The labial palps, held together, serve to support the other parts, a function which is performed by the labium in the Diptera. In piercing the host, the mandibles are most important and blood is drawn up a channel formed by the two mandibles and the labrum-epipharynx (Borradaile & Potts, 1958).
What are the characteristics of Siphonaptera?
Siphonaptera – Fleas Fleas are distributed worldwide, some species following domestic animals (dog, cat) as Ctenocephalides. They are small insects, 1–5 mm; the body is flattened laterally, generally light brown to dark brown, with modified posterior legs for jumping, no wings and reduced antennae.
Does Siphonaptera have wings?
Although known to be related to the true flies (the Diptera) by details of internal structure, the Siphonaptera are highly modified for a parasitic existence; they have no wings and no compound eyes, the legs are modified for jumping, the antennae are very short and recessed in grooves on the head, and the body is ...
What are the role of host hormones on flea life cycle?
In some species, the reproductive cycle of a female flea is triggered by reproductive hormones in the female host. This ensures that a new generation of fleas will mature before the host's offspring leave the nest.
How do Siphonaptera reproduce?
Fleas mate on their host animal and lay their eggs either onto the animal where they fall to the nest or directly in the nest. The small larvae hatch from the eggs and do not begin to feed on blood like that of their parents but consume the dead skin and other dirt and dust from the host animal.
What is the structure of siphonaptera?
Adult fleas have a laterally flattened body, adapted to movement by jumping, with long hind legs. They are usually small, the largest species only measuring up to 6 mm. The limits between the three body segments are hardly visible. The head is small and the abdomen is large [16].
How do you pronounce siphonaptera?
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What is the host of a flea?
General Flea Life Cycle and seek out a warm-blooded host for blood meals. The primary hosts for Ctenocephalides felis and C. canis are cats and dogs, respectively, although other mammals, including humans, may be fed upon. The primary hosts for Xenopsylla cheopis are rodents, especially rats.
How long can fleas live without a host?
Remember: Adult fleas can live up to two weeks without attaching themselves to a host. So, although females can't reproduce during that time, they still have up to two weeks to find a host and reproduce.
What's the purpose of fleas?
Fleas may play different roles as parasites in mammals. They may act as vectors to transmit pathogens. They may play a role as intermediate hosts of parasites and can be an ectoparasitic nuisance in animals and humans which may cause allergic reactions.
Can fleas reproduce without a host?
Adult fleas can live between two days and two weeks without a host, but they cannot reproduce if they don't have blood to eat. Still, flea pupae can lay dormant for up to 6 months without food.
How many species of siphonaptera are there?
Classification. There are around 2,300 species in this order, and around 300 species are found in North America. The tiny species in this order are wingless. They have very short antennae, sucking mouth parts, and laterally flattened bodies.
What is a group of fleas called?
Flamingos: stand, flamboyance. Fleas: scratch. Foxes: leash, skulk. Geese: gaggle.
What kind of mouthparts do siphonaptera have?
piercing and sucking mouthpartsSiphonaptera (or Suctoria) are wingless insects that are ectoparasitic on warm-blooded animals. They are compressed laterally with short antennae positioned in grooves. They have piercing and sucking mouthparts, maxillary and labial palps are present, coxae are large and the tarsus has five joints.
Which irritating insects are technically known as siphonaptera?
Order Siphonaptera (Fleas) Fleas: Adult and immature cat flea.
How many wings do Diptera have?
Definition. Although many insects are termed "flies," only those having one pair of wings belong to the insect Order Diptera. Flies are also characterized by having a pair of balancing organs, called halteres, located just back of the base of the wings.
How do you identify Hemiptera?
OverviewBasal portion of the front wing is thickened and leathery.Apical portion is membranous (this type of wing is called hemelytron, or hemelytran if single)Hind wings are completely membranous and shorter than the front wings.Wings at rest are held over the abdomen with membranous tips overlapping.
What do Siphonaptera eat?
All members of the Siphonaptera feed exclusively on warm-blooded animals. Their mouthparts lack mandibles and a siphon is formed of structures of the labrum, labium and maxillae. The labium is an elongated and fleshy covering mechanism. The maxillae are interlocking and a maxillary sheath is present but not obvious.
What are the mouthparts of a diptera made of?
The mouthparts are made up of a pair of long serrated mandibles, a pair of short triangular maxillae with palps, and a reduced labium with palps.
What is the function of the labial palps?
The labial palps, held together, serve to support the other parts, a function which is performed by the labium in the Diptera. In piercing the host, the mandibles are most important and blood is drawn up a channel formed by the two mandibles and the labrum-epipharynx (Borradaile & Potts, 1958).
Where do Ceratophyllidae live?
The Ceratophyllidae, Hystrichopsyllidae, Leptopsyllidae, Vermipsyllidae, Coptopsyllidae, and Ancistropsyllidae occur predominantly in the boreal continents of North America, Europe, or Asia. Those families restricted to the southern continents of Africa, Antarctica, Australia, or South America include Malacopsyllidae, Rhopalopsyllidae, Stephanocircidae, Pygiopsyllidae, Xiphiopsyllidae, and Chimaeropsyllidae. The remaining three families, Ctenophthalmidae, Ischnopsyllidae and Pulicidae, occur in both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres.
What is the expansion of pregenital abdominal segments by secretion of new cuticle without molting?
Neosomy is the expansion of pregenital abdominal segments by secretion of new cuticle without molting. This process takes place in females of Hectopsylla, Neotunga, Tunga (Tungidae), Chaetopsylla, Dorcadia, Vermipsylla (Vermipsyllidae), and Malacopsylla (Malacopsyllidae), as a way to accommodate growth up to 1,000x normal size. Neosomatic growth is especially pronounced in Tunga, Neotunga, and Dorcadia. Males do not undergo neosomatic growth, because their principal function is to mate. Females expand primarily to accomodate egg production.
Hazard associated with flea species
Fleas are ectoparasitic blood-sucking insects with the ability to jump, which commonly infest wild and domestic animals (mainly dogs and cats) but also humans. In addition to serious dermatological conditions mainly related to allergic reactions, fleas can be vectors for various pathogens.
Geographical distribution
Most researchers agree that the house flea, P. irritans, originates in South America from where it was introduced to Africa, Europe and Asia via transoceanic contact as early as 3 000 BCE [3] [4]. The cat flea, C. felis, originates from Africa or the Middle East, probably with the African wildcat Felis lybica being used as a natural original host.
Entomology
Species name/Classification: Siphonaptera: Pulicidae ( Pulex irritans, Xenopsylla cheopis, Ctenocephalides felis)
Public health control measures
The presence of fleas in human environments is more or less ubiquitous, although not easily recognised. Cat fleas are common on pet and stray cats and dogs and can be a nuisance for people in frequent contact with pets.
Key areas of uncertainty
Flea-borne diseases are relatively neglected in Europe compared to other vector-borne diseases in terms of targeted surveillance, research and control. One of the main knowledge gaps in understanding the risks of pathogen transmission from fleas to humans is the lack of geographical distribution da,ta mainly for the house flea, P.
How many families are there in Siphonaptera?
In this classification, the order Siphonaptera is divided into 15 families, the largest of which are the Ctenophthalmidae (744 species), Ceratophyllidae (540 species), Leptopsyllidae (346 species), Pulicidae (207 species), Pygiopsyllidae (185 species), Rhopalopsyllidae (145 species), and Ischnopsyllidae (135 species).
Where do laciniae enter the capillary?
The laciniae penetrate the host skin and the tip of the epipharynx enters a host capillary. A salivary canal is formed by the closely appressed medial surfaces of the two laciniae. A food canal is formed at the confluence of the laciniae with the epipharynx ( Fig. 2.2D ).
What part of the mouth is adapted for piercing skin?
The mouth itself is adapted for piercing skin and sucking blood. Several mouthparts unite to form a needlelike drinking tube. Here's a rundown: Labrum and labium make up the "upper" and "lower" lips. Labial palps are long, five-segmented sensory organs that come from the labium.
How do fleas work?
To the naked eye, a flea's exoskeleton seems completely smooth, but it's really covered in tiny hairs that point away from the flea's head. Their flattened bodies and these backward-pointing hairs are what enables them to crawl through a host's fur , and if something tries to dislodge them, the hairs act like tiny Velcro anchors. That's why a fine-toothed comb removes fleas better than a brush. The teeth of the comb are too close together for fleas to slip through, so it can pull them from the host's hair, regardless of which way a flea's hairs are pointing.
What is the protein that holds a flea's leg in place?
The flea bends its leg, and a pad of elastic protein called resilin stores energy just like a bowstring. A tendon holds the bent leg in place. When the flea releases this tendon, the leg straightens almost instantly, and the flea accelerates like an arrow from a crossbow.
Evolution and Systematics
- Fleas may have evolved as early as 140 million years ago (mya), along with their mammalian hosts. Only five flea species are known from fossil records: three from Baltic amber (35–40 mya: Palaeopsylla baltica, Palaeopsylla dissimilis, and Palaeopsylla klebsiana) and two from Dominican amber (15–20 mya: Pulex larimerius and an undescribed species of...
Physical Characteristics
- Fleas are wingless, laterally compressed, holometabolous insects, and the adults are adapted to a parasitic mode of life. Their eggs are small, elongated spheres, varying in color from pearly white to dark brown to black; they are about 0.02–0.06 in (0.5–1.4 mm) in diameter. Larvae are wormlike and range from 0.02 to 0.4 in (0.5–10 mm) in length, with well-sclerotized head capsul…
Distribution
- The Ceratophyllidae, Hystrichopsyllidae, Leptopsyllidae, Vermipsyllidae, Coptopsyllidae, and Ancistropsyllidae occur predominantly in the boreal continents of North America, Europe, or Asia. Those families restricted to the southern continents of Africa, Antarctica, Australia, or South Americainclude Malacopsyllidae, Rhopalopsyllidae, Stephanocircidae, Pygiopsyllidae, Xiphiopsy…
Habitat
- Fleas parasitize hosts in virtually every conceivable terrestrial habitat, adapting to the microclimate of the nests, burrows, and body conditions. Such adaptations enable fleas to live in the most extreme environmental conditions. For example, Glaciopsyllus antarcticus occurs only in the frigid, sub-zero conditions of the Antarctic. They proliferate in the microclimate of the nest an…
Behavior
- Perpetuation of each species is dependent on the success of finding a host. Some fleas remain in a quiescent pupal state for an extended time, to survive cold periods or to wait until a host approaches. Vibrations produced by an approaching host may stimulate adults to emerge immediately from their pupal cases. Although the visual acuity of fleas is poor, shadows of appro…
Feeding Ecology and Diet
- With the exception of Uropsylla tasmanica, the larvae of most fleas are free living, scavenging on dried blood, animal dandruff, and animal excreta in the host's nest or the environment. Larval cat fleas (Ctenocephalides felis felis) feed on partially digested blood excreted from the anus of adult fleas. The larvae of Hoplopsyllus, Tunga, and Dasypsyllus are documented facultative ectoparas…
Reproductive Biology
- Males assume a position directly beneath the female, each facing the same direction. The occipital groove in the dorsal portion of the male head frequently is developed to accommodate the keel-shaped surface of forward sternites of the female abdomen. The male clasps the sides of the female sternites with suckerlike structures on the inner surface of the antennae. He also ma…
Conservation Status
- There are no flea taxa specifically listed as threatened by the IUCN; however, species that are very host specific (that is, they depend on a single host for their existence) are in danger of perishing if their host is endangered. Attempts to identify such combinations have never been undertaken.
Significance to Humans
- The bite of the dog, cat, and human flea (Pulex complex) may cause annoyance, irritation, extreme itching, hypersensitivity, and secondary infections. Many species of flea transmit diseases to humans and their pets directly through their bite, through rubbing or scratching infected feces into an open wound, or by ingesting infected fleas. These include plague (Yersini…
Species Accounts
- Bat flea
Ischnopsyllus octactenus - Oriental rat flea
Xenopsylla cheopis cheopis