There are about 2000 species of fleas in the world. Each species is adapted to its carrier, that is, the host, whose blood they will feed on and multiply on his own body.
Most often in St. Petersburg meet the following types fleas:
But that doesn't mean that cat flea will not bite a person, but on the contrary, will gladly drink human blood.
The main ways of distribution of fleas:
With the onset of a harsh time - a drop in temperature or lack of food, they are able to hibernate for several months. When conditions return to normal, the fleas become active and begin to voraciously drink blood from their prey.
Many mistakenly believe that fleas settle on their prey, for example, on a cat or dog, this is not so. Fleas do not lead a flocking lifestyle and do not form nests, but they, like free hunters, attack the victim to quench their thirst for blood, after which they hide in secluded places.
If cats or dogs live in the apartment, then right in their thick wool after the next feeding they lay their eggs. Sticky flea eggs at first securely stick to the wool, but then the mucus dries up and the eggs fall on the floor in the apartment, and where this will happen is not predictable.
The main places where you should look for fleas in an infected apartment:
Unsanitary conditions and uncleanliness of the inhabitants of the apartment only exacerbate the problem and give fleas every chance of successful survival and reproduction in the room with the capture of new territories - neighbors.
To be sure determine the appearance of fleas in the apartment and not confuse them, for example, with bed bugs, you should check the apartment for the most obvious signs.
If at least one of the above signs is clearly expressed, then the next step is to determine the extent of infection of the apartment. This will help a thorough examination of the animal and its bedding, combing the wool on a white sheet. White sheets of paper on the floor.
If a large population of fleas is found in the apartment, a simple wet cleaning using dichlorvos is no longer enough, but you have to organize a full-fledged flea persecution.
The appearance of fleas in the apartment ultimately leads to backfire and nasty bites are just a small part of what everything can turn out to be.
The enzyme, which is contained in the flea's saliva, not only causes swelling at the site of the bite, but also delivers an unpleasant itch and can heal for a long time and painfully. In this case, an infection can get into the wound. Moreover, complications in the form of severe allergic reactions are possible.
Poor health of the pet possible complications including worm infections. Constant itching from bites makes animals nervous. Pain is excruciating. Various skin diseases are possible, the treatment of which will also bring suffering to animals.
If one or two individuals are found in an apartment where there are no pets, it is quite possible to get by folk ways getting rid of fleas. Fleas do not tolerate strong odors, most often they use the leaves of wormwood or Persian tansy, they are suitable pine sawdust or shavings, mixture table salt with soda or ordinary turpentine. The main thing is to endure these smells steadfastly and patiently or leave the apartment for a couple of days.
However, from a large colony of fleas in an apartment or house folk remedies will no longer help, professional flea disinsection will be required using modern drugs.
Flea disinfection gives instant result. Due to the small size of insects, as well as their activity at any time of the day, the action of the drug leads to the rapid destruction of all individuals in the fog-treated room.
A flea is an insect that has accompanied humans and animals since primitive times.
In Latin, the order of fleas is called Siphonaptera. The name comes from 2 words: "pump" and "wingless".
Fleas include 15 families with 200 genera. More than 2000 species of fleas have been described.
It has strong limbs on the chest, thanks to which they often move in jumps. Jumps up to 30cm in height and 50cm in length. Flea sizes from 1mm to 10mm. Outwardly, they do not differ much from each other.
Fleas can mate once, this is enough for the rest of the life of the insect. The female lays 500 to 800 eggs in her lifetime. Therefore, having found fleas, it is necessary to immediately begin to exterminate them. A flea pupa can stay in the house for at least a year.
Fleas do not build special nests for eggs. Eggs are laid on the skin of the host or simply shot into the air. After half a month, worm-like larvae appear from the eggs. They often feed on the waste of adult insects or in general all sorts of rotting remains.
The larvae can endure the lack of food for up to a month. They molt 3 times and then pupate. The life of an adult insect can last 1.5 years, but usually do not live more than 2-3 months.
Blood sucking, depending on the type of flea, lasts from 1 minute to several hours. Some species suck more blood than they can digest. Others drink blood often, but little by little, without leaving the owner's coat. Some species rarely drink blood, but they do not live on the host, but in a nest or burrow.
Basically, fleas prefer animals that have a permanent hole. Or animals that use burrows or nests during certain periods of life, such as breeding and raising young. Only fleas, for which there is a risk of not finding a second host, live permanently on the animal.
Fleas can move from one species of animal to another, with the exception of the species of fleas that have chosen bats. Therefore, if fleas have started up in the house, first of all, you need to look in bedding and animal cages, under the trash can, in the toilet, in the chicken coop.
Fleas themselves cause two diseases in humans - pulicosis and sarcopsillosis. But in general, fleas can carry at least 25 diseases, many of which are dangerous to humans. A list of some of them can scare any sane person:
First of all, you need to inspect pets that could bring fleas from a walk. It is necessary to inspect behind the ears, front paws, withers. Fleas leave red spots. When bathing an animal, inspect the water washed off it for insects. If you have red bite marks on your body in the morning, carefully inspect the carpets, sofa or bed in the corners. Look at the seams of sheets, clothes, socks.
Flea bites are very painful, similar to needle pricks. Fleas do not camouflage themselves and do not contain an anesthetic in their saliva. They are hard to catch and even harder to crush. To get to the capillary, the flea, after piercing the skin, sticks its head into the wound and releases a little saliva, which prevents the blood from clotting. This saliva causes swelling and intense itching.
Scratching can lead to infection. Flea saliva can cause allergic reaction, which can cause difficulty breathing, fever, intestinal disorders, severe swelling. Due to flea bites, pulicosis, a condition resembling an allergy, can develop:
Inflammation and suppuration of the bites themselves;
Ulcers in the mouth;
Enlarged lymph nodes;
elevated temperature;
Headache.
Flea bites are a series of several punctures. In humans, fleas most often bite the feet and shins. In children, bites can be located all over the body. A person may develop a neurosis, it seems that insects are crawling on him, even if they are not there at the moment. Treatment for flea bites comes down to the following measures:
Take precautions to avoid being bitten by fleas. Don't touch stray animals sanitary norms, take care of pets, wear long-sleeve shirts and long trousers in nature.
Fleas- a large detachment of blood-sucking (hematophagous) insects, which includes more than 2000 species of fleas. In the sediments of the last epoch of the Paleocene period, imprints of relic arthropods are found, which indicates the antiquity of these insects. More than 30 million years ago, with a cooling of the climate, new types of warm-blooded animals appeared on the planet - horses, pigs, rabbits, camels, etc.
Interesting!
Professor Stephen Chown of the University of Stellenbosch in South Africa published an article in which he noted with concern the settlement of the Antarctic Peninsula by uncharacteristic natural environment species of flora and fauna. Among the species introduced to the Antarctic and firmly established here, there are also two varieties of springtail fleas. They live in top layer soil and feed on organic plant matter.
Fleas are classified by type of host into:
Only rare species fleas are constantly on the body of the victim. The rest live in the lining of holes, nests of birds, jumping on the owner, only to eat. What are fleas in their habitat? They are divided into:
Interesting!
Folds of chic outfits and high hairstyles for ladies and gentlemen Victorian era teemed with blood-sucking insects. To catch them, they came up with special devices - flea traps, elegant openwork boxes inside which the bait was placed. Wool or fabric was moistened with honey, resin and a drop of blood was dripped. Insects crawling inside stuck to the filler.
Due to the fact that bloodsuckers easily change owners, the bubonic plague carried by rat fleas in the 17th century claimed the lives of more than 20% of Londoners. About 55 species of bloodsuckers are carriers of the plague bacillus. For the first time, a plague pandemic was described in documents dating back to 540. Then in Constantinople, the “black death” claimed 5-10 thousand people daily. The Bible also tells about the plague epidemic.
Noticeable in the photo salient feature body structure of the insect. Its hind legs are longer than the body. These powerful limbs help the pest to jump high, hiding from persecution or jump on its prey.
Interesting!
Experts in neurodynamics and neurobiology M. Burrows (Cambridge) and G. Sutton (Bristol) found out the secret of flea jumps. Its limbs act like a catapult, “shooting” the body to a height of 30-50 cm. With the help of claws, the insect blocks its legs, slowly crouches, accumulating elastic deformation energy in a special structure, which consists of the resilin protein, which is found only in jumping insects. When jumping, this structure releases up to 99% of energy, providing a powerful push. The acceleration, which develops a unique mechanism, is 100 times greater than the acceleration of free fall.
The reduced wings of the flea also help it to jump, providing synchronous repulsion from the surface. The flea has three pairs of legs, like all insects. The middle legs help with jumping and forward movement.
A flea under a microscope strikes with a variety of patterns on the thighs of the hind legs. Cutyloglyphics makes it possible to differentiate the types of blood-sucking insects. The special structure of the legs of a flea allows you to fold them like an accordion in a calm state, without interfering with feeding.
A close-up of a flea is a terrifying sight. The photo shows a full-face view of the insect. The head is small, sloping. Behind the simple eyes are antennae, which, at rest, the insect removes into special pits. Males use their antennae to hold the female during mating. This structure of the head ensures that it is deeply immersed in the epidermis of the victim in order to reach the capillary. This is what a flea looks like under an electron microscope in profile.
well visible oral apparatus piercing-sucking type. The upper pair of stylets gnaws through the skin, the lower pair expands the wound. The lower lip is a kind of case for the sucking proboscis. It also has movable palps - the organs of touch. From above, the oral apparatus is covered with a head plate with sharp comb-like protrusions - ctenidia. An enzyme secreted by the salivary glands of the insect prevents blood from clotting. The insect does not mask its bite with painkillers, like many blood-sucking counterparts.
The structural features of these blood-sucking insects are also in the presence of a sensory organ characteristic only for a representative of this family of sensory organs - pygidium. Localized on the 8th segment, the pygidium is equipped with tactile hair-like outgrowths of chitin (trichobothria) that detect air vibrations and inform the insect of the threat.
Interesting facts about fleas are collected in the 6-volume edition of the Catalog of the Rothschild Flea Collection in the British Museum. The structure of the flea was studied by M.L. Rodschild, daughter of the famous C. Rothschild, who collected the largest collection of these insects. It was she who first began to study and fully described what they are.
Interesting!
The weight of the blood that the bloodsucker drinks is 6 times that of a flea. Blood helps her not only to survive, but also to multiply. The hungry "vampire" falls into a lethargic state. But it is worth feeling the approach of food, as the insect "comes to life" and jumps on the victim.
Females mate once in a lifetime, but produce 500-800 eggs. A well-fed female throws eggs with force, scattering them around. Household fleas lay their eggs in carpets, bedding of animals, on their wool.
How do fleas get into an apartment
Reading 7 min. Views 546 Published on 05/19/2019
All types of fleas belong to the order of arthropod blood-sucking insects. They live almost all their lives on warm-blooded animals and are dangerous, because they can be carriers of infections.
Fleas are blood-sucking insects, which are carriers of dangerous diseases.
The transformation cycle takes 7-200 days. The body of an adult insect is ovoid, flattened laterally. The head and thorax are small, the abdomen is large. They have 3 pairs of legs, the hind legs are longer than the rest. The chitinous cover is dense, yellow, brown or black.
Flea life cycle. Fleas do not have wings, but their streamlined body shape and strong legs help them jump up to 33 cm in length and up to 19 cm in height.
The reproductive system of the male is represented by a copulatory organ; females have ovaries, an oviduct and a seminal receptacle.
Mouth adult It is represented by a piercing-sucking apparatus, with the help of which the insect makes a puncture in the host's skin, and then expands the wound with sliding blades and injects a special enzyme that prevents blood clotting.
The most common types:
In the summer, a house or apartment can start up that attack both people and animals.
A small number of insects does not affect the health and behavior of the cat. However, they multiply rapidly (the female lays up to 50 eggs per day).
Structure of a dog flea. Sometimes there are nits in the human hairline. , however adapted to drink his blood. The main places of defeat are the legs: instep, ankles, ankles. The bite causes severe itching, healing takes a long time.
In some regions, cat and dog fleas have adapted to feeding on human blood only. In this case, insects do not settle on the body, but on clothes and bedding, where they lay their eggs.
In addition, it is easier to lay eggs on wool. However, these types of insects, if there is no suitable animal nearby, willingly attack a person. At the same time, they do not live permanently in humans.
They can act as carriers:
After a flea bite, hives on the skin may occur. It is also possible to infect with helminths. In addition, injecting saliva into a wound on human skin can cause individual reactions. Most often, after bites, urticaria and dermatitis appear.
In rare cases, a person has a migraine, lymph nodes increase, sleep disturbance is observed, and the temperature rises.
To quickly get rid of insects in the apartment, you can use aerosols:
First, a thorough cleaning is carried out in the house, garbage and old rags are thrown out in which insects could lay their eggs. Children and pets should not be in the room. All windows should be closed and insecticide sprayed. Then you should leave the room for 2-3 hours, and upon return carry out wet cleaning.
Instructions for use of the insecticidal preparation "Biorin". Such products are distinguished by a prolonged action, therefore they are recommended to be used in cases where fleas enter the house from the basement or are brought on wool by pets, often walking in the fresh air.
These funds include:
The funds are quite effective, but they are not recommended for use in apartments where small children live, because contact with toxic substances can cause intoxication.
Pets are often blamed for the appearance of fleas in the house. In fact, the presence of dogs and cats does not necessarily indicate the presence or possible appearance fleas. Few people know that there are human fleas.
Distinguishing human fleas from dog or cat fleas can only be done by an entomologist who has a microscope at hand.
A frequent consequence of bites can be symptoms resembling:
Human fleas differ from relatives in fertility. Places for masonry can be dusty shelters under furniture and in corners, cracks in the floor, carpets densely piled, animal hair. Fleas do not choose a specific location. They literally scatter eggs where they have to. The development cycle of a flea takes about four weeks and occurs in several stages: 
Unlike adults, they do not feed on blood and do not have the ability to bite through the skin. They eat organic matter and adult excrement. On average, a human flea lives for several months, but there are times when it life cycle lasts for a year and a half.
This type of flea feeds mainly on human blood, but in the absence of people it can attack pets with the same success. A hungry flea jumps on the victim, pierces the skin and drinks blood from blood vessel. Having satiated, the insect leaves the host's body. Therefore, when they talk about whether a person has fleas, the question itself seems incorrect. Fleas start up in the house, closer to the source of food, but they do not live on the person or on the animal, unlike, for example, lice.
For this, products of such brands as the Executioner, Raptor, Raid, Combat are suitable. They are sprayed with the alleged places of residence of insects.
It is almost impossible to understand which fleas have bitten you, cat or human. If there are pets in the house, then you should first remove the fleas from them, and then proceed to process the premises.
There are no specific flea shampoos for humans.Therefore, in order to get rid of human fleas, it is important to treat the room.
Bite sites need to be treated. To do this, use antiseptic soap and alcohol 
solutions. With symptoms of pulicosis, similar to allergenic, medications are prescribed. We are talking about sedatives, antihistamines.
To prevent fleas from disturbing in the field, use special means intended for people. In this sense, sprays win. It is impossible to cover all areas of the skin with ointments and gels, and fleas are very unpredictable and jump anywhere. Spraying yourself with a spray is much easier. They contain the substance DEET, which repels insects. Among popular means from fleas are relevant:
