Fleas Life Cycle

When you have a flea infestation, you usually just want to get rid of every single flea in sight. However, you’re only taking care of a smaller portion of the actual problem. Remember that with each flea you kill, there are others who are more than willing to take its place. As the saying goes, one needs to know his enemy before one can defeat him.

Flea Life Cycle

Understanding the life cycle of these little critters is one of the most important steps in order to get rid of them. It will definitely help make the task of controlling them a lot easier. Understanding what they are and their habits are will be indispensable. In fact, there are flea removal solutions that target these pests according to their stage in their life cycles.

Both humans and animals can suffer from a flea infestation. The ridiculously itchy feeling you get from them can be quite unbearable sometimes. Flea problems are so common that vets usually get inquiries about them every now and then. However, the most common questions pet owners come up with are targeted to only get rid of the symptoms. Pet owners usually ask for a shampoo, powder, pill, collar, or drops to get rid of the mature fleas.

The fact is that there is really no single solution that can drastically get rid of all flea problems. You should understand the flea life cycle and target these pests accordingly. Other than that you should also make changes in the environment so that future infestations do not reoccur. Here is the life cycle of fleas:

Egg: Unlike other parasites, the eggs of fleas aren’t really sticky. In fact, their eggs usually roll off your pets and fall into their sleeping areas, your carpet, beddings, on the soil, or even on your floorboards. The length of time needed to hatch these eggs will vary from about a couple of days to even a few weeks. Environmental conditions will take their toll on the hatching of these eggs.

Larva: This is the next step in the life cycle of fleas. Take note that during this stage, these newbie fleas move around a lot. They usually eat the organic debris and feces of older fleas. This stage of their growth can last from five to 18 days or at times even longer. It all depends on their individual living conditions.

Pupa: The next stage in the flea life cycle is the pupa stage. This is the final stage before these fleas become full grown adults. Flea larvae will come to a point when they will spin their own cocoons. A full grown flea will come out of its cocoon after three to five days. However, take note that fleas can stay in their cocoon for as a year or at times even longer.

The length of this stage in the flea life cycle also depends on ambient conditions in which fleas can live. They can usually stay in their cocoons until they are enticed or brought out by high humidity, carbon dioxide emissions, or even vibrations caused by other larger living organisms. When they emerge out of their cocoons they come out as full grown adults and start the flea life cycle all over again. Take note that an adult flea can lay up to 50 eggs a day.