Stats

Lifespan: A few months
Size: Tiny
Diet: Carnivore
Activity: Cathemeral
Social: Colony
Biome: Human dwellings
Range: Worldwide
Movement: Hopping
Breeding: Egg-laying
Defense: Armor
Status: Rare

About

The cat flea is the world's most common flea, infesting not just cats but dogs, rabbits, and occasionally humans. Despite being only 1–2 mm long, it can leap over 30 cm — roughly 150 times its own body length — to land on a passing host.

Life cycle

1.
egg
A small egg is laid on or near the larval food source and hatches within days or weeks.
2.
juvenile
An immature insect feeds and molts, growing through successive instars.
3.
subadult
A near-adult insect has wing buds or near-mature form, one molt away from full size.
4.
adult
Fully grown, with full wings and adult coloration.

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Taxonomy

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Siphonaptera
Family: Pulicidae
Genus: Ctenocephalides
Species: Ctenocephalides felis