What’s Buggin’ you?
FLEAS – The circus performers of the insect world
Yes, you heard that right. Dating back to the 1800’s imaginative directors have utilized the aboriginal traits of the flea to entertain and delight audiences. Fleas could be observed walking tightropes, juggling, and even dancing! However, fleas are even more notorious for their specialized talents in tormenting mankind. The chief fame of the flea rests in it’s ability to transmit disease, therefore we must look at it in more than just a jocular vein.
The body of the flea appears to be well adapted for forward movement. Dark colored adults are flattened from side to side with many bristles or ctenidia that point backwards and facilitate forward movement through fur, hair, or feathers. Fleas are wingless creatures, with strongly developed legs and hind legs that are especially adapted for jumping (and dancing, apparently!). Their sucking mouthparts also make them well equipped for a parasitic lifestyle on many animals and birds.
While difficult for some of us to imagine, some individuals become accustomed to fleas and are not disturbed by them in the least! Others are extremely irritated by the mere presence of fleas, let alone their painful bites. Fleas are common in the United States because of the even temperatures and high humidity. Newcomers are especially susceptible to flea bites, even though some individuals have to be bitten repeatedly to become sensitive to the bites, and often become immune after being bitten over a long period of time. Flea bites may be mistaken for a rash but various cooling preparations will often give relief to those who are sensitive to the bite.
Since the tendency of the flea is to feed on several different species of animals, it is prone to carry disease from one animal to another, for example, from rat to man. The flea life cycle varies according to the living conditions. In hot weather and with no blood to feed upon, fleas may live from two to five days. However, when fleas have a blood source to feed upon, they may live for a month to almost a year!
Keeping the health of the occupants of your home or structure as the first priority, we offer several different approved pest control techniques for the treatment of Fleas. These methods may include handspraying, dusting, fogging, baiting and the use of residual crack and crevice aerosol products among other treatments. Because each occurrence is different, treatments will be employed as applicable in specific situations. IGR (Insect Growth Regulators) are used to disrupt the life cycle of the eggs and larvae so they cannot grow to become biting adults. Once adult fleas have mated, the female flea will not lay eggs until she has a blood meal. Fleas can get their blood meal from a variety of sources. Rat or cat fleas may attack humans who come into a house where the preferred host has been removed.
Fleas are an unwelcome sight and can be unnerving, disrupting your peaceful home or building. It is for this reason that we suggest a recurring service plan for residential or commercial properties. This will maintain a healthy barrier around your structure should fleas come crawling.
Tags: Common Pests, Fleas, Insects
Interesting blog. It would be great if you can provide more details about it. Thanks a lot!
I was just having a conversation over this I am glad I came across this it cleared some of the questions I had.