Insect bite identification
Twenty-five biting and stinging species found in the United States, each with what the mark looks like, how fast it appears, how long it lasts and the signs that mean you should be seen. If you are not sure where to start, the arrangement of the marks and their position on your body narrow it down faster than the marks themselves.
Mosquitoes
- Mosquito bite single bumps scattered over exposed skin 42 states with records
- Aedes mosquito bite several bites, frequently on ankles and lower legs 0 states with records
True bugs
- Bed bug bite lines or zigzags of three or more — the classic "breakfast, lunch and dinner" 50 states with records
- Kissing bug bite clusters, often on the face near the lips or eyes 32 states with records
Fleas
- Flea bite clusters of three or four, or short irregular groups 46 states with records
Ticks
- Deer tick bite single, usually in a skin fold or hairline 40 states with records
- Lone star tick bite single, sometimes dozens at once when larval "seed ticks" swarm 47 states with records
- American dog tick bite single 51 states with records
- Castor bean tick bite single, usually in a skin fold or the hairline 0 states with records
- Paralysis tick bite single 0 states with records
Mites
- Chigger bite clusters concentrated where clothing is tight 18 states with records
- Scabies rash symmetrical, in finger webs, wrists, waistline, armpits and groin 25 states with records
Spiders
- Black widow spider bite single site 36 states with records
- Brown recluse spider bite single site 32 states with records
- Wolf spider bite single site 41 states with records
- Yellow sac spider bite single, sometimes two nearby 47 states with records
- Redback spider bite single site 0 states with records
- Brazilian recluse spider bite single site 0 states with records
Ants
- Fire ant sting multiple stings in a ring or cluster — the ant grips and pivots 24 states with records
- Carpenter ant bite single or a few 47 states with records
Wasps and hornets
- Yellowjacket sting single or several — this wasp can sting repeatedly 41 states with records
- Paper wasp sting usually single 50 states with records
- Bald-faced hornet sting often several — the colony defends aggressively 50 states with records
Bees
- Honey bee sting single 51 states with records
Biting flies
- Horsefly bite single, occasionally two 41 states with records
- Deer fly bite single or a few, often on the scalp and neck 38 states with records
- Black fly bite several, along the hairline, ears and ankles 27 states with records
- No-see-um bite dozens, clustered on exposed skin 2 states with records
Lice
- Head lice bites concentrated behind the ears and at the nape 40 states with records
Scorpions
- Bark scorpion sting single site 7 states with records
- Brazilian yellow scorpion sting single site 0 states with records
When bites peak where you are
Get a photo assessment in the app
Everything above is free to read. The app adds what a page cannot: point your camera at the bite and get an assessment of the most likely cause, a severity read, and a day-by-day care plan — including the specific signs that mean you should be seen.
iPhone and iPad. Free to download.