Fleas Bedbugs
Biological features and Clinical features of Fleas and Bugs
Author: DChosen1
Fleas
Fleas are wingless insects. They are bilaterally compressed and covered with stiff hairs directed backwardly. Strong legs help fleas to jump. They are of the Order siphonaptera which all display complete metamorphosis.
Morphology
An Adult flea is 2-3mm in size. Body is divided into head, thorax and abdomen. Head is round or angular and carries 2 simple eyes (may be absent). Ocular hairs are located in front or below the eyes. Post cephalic hairs may be present. Two short 3-segmented antennae lie in the grooves behind the eyes. proboscis is used for piercing and sucking. Thorax consists of 3 segments and carries 3 pairs of strong legs. 10 segmented abdomen carries a sensory plate (pygidium or sensilium) on the dorsal side of the 9th segment. The male has a spring- like aedeagus. The dorsal surface of abdomen is flat or concave. The female has a comma-shaped spermatheca. The dorsal surface of abdomen is convex. Eggs are pearly white, oval, 0.5mm in size and have blunt ends. Worm-like larva consists of head, thorax (3 segments) and abdomen (10 segments). All segments carry hairs directed backward. The last abdominal segment has a pair of conical processes (anal struts). Pupa is enclosed in a cocoon.
Life cycle
Eggs are laid on the ground (chaps, floor cracks, burrows of rodents). Eggs hatch after a few days. Larvae come out and pass through 3 instairs. The mature larva (about 2 weeks) spins a cocoon of viscid substance. The adult is developed in about one week and comes out. The whole cycle takes from 1 to 3 months. Fleas are either temporary ecto-parasites (human flea) or permanent ectoparasites (rat flea). They feed on blood more than once daily, but can withstand starvation for a long time.
Medical importance
Vector of plague which is caused by Yesina Pestis. The bacilli multiply and block the gut. Infection occurs by the bite of the blocked flea. Vector of murine typhus caused by Rickettsia typhi. Rickettsia invade the gut wall of the flea and multiply. After rupture of epithelial cells they are liberated into flea's lumen and come out with the feces. Mode of transmission of murine typhus is contamination of bite wound or mucous membranes by feces. Flea may be a vector of tularemia. Occasionally flea serves as intermediate host for Hymenolepis nana. Bites of fleas cause itching and scratching with possible development of secondary (bacterial) infection.
Control of fleas
Human flea is controlled by cleanliness and sweeping of dust from floor and carpets; application of insecticides and repellents (naphthaline). Dog and cat fleas can be controlled by dusting the resting places of animals with insecticides. Rat flies are controlled by applying rodent control measures (use of rodenticides and dusting of rodent burrows with insecticides).
Order Hemiptera (bugs)
Body is flattened dorso-ventrally. Wings are present or may be in rudimentarily state. Bugs display incomplete matamorphosis. Order Hemiptera includes 2 families of medical importance (cimicidae and Reduvidae).
Family Cimicidae, CImex lectularius (bedbug)
Adult bug is about 5mm in size, male is smaller than female. Body is dark brown and divided into head, thorax, and abdomen. Bugs are temporary ectoparasites. They feed by night and hide during the daytime. They can withstand starvation for a long time. Bedbugs emit a characteristic odor. naturally bedbugs are not known to transmit any disease. Very rare mechanical transmission can occur. Experimentally, it can transmit relapsing fever (Borrelia recurrentis) and Chagas' disease (Trypanosoma cruzi). The bites of bedbug are irritating and may lead to insomnia. It is controlled by cleanliness. repair of cracks, manual collection of bugs and their destruction and also by application of insecticides to hiding places.
Family Reducidae (Triatoma, reduvid bug, cone-nose or kissing bug)
Triatoma bug is the vector of Chagas' disease (American trypanosomiasis). Chagas' disease occurs primarily in rural central and south america. The reduvid bug lives in the walls of rural huts and feed at night. It bites preferentially around the mouth or eyes, hence the name is "kissing bug". Infection occurs by contamination of bite wound with feces. Prevention of chagas' disease involves protection from reduvid bite, improved housing and insect control.
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November 30, -0001
12:00 am
I found a litter of 5 stray kittens who were COMPLETELY infested with fleas. It was really bad. Since they were so young, traditional flea medicines were out of the question, and I managed to get rid of the fleas with a flea comb, DE, and baby shampoo as my only arsenal.
First of all, you need to make sure you got the human grade DE…the pool grade stuff is potentially toxic. Sprinkle the DE on your carpets, leave for a day, and the vacuum it up. You’ll have to do this every week or so for a month, because DE does not kill flea eggs, so you have to kill them as they hatch. At the same time every week, sprinkle about 3-4 pinches worth on your kitties, rub it in, and leave it for a few days. Then wash them with shampoo or Dawn dish soap, and comb them with a flea comb.
The main thing is just to KEEP AT IT!! Doing all of this once will not get rid of the fleas. Every week, wash all your bedding, kitties bedding/towels in hot water. Be consistent.
The best of luck to you, you’re in for a lot of work, and a lot of white dust, but it can work if you stick at it!
November 30, -0001
12:00 am
Hi
I don’t think they were fleas, but they might be if they were jumping rather then crawling.
I have added a link so you can see whether they look like cimicidae (bed bugs).
If you have been bitten, you may need cream for it. Cimicidae are very difficult to remove.
Hope this helps
xx
November 30, -0001
12:00 am
Yes and no. They are both related, since they are insects. They’re both external parasites, feeding on the blood of warm-blooded animals. That is as far as their relations go.
Fleas belong to the order Siphonaptera, while bedbugs belong to the order Hemiptera. If you go take a look at pictures of both, you’ll see that they have followed very different evolutionary paths. Fleas, for example, have very long forelimbs, which help them to jump really high. They’re also laterally flattened to enable to move through fur easily, and have very hard outer shells which are not easily damaged by scratching.
Bed bugs are flattened, so they can hide well in crevices and stuff. They also do not do much of that jumping stuff that fleas do, instead crawling around. Also, unlike fleas, they’re mostly nocturnal. (:
Lol, there are sooo many more differences, most of which I don’t quite know, but this is a start.
November 30, -0001
12:00 am
Bed Bugs:
http://www.google.com/images?hl=en&source=imghp&biw=1020&bih=572&q=bed+bugs&btnG=Search+Images&gbv=2&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=
Fleas:
http://www.google.com/images?hl=en&biw=1020&bih=572&gbv=2&tbs=isch%3A1&sa=1&q=fleas&aq=f&aqi=g10&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai=
Hope this helps.
-
November 30, -0001
12:00 am
Non,
You buy Kleen-Free online as it is not in stores.
Site is listed below if you still need some.
I have used it and it is great.
October 11, 2007
5:08 am
Has anyone used diatomaceous earth inside home for fleas,mange mites,bedbugs,roaches ,any other creepycrawlie?
I just ordered Diatomaceous Earth but never tried it.I got the kind you can safely put on pets,take as a remedy for yourself for different ailments&use around house to kill different kinds of bugs.If anyone has used it please let me know&if it worked.I mainly got it b/c my cats have mange&fleas&its getting out of control.And since this seems to be only natural&safe method to using anything without pesticide or chemicals&is safe for everybody but bugs &is cheap I’m trying it.So only if u used yourself please let me know how good or bad it is.Thanks.
May 24, 2009
3:49 pm
Where in birmingham can i get spray for clothing,bedding and furniture for mites,fleas,bedbugs or scabbies?
i got a rash last week and my GP said he thinks ive been bitten but dont know by what, anyway he gave me the same cream used to treat bed bug and scabbies bites but i want a spray to use on bedding, mattress, clothes, furniture and carpet just incase as im paranoid like that. Where in brimingham can i get them from i heard of something called “Kleen Free or fresh” which is suppose to be good, where can i get em from??
February 4, 2010
2:15 pm
Do I have bedbugs or fleas in my bed?
A few nights ago we noticed a couple little redish-brown bugs on our sheets. They are about the size of an ant. We were concerned there might be more so we pulled up the sheets and found about 10 others! My husband vacuumed them up and we haven’t seen them again. What kind of bugs are these and do I need to be worried that they’ll come back? I live in campus rental housing in Arizona if that makes a difference.
May 9, 2010
7:03 am
Are fleas and bedbugs related?
My apartment got bedbugs and fleas around the same time. I know the fleas came from my neighbor’s apartment. They had a dog and soon after they moved, we noticed fleas coming to our apartment. Also, I started getting bedbugs around the same time. I first got them in my room, because my room is on the other side of their wall.
I want to know if these two bugs are related, because I’m wondering if I brought them from somewhere else. We’ve gotten rid of the fleas, but the bedbugs are still hanging around. We are bombing the place today.
July 26, 2010
4:39 pm
how do you tell the difference between bedbugs and fleas?
. ^^^^