico, Central America, South America, and parts of the United States. While there are different varieties of kissing bugs, they typically have a cone-shaped head, can be light brown to black in color, and may have yellow, red, or tan markings. Kissing bugs tend to bite you on the face and near your mouth. These bites look like any other bug bite, except there’s usually a cluster of bites together in one spot.

Symptoms to note: People who are sensitive to the kissing bug’s saliva may experience a reaction to the bite. This is usually only mild itching, redness, and swelling around the bite area. Occasionally, a kissing bug bite causes a severe localized allergic reaction. If you develop a rash or any difficulty breathing, seek immediate medical attention.