Flea bites can result in severe itching and inflammation. They can also cause skin infections, allergic reactions, and have the potential to spread diseases.
Did you know that:
- Adult fleas are approximately 1/8 inch long and are laterally flattened.
- They are reddish-brown, wingless and have 3 pairs of legs.
- They can jump 150 times their own size.
- A flea can bite up to 400 times in one day.
- The female flea cannot lay eggs until after her first blood meal.
- She will produce eggs within 24-48 hours of her first blood meal.
- The female flea will lay around 400-500 eggs in her lifetime.
- Fleas prefer humidity of at least 75% and temperatures of 70-90 degrees.
- They live approximately 100 days.
- Fleas are attracted to body heat, movement, and exhaled carbon dioxide.
- They can spread diseases to animals and humans when they pierce the skin to feed.
The chart below shows the life-cycle of the flea:
The flea goes through 4 stages:
- The egg, which will hatch in about 2 days to 2 weeks.
- Larvae emerges from the eggs. The larvae feed off organic debris, are blind, and keep to dark places. This stage lasts 5-18 days.
- The larva will spin a cocoon and pupate.
- The adult will wait for the “right time” to leave the cocoon. Vibration and carbon dioxide of a host passing by indicate the right time for the adult. Once the adult leaves the cocoon its primary focus is to get a blood meal and reproduce.
Adult fleas only account for about 5% of the flea population. The remaining population consists of 50% in the egg stage, 35% in the larval stage, and 10% in the pupae stage. Because all these stages are present at once, it makes it difficult to control the flea population. One flea can multiply into 1,000 in just 21 days.
Finding fleas? Call Sterling Insect & Lawn Control today @ (207) 767-5555.
