The female flea jigger or chigoe (not to be confused with “chigger”, a larval mite) burrows into the skin of its host, usually on the feet, and lives in a cyst that forms around it. Intense itching accompanies the development and enlargement of the cyst, since the abdomen of the pregnant flea swells to the size of a pea; Secondary infections can be serious complications. “I guess he`s the best rabbit dog ever,” he said as a flea curse trotted around. If you feel the bite of the flea, immediately push the bitten part into boiling water. The archaic plural fleen comes from Middle English fleen, flen, Old English flēan (“fleas”). W`y, dat ar ole creetur aint has never hurt a flea in all his birthdays – dat he aint, sezee. A flea is a tiny biting insect that is especially common in dogs. If you find a flea in your dog`s fur, hundreds more may be hiding in it. And it all started with a young model rummaging through the flea markets in Paris to find something that made her feel good. Flea (single third-person singular bullets, present participle bullet, simple past participle, and past participle flee) One flea, Xenopsylla cheopis, from a small, infected mammal — usually a rat — can jump from the dying rat to a human and bite it.

Sometimes there is a flea infestation that is too strong not to use the most common chemicals. Six months after arriving in Paris, he found another high-wheeled bike at a flea market and bought it too. Fleas live by sucking blood from a host – these are parasites. You can barely see a flea with the naked eye, and if you do see one, it can jump, as they are known to jump from one animal to another sometimes. Flea bites itch, and fleas can be difficult to remove once they lay eggs on your dog (or in your bed). Some experts believe that the root of the word is the Old English fleon, “to flee”. Fleas are small wingless insects with a hard cuticle, bearing many hairs and often combs (ribs) of wide, flattened spines. The adult flea ranges from about 0.1 to 0.32 cm (0.039 to 0.13 inches) in length and feeds exclusively on the blood of mammals (including humans) and birds.

With about 2,000 known species and subspecies, the order is still small compared to many other insect groups. However, it is widespread, with some – like the rat flea and mouse flea – worn by people all over the world. Native species of fleas are found in polar, temperate and tropical regions. Fleas, especially Xenopsylla cheopis, are considered the main carriers of murine typhoid (endemic), a rickettsia disease in humans. As with plague, rats and mice are the sources of infection. Fleas are considered important for maintaining and spreading many localized infections in rodents and other mammals, including tularemia and Russian spring-summer encephalitis. Fleas transmit myxomatosis, a viral disease of rabbits deliberately used to control rabbits in areas where they are serious parasites (for example, in Australia). Fleas are likely carriers of a dog`s wireworm and serve as an intermediate host for a common tapeworm (Dipylidium caninum) of dogs and cats and sometimes children. When heavily infested, animals can suffer serious damage or be killed by the effects of flea bites and the resulting blood loss. Fleas are prone to parasitism by external mites, internal nematode worms and bacterial, fungal and protozoan infections.

Sprickly water fleas feed on other, smaller native water fleas, which are a vital food source for small fish and keep algae at bay. Scientists eventually identified the disease as an infectious agent caused by bacteria that spreads to humans primarily through fleas. I grew up in New York and there was a Caldor that had a flea market on Sundays. Flea infestation can lead to severe inflammation of the skin and severe itching. Although many animals acquire partial immunity after constant or repeated seizures, individuals (especially humans) can sometimes become sensitized after exposure and develop allergies. Species that attack humans and livestock include the cat flea (Ctenocephalides felis), the so-called human flea (Pulex irritans), the dog flea (Ctenocephalides canis), the sticky flea (Echidnophaga gallinacea) and the jigger flea or chigoe (Tunga penetrans). Poultry can be parasitized by the European chicken flea (Ceratophyllus gallinae) and in the United States by the western chicken flea (Ceratophyllus niger). Microscopic fleas can cling to fishing lines and survive in seawater at the base of your boat. Flea (order Siphonaptera), one of a group of bloodsucking insects that are important carriers of diseases and can be serious parasites.

Fleas are parasites that live outside the host (that is, they are ectoparasitic). Main actors in the transmission of the Black Death (bubonic plague) in the Middle Ages, they were an essential link in the chain of events that led to the death of a quarter of the European population. Some fleas, feeding mainly on rodents or birds, sometimes attack humans, especially in the absence of their usual host. When rats die from bubonic plague, their hungry fleas, themselves infected with plague bacilli and looking for food elsewhere, can transmit the disease to humans, especially in buildings heavily infested with rats. The oriental rat flea (Xenopsylla cheopis) is the most effective vector of plague, but other types of fleas (e.g. Nosopsyllus fasciatus, Xenopsylla brasiliensis, Pulex irritans) can also transmit the disease to humans. Although there are occasional cases of plague in tropical and some temperate regions, the disease in humans can be controlled by early diagnosis and antibiotics. Plague (sylvatic plague) is a widespread disease among hundreds of species of wild rodents around the world and is maintained in these flea populations that parasitize these animals.

It is known that more than 100 species of fleas can be infected with the plague bacillus, and another 10 species are involved as carriers of the classic type of urban plague. (See Infection.) Old carpets, sleeping places for cats or dogs, or any dirty, unswept corner may contain the flea`s eggs. With its famous flea market and pretty boutiques, Eastern Market has always been a popular weekend stopover. Small fish suffocate or puncture their organs when they try to consume the flea due to its long pointed spine. Middle English fle, Old English flÄa; similar to the Old High German flÅh chip W`en Brer Rabbit year `im comin` it bounces `roun` in dar same ez a flea in a piller-case, but `t aint do no good. From Middle English fle, Old English flēah, flēa, West Proto-Germanic *flauh, Proto-Germanic *flauhaz (cf. West Frisian fly, Low German Flo, Flö, Dutch vlo, German chip, Icelandic fló), from pre-Germanic *plóukos, *plówkos, from Proto-Indo-European *plúsis (cf. Latin pulex, Sanskrit प्लुषि (plúṣi)).