Do Fleas Have Hearts?
WouterFleas are minuscule, wingless parasitic insects that live in the skin and coats of humans and pets. Their sclerites, or hard plates, protect them from being squashed. Despite their tiny size, fleas can jump over 150 times their own length. This is similar to how a human can jump over 300 metres. Fleas use this ability to jump from one host to another, and to move from one place to another.
Although fleas prefer animal hosts, they will also bite humans when their natural hosts are unavailable. Adult fleas can sense body heat, movement, and vibrations caused by breathing. They are also capable of transmitting disease-causing germs through feeding and fecal contamination. They can also infect open wounds.
Fleas feed on the blood of warm-blooded animals, including humans. They usually bite humans and animals so they can obtain a blood meal. Once they’ve done this, the adult fleas can start accumulating. The population of fleas will increase if their preferred host is absent.
Adult fleas are reddish brown insects about an eighth of an inch long. They have wingless legs and flat bodies. Their hind legs are long and adapted to jumping. Adult fleas can jump as high as 30cm! Their bodies are thin, and their bodies are covered in spines. These spines enable the fleas to move easily through their host’s fur and resist pulling during grooming.
