How often are fleas born? - briefly
Female fleas lay eggs continuously, depositing up to 50 eggs per day, and their larvae develop into adults within 2–3 weeks under favorable conditions, allowing a single individual to generate thousands of descendants in a short period.
How often are fleas born? - in detail
Fleas reproduce continuously as long as a suitable host and favorable environmental conditions are present. An adult female consumes a blood meal, then begins oviposition within 24–48 hours. She can lay 20–50 eggs per day, reaching a total of 2 000–5 000 eggs over her lifespan of 2–3 months. Egg hatching occurs in 2–5 days, depending on temperature and humidity; optimal conditions (25 °C, 75 % relative humidity) shorten this period to about 2 days.
The immature stages follow a fixed timeline:
- Larva: three instars lasting 5–11 days; larvae feed on organic debris, adult flea feces, and skin cells.
- Pupa: cocoon formation takes 1–2 days; pupal development spans 5–14 days, extending up to several weeks if conditions are adverse.
- Adult: emergence occurs when temperature rises above 15 °C and a host is detected. Adults live 2–3 months, during which females repeatedly produce eggs after each blood meal.
Under warm, humid indoor environments, a flea population can complete a full generation in 2–3 weeks. Consequently, multiple overlapping generations may exist within a single season, leading to a rapid increase in numbers. In temperate regions, outdoor activity slows during winter, reducing reproductive output, but indoor infestations can persist year‑round because the life cycle continues unabated in heated spaces.