Stone age bed bugs were humanity's first pests, scientists reveal
Researchers say bed bugs predate rats and even cockroaches as domestic pests
YABA DABA OOO Stone age bed bugs were humanity's first pests, scientists reveal
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window)
Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
STONE Age people had a far more troublesome enemy than sabre-tooth tigers — bed bugs.
Their first settlements — like Fred Flinstone's fictional home of Bedrock — would have been crawling with the blood-suckers.
Sign up for Scottish Sun
newsletter
Sign up
2
Stone age people had a problem with bed bugs
Credit: Getty
The bugs' numbers exploded when humans moved out of caves, making them the first household pests, researchers say.
In the study, DNA analysis was used to trace back the species found in homes today to those feeding off cave dwellers.
Cimex lectularius was found to have had a 'close relationship' with humans for 50,000 years.
The team from Virginia Tech University in the US confirmed the bugs first lived on bats before some switched to Stone Age humans in caves.
But the population took off only 13,000 years ago — when people quit cave life and began farming and building settlements
While its numbers rocketed, the bat bed bug species fell away.
Researcher Dr Linsday Miles said: 'Both populations saw a general decline that is consistent with the last ice age.
'The bat-associated lineage never bounced back and it is still decreasing in size.
'The really exciting part is that the human-associated lineage did recover and their population increased.'
The researchers say bed bugs, which live in furniture and bite to feed on blood, predate rats and even cockroaches as domestic pests.
Rats moved in to homes 2,000 years ago, and cockroaches 5,000 years ago.
2
Blood sucking bed bugs were the first pest
Credit: AFP
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Scottish Sun
16 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
Scots scientists breeding sheep to make them FART less to be more eco-friendly
LITTLE BO PARP Scots scientists breeding sheep to make them FART less to be more eco-friendly SHEEP are being bred to be kinder to the planet — by making them fart less. A new research study is developing ways to identify farm animals who emit smaller amounts of gas, which can then be selected as part of breeding programmes. 3 sheep-field-looking-camera-1000393705 Credit: Getty 3 Flock of curious sheep Credit: Getty Scotland's Rural College (SRUC) and the British Texel Sheep Society have teamed up with partners from other sheep-breeding nations to provide a platform for national and global comparison of methane and carbon dioxide emissions. Around 450 hill sheep from SRUC's Hill and Mountain Research Centre near Loch Lomond are participating in the research, which will run until 2027. Methane is a natural byproduct of the digestive process of ruminant animals, where microbes in the rumen ferment feed and produce methane as a waste product. Globally, there are an estimated 1.2 billion sheep, producing around seven million tonnes of methane into the atmosphere. The Sustain Sheep builds on research which suggests that, by exploiting the natural variation in methane emissions between individual sheep, selective breeding could reduce emissions by one to two per cent per year, without compromising genetic improvement in other traits. The study uses portable accumulation chambers for individual animal methane measurements. Dr Nicola Lambe, from SRUC, said: 'A crucial aspect of this project is understanding what impacts there might be of reducing greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) on other animal characteristics such as growth, feed intake and efficiency, and quantifying the effects of these. 'This will enable recommendations for breeding programmes to be determined in tandem with the economic implications of selecting for low-methane sheep. 'In the UK and other countries there is chronic under-adoption of genetic improvement as a means to meet policy targets for lower GHG emissions, and there are many barriers to taking up new outcomes from research by the sheep industry. 'The robust science from the project will provide a mechanism for national and global comparisons to underpin Governmental GHG reduction targets for the successful implementation of science into policy.' Moment Scots family run away screaming & kids in tears as animal breaks into home It is expected the research will provide tools and knowledge to help steer the direction of future breeding programmes and related government policies, so that UK sheep producers can see clear benefits from reducing methane emissions from their flocks. John Yates, of the British Texel Sheep Society, the largest pedigree sheep society in the UK, said: 'Methane measurement using Portable Accumulation Chambers (PACs) is still in its early stages, but if scalable and affordable, it could play a vital role in breeding programmes to support the government's net-zero target.' Sustain Sheep is funded through the European Union's Horizon Europe research and innovation (R&I) programme.
Scottish Sun
18 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
Eerie Roswell crash memo holds key to cracking UFO mystery after ‘FOUR alien bodies found,' expert insists
An eyewitness recalled seeing alien remains and their craft A BIZARRE memo about the Roswell UFO crash could unlock secrets and expose the truth about the 'flying saucer' mystery. A prominent ufologist made the startling claim after aliens were rumored as being spotted dead among the wreckage. Advertisement 6 The mystery material was recovered from the Roswell site after a 'flying disk' apparently crashed in the New Mexico desert in 1947 Credit: Getty 6 A Ufologist believes this photo of a memo may be key to cracking the case Credit: Kevin Randle and Philip Mantle The so-called Roswell Incident happened on July 2, 1947, in a remote desert area in New Mexico. Conspiracy theories and mystery swirling the alleged crash have fascinated UFO watchers for nearly 80 years. Back in 1947, the 509th Bomb Group - based in Roswell - released a press release claiming a UFO had crashed in the area, and the United States Army Air Forces were in possession of a 'flying disk." However, confusion ensued after that release was later retracted, and replaced with a statement saying the object was in fact a high altitude weather balloon. Advertisement READ MORE US NEWS FATAL ACCIDENT Parents arrested for letting boy, 7, walk home 'unattended' before he died The news alert had initially been issued by 1st Lt. Walter Haut, the public information officer at the base. Decades later, his daughter, Julie Shuster, was adamant that his original 'flying disk' statement had been accurate. But he had to keep everything "secret." A similar view has been expressed by veteran researcher Kevin Randle, a prominent ufologist who is regarded as one of the top experts on the reported crash. Advertisement Former army officer admits he saw ' beat up ALIEN the size of a 10-year-old child' after world famous Roswell UFO crash Randle has written multiple books about UFOs and the Roswell story. He's adamant that he has 'eliminated all possible terrestrial explanations." 'What we can say with authority is that something fell at Roswell,' he said. 'We have eliminated all the terrestrial explanations." Advertisement The expert, who served in the Air Force and National Guard, said the UFO case could be solved by delving into a historic memo. 6 The site of the Roswell crash Credit: Reuters 6 Expert Kevin Randle has spent years investigating the reported UFO crash Credit: Kevin Randle The eerie memo can be seen in a black and white photograph sent out on the news wires at the time. Advertisement The grainy note appears to say the words 'victims of the crash.' The memo itself can be seen in the old pic being held by Brigadier General Roger Ramey, who at the time of the crash was commanding officer of the 8th Air Force in Roswell. Ramey is holding the piece of paper slightly turned away from the camera. But, fortunately, some words can now be read using technology. KEY MEMO 'The Ramey memo could be the key to this whole thing," Randle said. Advertisement 'Ramey was holding the memo in his hand when he was photographed with the debris in his office. 'And what's interesting is we know when the picture was transmitted over the wire, we know who took it and we can see Ramey is holding the document in his hand. 'So we pretty much have the provenance nailed down. 'There are words in the document when you blow it up, that you can read. Advertisement 'Some people interpret the critical line as saying 'victims of the wreck.' 'Well, 'victims of the wreck' takes it out of the realm of a weather balloon - but it's kind of an interpretation of what you see." Randle has interviewed some 600 people over the past few decades in his search to establish the truth around the mysterious case. POLITICAL HOAX He has concluded that the weather balloon story is nothing but a "government hoax" to fob off those intrigued by UFO sightings. Advertisement Randle said, 'What they've said officially is that the Roswell crash was a weather balloon and [radar-type] target from this experiment being conducted in New Mexico. "What I discovered is that while [the radar-type] targets were a part of the experiments conducted on the east coast, when they got to New Mexico, they didn't use those targets. "That kind of points the finger at this being a government hoax to explain away the Roswell case.' KEPT SECRET Julie Shuster, Walter Haut's daughter, told SBS News, a broadcaster based in Australia, that she had many conversations with the former Army PR man about the "flying disk" he wrote about in 1947. Advertisement She said before her death in 2015, 'People began to talk about Roswell in the late '70s after several decades of keeping quiet. "I would ask dad to tell me the whole story, and he told me the same thing he told everybody: 'I put out the press release', and nothing else." It was not from this Earth, it was something manufactured off this Earth. It later emerged that Haut had been sworn to secrecy by base commander and close personal friend, Colonel William Blanchard. But, Haut was unhappy about keeping such a big secret, and prepared a signed affidavit to be opened after his death. Advertisement Originally from Chicago, Illinois, he died in Roswell in 2005. 'Basically dad said yes, he did see the bodies, yes he did see the craft and much more than that,' said Shuster. 'At one point I asked him about the size, and he said the craft was about 25 feet in diameter." EGG-SHAPED Thomas Carey, who co-authored a book with Shuster, Witness to Roswell: Unmasking the Government's Biggest Cover-Up, published in 2007, said his big secret "all came out in his sealed statement after he died." Advertisement Carey added, 'The ship which he described was about the size of a Volkswagen Beetle, more of an egg-shaped object, and he did see a number of bodies. 'He described them as being the size of children. "And when asked point blank if what he believed it was that he had seen, without hesitation he'd say, 'It was not from this Earth, it was something manufactured off this Earth.'' A retired cop claimed that he saw the remains of dead aliens being lifted with a crane and hauled away. Advertisement Former Deputy Sheriff Charles H Forgus of Howard County, Texas, recalled traveling to Roswell to pick up a prisoner with Sheriff Jess Slaughter. Forgus claimed he saw four alien bodies with big eyes and brownish-colored skin being taken away by military personnel. 6 Kevin Randall has been researching Roswell since the 1980s 6 Sheriff Jess Slaughter was with Deputy Sheriff Charles Forgus at the time of the discovery Credit: Philip Mantle
Scottish Sun
a day ago
- Scottish Sun
Super Earth in ‘Goldilocks zone' discovered with new alien-hunting tool – now it will search for more habitable planets
Located in the Lyra constellation, the Super Earth planet completes an orbit of its nearby star every 207.5 days ET PHONE HOME Super Earth in 'Goldilocks zone' discovered with new alien-hunting tool – now it will search for more habitable planets Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) SCIENTISTS have stumbled across a new Super-Earth that orbits inside its star's habitable zone with a new alien-hunting tool. Searching for Earth-like planets - and Earth-like life - is the ultimate goal for planetary science. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 3 Located in the Lyra constellation, the Super Earth planet completes an orbit of its nearby star every 207.5 days Credit: Alamy 3 An artist's impression of Kepler-725b, a gas giant planet in the same system And finding planets that lie in the Goldilocks zone of their sun-like stars – where the conditions are 'just right' to possibly host life – is key to that mission. An international team of scientists, led by the Yunnan Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), have used a new technique to find these potentially habitable worlds. It's called the Transit Timing Variation (TTV) technique - which looks for changes in the predicted transit times of an exoplanet. If the time changes, it could indicate the presence of other unseen planets in the system that are gravitationally influencing the transiting planet. The technique is a good way to detect smaller planets that would otherwise be difficult to find By analysing the TTV signals of Kepler-725b, a gas giant planet in the same system, the team were able to find its hidden sister planet Kepler-725c, according to a new study published in Nature Astronomy. Researchers said the technique offers a promising alternative in the hunt for "Earth 2.0." Kepler-725c has 10 times the mass of Earth and is located in the habitable zone of the sun-like star Kepler-725. It receives roughly 1.4 times the solar radiation than Earth does. Best-ever sign of ALIEN life found on distant planet as scientists '99.7% sure of astounding biological activity signal' Located in the Lyra constellation, the Super Earth planet completes an orbit of its nearby star every 207.5 days. During part of this orbit, the planet enters its star's habitable zone - meaning it could host alien life. Little else is known about the planet so far. It is the first time it has been used to discover a Super-Earth, a type of rocky exoplanet that is larger than Earth but too small to be considered a gas giant like Neptune. Astronomers have relied on alternative techniques to find exoplanets for decades. Like the transit method, where astronomers track how the light from a host star dims when a planet passes in front of it. Or through radial velocity (RV) observations, which is when scientists watch the slight wobble of a star as it interacts with the gravitational pull of an orbiting planet. However, both of these techniques have their flaws and make it difficult to detect planets with long orbital periods. The transit approach, for example, requires a planet's orbit to align exactly with our line of sight from Earth. Whereas the RV method requires extremely high-precision measurements, which makes it harder to find smaller planets. 3 An artist's impression of the Kepler-725 system - the small planet in the lower right is the newly discovered Super-Earth in the habitable zone Credit: Gu Shenghong All you need to know about planets in our solar system Our solar system is made up of nine planets with Earth the third closest to the Sun. But each planet has its own quirks, so find out more about them all... How old is Earth? Plus other facts on our planet How many moons does Mercury have? What colour is Venus? How far away is Mars to Earth? And other facts on the red planet How big is Jupiter? How many moons does Saturn have? Does Uranus have rings? How many moons does Neptune have? How big is Pluto? How hot is the Sun?
