Fascinating Facts On Flea Flight Explained Can Fleas Fly

If you tell someone that you are studying a flea, their first reaction will probably be, ‘Ewww gross! How can you even think about studying fleas?‘But when you tell them these cool facts about fleas, they will surely appreciate you for your knowledge. So, let’s see what exciting things are waiting for you.You have noticed this so many times: your dog is scratching itself with its paws. The most obvious reason behind this is that he is feeling itchy. But, have you ever wondered why he is feeling itchy? The reason behind this is fleas. The vet may have told you this at least once when you told him about your dog’s itchiness. Do you want to know what these creatures are and how do they get onto your pet and make it itchy? In this article, you will find answers to all these questions. You will also get to know some cool and fascinating facts on fleas and flight of fleas.After gaining knowledge on all aspects of the flea problem, do read about what flea eggs look like and how to know if your dog has fleas.Do fleas have wings?There are more than 2,500 species of fleas. Each species is specialized to survive on a particular species of animal, such as cat fleas, dog fleas, rat fleas, and hen fleas. They are very selective about their food. The earliest evidence of a flea was found to be in the middle Jurassic period.Do you know what a flea is? Fleas are small, flightless insects that feed on the blood of mammals and birds. The word flightless makes it very clear that fleas do not fly nor do they have wings. These parasitic insects survive by sucking the blood of other animals, such as dogs, cats, and birds. They first originated on mammals and later some species evolved to survive on birds also. They have modified mouthparts to pierce and suck the blood of animals. These parasites are called external parasites because they feed on the host externally instead of living inside the host. Fleas are black or dark brown in color.As of now, you know that fleas do not have wings so they can not fly. But then how do they get from one animal to another? How do they transport? Well, they have very strong hind legs which help them jump very high. Their flat bodies and strong hind legs make them excellent jumpers.Scientists believe that ancestors of these insects used to have wings to fly. As time passed, they did not need to fly any more and evolved to being wingless creatures. They lost their wings and the ability to fly but became very good jumpers. They can jump very high to transport from one animal to another.Do you know that fleas which survive on dogs and cats are specially designed to tackle the furry skin of these animals? These dog fleas and cat fleas have vertically flat bodies which can make their way inside the dense, hairy skin of dogs and cats. They also have special mechanisms to hold onto the skin of animals so they won’t fall off when the host is moving. These bodily modifications help them in being a very stubborn parasite.A flea has a four-stage life cycle and in none of these cycles can fleas fly. The first stage is flea eggs, then larvae, then pupa or cocoon, and the last is the adult flea. Adult fleas are also called imago which is a common name for the last stage of every insect after they complete the process of metamorphosis.Do you know that gnats and fruit flies look just like fleas? The only difference between a flea and a gnat or a fruit fly is that they have wings to fly.How do fleas get onto humans?Fleas survive on mammals, and humans are also mammals. Fleas generally do not live on humans, unless you live in forests or in farms with pigs. But, in these cases also, it is very uncommon to have fleas on humans. They only choose you as their host when, after entering your house, they cannot find any animal, probably a pet. But this does not mean that if you have a pet then you won’t get infested with pests like fleas. There are still chances that fleas will choose you as their host.Fleas generally choose a host which has a lot of hair or fur in which they can hide. Humans do not have dense hair on their skin in which fleas can hide and lay eggs, so it is unlikely to have humans as a host for fleas. Even if a flea jumped on you hoping to make you its host, you will either scratch or wash it off without even realizing it.Though fleas do not prefer humans as their host, they can infest human habitats from other hosts, such as cats or rats. Fleas live on your pet, which your pet might have gotten from another animal from the park, and then fleas can get onto you from your pet. The most common flea which can badly affect your health is the rat flea. Rat fleas are the main carrier of plague-causing bacteria, mainly bubonic plague. Plague is an infectious disease that includes symptoms such as a fever, a headache, weakness, a cough, shortness of breath, and chest pain.Another flea that can infect humans is the hen flea. When hens are infested with this pest, these fleas can be clearly visible on the area around their eyes, wattle, and comb. They can get onto humans who take care of these hens, making the hen is the host of fleas. Though these fleas feed on birds, they can also survive on human beings.How high can a flea jump?Just like any other creature on this planet, fleas also have a distinctive feature and that is their jumping ability. They can jump surprisingly high. These are insects that can jump the second highest in the world. Only froghoppers can jump higher than fleas.Fleas have very strong legs which are specially modified to jump very high from one place to another. An average flea can jump up to 24 inches (2 ft) high. Some species can also jump as high as seven or eight inches. This is about 66 times their own body height. Imagine if you could also jump this high. Wouldn’t you feel like Superman? How amazing it would be if you could also jump 66 times your height.An average flea can cover a horizontal distance of about 8 inches by jumping. Some species can also cover a maximum distance of 19 inches with a single jump. Their powerful legs help them to jump such a long distance compared to their body size. But still, this distance is very short. What if they want to travel a long distance? How would they do so? Well, as you know, fleas live on their host and depend on them for their food. They also depend on them for long-distance journeys. Their hosts are big animals compared to them such as dogs, cats, and rats. So, when these hosts move, these fleas also move with them and cover long distances with their help.How do fleas jump so well?Fleas are masters of jumping. This pest is born to jump. But, how can this pest jump so high with so little muscle power? Have you ever thought about this? Well, why are we here? We’ll explain it to you.Jumping is an activity that requires high muscle power to lift the body against the gravitational force of the Earth. Humans and other animals can jump by using their powerful leg muscles. But fleas are so small that they do not have such powerful muscles to jump, but still, they jump so high. How can they do this? Well, a flea does not rely on its leg muscles to jump.Fleas jump with the help of stored muscle energy which they store in a pad of elastic protein known as resilin. Just before a jump, muscles of the flea contract to deform this pad which leads to rapid release of stored energy. This rapid power helps the flea to jump like an expert. This pad performs a function similar to the process of a bow and arrow. Just as the arrow moves forward rapidly with the power it gets from the bow, similarly, fleas jump high with the power they get from that stored energy. This is the reason why we cannot jump like a flea, because we rely on direct muscle power to jump. Our body is not made to jump so high. We can walk to cover distances but fleas do not walk, they jump gracefully. A flea can also crawl and climb. A young flea generally crawls. Adult fleas crawl once they are on their host. They jump only when they have to move from one host to another.Do you know that a flea won’t survive even for a week after separating from its host? It can live up to only 4 days without its host.Do fleas fly and are you at risk?Fleas love to live in moist and dark areas, such as your yard. You can get infested by fleas even if you do not have pets. As explained earlier, fleas can also feed on humans. You can get fleas as easily as your pet does. These fleas can pose some big and small threats to us. Some fleas can directly harm us by biting while some can harm us by being an agent to transmit some serious diseases.The most common attack of fleas on humans is their bites. A flea bites us to suck our blood as food. Flea bites are similar to bed bug bites and mosquito bites. Flea bites are always in clusters of red spots. These red spots can last up to a few hours or a few days, depending on the skin reaction of the host and the intensity of the bite. Symptoms of these bites include redness, itchiness, swelling, and rashes. In severe cases, it can also lead to fever, dizziness, and breathing difficulties.These are threats by flea bites. Other than biting, a flea can also pose some other threats. For example, the chigoe flea, which not only lives on us but also burrows under our skins, can even cause skin ulcers. The most common diseases caused by fleas include plague and typhus. A flea can also carry tapeworm which can be harmful to the overall health of humans. Eggs of tapeworms serve as food for flea larvae.What do you do if you have fleas in your house or yard?Fleas can infest your pet and your pet can get fleas from a number of sources such as other animals, parks, or your own house yard. Yes, your pet can get fleas from your house yard. From your pets, these fleas can also get into your house. As you now know health issues which can arise due to these parasitic insects, you do not want to have them in your house or even in your yard. So, let’s take a look at remedies to get rid of these fleas.The best and most effective way to get rid of fleas from your house and yard is pest control. Pest control can kill all insects which can harm you, including these fleas. But having pest control is not an easy task. You have to stay away from your home for awhile. You cannot sleep on your own bed for a few days or maybe even more than a week. Do you want to know some other ways than pest control to get rid of these creatures? Here are some flea control measures and other easy ways to keep fleas away from your house.The biggest enemy of fleas is nematodes. Nematodes are microscopic worms that eat flea larvae and flea eggs. If you have nematodes in your yard then your yard will be free from fleas. You can buy these nematodes from a local shop or online. The best part about them is that they do not harm humans, pets, or vegetation in any way. They just consume fleas and won’t interfere in anything else. These creatures will kill fleas for you without expecting anything else in return.You can also spray vinegar in your yard to get rid of fleas. Fleas do not like the smell of vinegar and this will keep them away from your yard. You can also spray diatomaceous earth in your yard. Diatomaceous earth or DE is dust that helps in killing fleas. Since it works when in dust form only, you need to spread it with a dust spreader. If not, then you can mix DE with some water and spray it in your yard with a sprayer. But remember that there must be a dry season so that the spray can get dry and DE can return to its dust form and do its work.These fleas can also make your carpet their new home after entering your house. Do you know that an adult female flea produces cocoons that can produce about 800 eggs? Imagine what will happen if they all get hatched. You would definitely need to have pest control in your house. But what if you kill them before they lay those eggs? Or, if not kill them, at least you can throw them away from your house before they are born. Do you know what you can use? A vacuum cleaner. The vacuum cleaner is the best option for this task. If you have a water-based vacuum cleaner, then nothing can be better than that, but if not, then you have to repeat the cleaning with a normal vacuum cleaner for the desired result. After vacuum cleaning the carpet you must seal the garbage bag so fleas won’t escape.Fleas can be anywhere in your house. The easiest way for a flea to enter your house is by being carried in on your pets. Fleas love to live in the furry body of cats and dogs. They can harm you and your pet’s skin. It is not a good thing to have fleas or flea larvae in your home. This is a sign of an unhygienic environment.You are surely thinking of ways for getting rid of these nasty insects. There are many ways to practice flea control and to keep them away. You have seen ways to make your yard and house free from fleas; now, let’s see how to get rid of fleas from your pets. The first and non-chemical way to get rid of fleas from bodies of your cats and dogs is to comb them with a fine-toothed comb. After that, you can use a flea comb to bring out fleas from your pet’s hair. You can get these items (flea comb and fine-toothed comb) at any pet store or you can order them online as well. This process is a bit time-consuming, depending on your pet’s hair density.You can also use a flea shampoo to make your pet cats and dogs flea-free. While choosing a shampoo you have to be very careful about some chemicals which can be harmful to your pet. For example, tea tree oil is highly toxic for indoor cats. If the shampoo contains tea tree oil then it is a no-no for your pet. You can consult the vet in this case. Your vet can suggest a good option for your pet.If you have done a lot of hard work to make your pets flea-free and your home free from flea eggs, then you do not want your pets to have fleas again. Always remember to make the bedding area and other belongings flea-free too; otherwise, all your hard work to make your pet flea-free will get wasted. To make your pet’s bed and its toys free from fleas, you just have to wash its bed and toys thoroughly with detergent soap and hot water. Simple, no? Imagine you clean your pet with so much hard work and love, but they again get infested with fleas only because a small toy still has some flea larvae on it. You do not want this to happen, right? So to be on the safe side, make sure to clean your pet’s bed and other belongings to get rid of flea eggs and larvae.Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for can fleas fly then take a look at when do fleas come out

If you tell someone that you are studying a flea, their first reaction will probably be, ‘Ewww gross! How can you even think about studying fleas?’