Flea

From Free net encyclopedia

(Redirected from Siphonaptera)

For other uses, see Flea (disambiguation).

{{Taxobox | color = pink | name = Fleas | image = Scanning_Electron_Micrograph_of_a_Flea.jpg | image_width = 200px | image_caption = SEM micrograph of a flea | domain = Eukaryota | regnum = Animalia | phylum = Arthropoda | classis = Insecta | subclassis = Pterygota | infraclassis = Neoptera | superordo = Endopterygota | ordo = Siphonaptera | subdivision_ranks = Families | subdivision = Tungidae - Sticktight and Chigoe fleas (Chiggers)
Pulicidae - Common fleas
Coptopsyllidae
Vermipsyllidae - Carnivore fleas
Rhopalopsyllidae - Marsupial fleas
Hypsophthalmidae
Stephanocircidae
Pygiopsyllidae
Hystrichopsyllidae - Rat and mouse fleas
Leptopsyllidae - Bird and rabbit fleas
Ischnopsyllidae - Bat fleas
Ceratophyllidae
Amphipsyllidae
Malacopsyllidae
Dolichopsyllidae - Rodent fleas
Ctenopsyllidae }} Flea is the common name for any of the small wingless insects of the order Siphonaptera. Fleas are external parasites, living by hematophagy off the blood of mammals and birds.

Note: There is also a genus of Protozoa named Siphonapteran

Some well known flea species include:

Cat Flea (Ctenocephalides felis),
Dog Flea (Ctenocephalides canis),
Human Flea (Pulex irritans),
Northern Rat Flea (Nosopsyllus fasciatus),
Oriental Rat Flea (Xenopsylla cheopis).

Image:Flea bites.jpg In most cases fleas are just a nuisance to their hosts, but some people and some animals suffer allergic reactions to flea saliva resulting in rashes. Flea bites generally result in the formation of a slightly-raised swollen itching spot with a single puncture point at the center. Fleas can also lead to hair loss as a result of frequent scratching and biting by the animal, and can cause anemia in extreme cases.

However, fleas can also act as a vector for disease. One possible example of this was the bubonic plague, which may have been transmitted between rodents and humans. Murine typhus (endemic typhus) fever, and in some cases tapeworms, Hymenolepis, can also be transmitted by fleas.

1 Life Cycle
2 Breaking an Infestation
- 2.1 Area or Room Treatment
- 2.2 Whole Home Treatment
3 External links

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Life Cycle

Image:HookeFlea01.jpg Fleas pass through a complete life cycle consisting of egg, larva, pupa and adult. Completion of the life cycle from egg to adult varies from two weeks to eight months depending on the temperature, humidity, food, and species. Normally after a blood meal, the female flea lays about 15 to 20 eggs per day – up to 600 in its lifetime – usually on the host (dogs, cats, rats, rabbits, mice, squirrels, chipmunks, raccoons, opossums, foxes, chickens, humans, etc.). Eggs loosely laid in the hair coat drop out almost anywhere, especially where the host rests, sleeps or nests (rugs, carpets, upholstered furniture, cat or dog boxes, kennels, sand boxes, etc.).

Eggs hatch between two days to two weeks into larvae found indoors in and along floor cracks, crevices, along baseboards, under rug edges and in furniture or beds. Outdoor development occurs in sandy gravel soils (moist sand boxes, dirt crawlspace under the house, under shrubs, etc.) where the host may rest or sleep. Sand and gravel are very suitable for larval development which is the reason fleas are erroneously called "sand fleas."

Larvae are blind, avoid light, pass through three larval instars and take a week to several months to develop. Their food consists of digested blood from adult flea feces, dead skin, hair, feathers, and other organic debris; larvae do not suck blood. Pupae mature to adulthood within a silken cocoon woven by the larva to which pet hair, carpet fiber, dust, grass cuttings, and other debris adheres. In about five to fourteen days, adult fleas emerge or may remain resting in the cocoon until the detection of vibration (pet and people movement), pressure (host animal lying down on them), heat, noise, or carbon dioxide (meaning a potential blood source is near). Most fleas overwinter in the larval or pupal stage with survival and growth best during warm, moist winters and spring. "Flea season" is traditionally at the end of summer and in the early fall, but in warmer areas can last year round.

Flea bites can be treated with Calamine Lotion or 0.5-1% conc. hydrocortisone cream. Lufenuron is a veterinary medicine that attacks the larval flea's ability to produce chitin.

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Breaking an Infestation

If an animal lives in the home, treat monthly with one of the long duration products as recommended by your veterinarian. In general, at least in the United States, avoid grocers or pet shop products which are less effective than the prescription strength products from a licensed veterinarian (or the equivalent in Commonwealth Nations veterinary surgeon). These products will keep the fleas off the pets, not off the owners or out of the furnishings. More drastic measures are required to protect the owners or unlucky non-pet owner with these unwelcome house guests.

To deal with an home infestation one needs to break the life cycle of the fleas and kill off the breeding age individuals which will otherwise produce a new generation within about 10-18 days, so repeat this technique about every two weeks, at least three times.

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Area or Room Treatment

The goal here is to create a vapor cloud of a common inexpensive household pest-control (poison) that the breeding population cannot avoid by jumping above it. This method uses the ubiquitous anti-moth products available at many retail stores, especially hardware stores (certain) and perhaps grocery stores.

The best area method would be to place moth crystals (flakes) and moth balls in the infested areas periodically for several hours at a time; this needs to be done in a thorough no-nonsense manner, such as moth balls about the floor and couches, beds, wherever there are fabrics above a foot or so from the floor. In particular, large area items like couches, and beds need individually sprinked across more than 50% of the surface area. Moth flakes are more volitile and would be the better product on these furnishings. Keeping them away from cracks should not be an issue as the vapors spread both outwards and down.
Block off the areas' (room) egress with towels under the door, sheets (bedding or plastic types) taped across the doorways, shut off all ventilation (forced hot air furnaces and air conditioners) until after the treatment.
Go to work, shopping, or another activity (sleeping) and let it 'soak' the room for at least two to three hours.
Clean out your vacuum cleaner. Then use it to vacuum up the flakes or balls and transfer them into a plastic bag or container for use again in two weeks. Leaving moth balls or flakes under beds in closets, behind dressers, etc. would be a recommended as a good idea, you may sicken or kill some of the pests. As the vapors stay low, this should be safe if performed in moderation. Anything that's likely to inhibit growing hatchlings will aid the eradication effort.
Repeat again two weeks apart several times. If your home is in a sub-tropical clime subject to a higher humidity like the American south (say below the Mason-Dixon line, then increase the treatments up to five or six times overall. If one bite occurs anytime afterwards, you were ineffective and an urgent repetition is recommended as soon as possible.

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Whole Home Treatment

For a particularly widespread infestation, follow the above strategy with insecticide bombs. Chain home stores sell four packs at a cheap price compared to singletons purchased from hardware stores. The key is killing the immature hatchlings before they mature and lay more eggs. The first downside to this method is that it requires vacating the premises for several hours. However, the main downside to this method is protecting foodstuffs, so read the fine print carefully. This method is generally practiced in commercial resturants once or twice monthly, so some due caution is warranted, but managable with appropriate safeguards.

If your home is carpeted throughout, this would generally be the better method, as there is no way of knowing where the fleas may be at any moment. If you have a lot of hard flooring, the flakes/balls would be the better method, as you can target the spaces you absolutely need to treat, though this will entail some degree of gambling you're right about where they are likely to be staying.

With the first method, you can of course leave the barriers in place for a few weeks if necessary, and naturally, you can combine the two. Good hunting!

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