Human Flea
Family Name
Pulex irritans
Characteristics
Type:
Jumping – Biting
Size:
Human fleas can grow up to 0.16 inches in length.
Colour:
Brownish red or very dark brown.
Behaviour:
Human flea’s behaviour is not really special. They are not as socialized as other types of insects which build their own nest and form colonies in the infected location. Human fleas just move from a nest to another when it is not comfortable anymore.
Human fleas live around 12 weeks: after the first 4 weeks, the larva leaves the nest in research of warm-blooded victims.
Human fleas are different from lice, but they have the same food: blood, whether it is human or animal, they just love to feed on blood.
Fleas bite the human skin to reach blood and it can cause many diseases as these insects carry viruses and microbes.
Habitats
Human fleas don’t really live on people; they just accept the human body as a host. They like to live in warmth and shelter, with an appropriate food source near to the nest which is commonly human hair of pet fur. For that, they will invade your body as soon as they find a way to settle on your head, in your armpits or even in other hairy places.
Tips for Control
As human fleas cause serious nuisance, avoiding them is necessary to prevent their danger and stop some unpleasant consequences from happening.
Cleanliness: Take a daily shower or even twice a day to assure that no flea invasion can stay in your body. Keep washing your clothes regularly and drying them, keep cleaning the house, especially carpets as flea eggs can be laid on the carpet. And the most important thing, keep cleaning your pets especially dogs and cats if you have so and take them to the vet regularly.
Medication: fleas can also be avoided through medication. Medicating your pet by a vet will guarantee a safe pet which is resistant to human flea invasions.
If a human flea invasion has taken place, an immediate treatment should begin to control these insects and exterminate them. Before exterminating human fleas, they must be treated and totally removed from the human body. Many products could be used to totally exterminate fleas of your house, like flea spray, flea bomb or flea traps.
