Do Fleas Have Wings?
WouterFleas do not have wings. They are wingless insects that belong to the order Siphonaptera. Their name derives from the Greek word siphon, meaning “water”, and the suffix aptera, which means “without wings”. Fleas are typically dark brown or black, and grow to about 0.25 centimeters long. They have long legs and a flat body, making them excellent jumpers. They have been around for 60 million years, and have evolved over the years.
Fleas have six legs, including a pair of hindlegs that are used for jumping. Their tiny feet function as triggers, releasing energy when they jump. This catapult mechanism allows them to tumble through the air like they’re falling head over heels. While most fleas are not able to jump higher than cat fleas, some flea species have the ability to jump several inches higher than their host animals.
Many insects are wingless, including springtails, black carpet beetles, and flour beetles. Insects that resemble fleas but do not have wings include cigarette beetles, drugstore beetles, and grasshoppers. There are about 2,000 species of fleas worldwide, none of which have wings. Interestingly enough, however, there are some special species that do have wings, which are known as Mecoptera.
Despite the fact that fleas do not have wings, they are very good jumpers. They can jump eight inches vertically and cover 200 percent of their body length. They use the force of their hind legs to leap into the air, and they can even jump over skyscrapers. Their jumps are powered by a protein called resilin, which helps store energy for the jump. They also use their wingless bodies to evade predators.
