What do cat fleas look like? - briefly
Cat fleas are tiny, wing‑less insects measuring roughly 1–3 mm, reddish‑brown, and laterally flattened with powerful hind legs for jumping. Their bodies are covered in fine spines that help them move through a cat’s fur.
What do cat fleas look like? - in detail
Cat fleas are tiny, laterally flattened insects measuring approximately 1 – 3 mm in length. Their bodies are dark brown to reddish‑black, often appearing speckled when engorged with blood. The thorax and abdomen are covered with fine, backward‑pointing setae that give a slightly fuzzy texture under magnification. Legs are long relative to body size, ending in strong, clawed tarsi that enable rapid jumping; each flea can leap up to 150 times its own body length. The head is small, with compound eyes reduced to simple ocelli and antennae composed of 5–6 segments, hidden beneath the head capsule.
Key morphological features include:
- Body shape: flattened dorsoventrally, facilitating movement through the host’s fur.
- Coloration: dark brown when unfed, turning reddish‑black after a blood meal.
- Leg structure: four pairs, each bearing a powerful muscle for jumping; hind legs are the longest.
- Mouthparts: piercing‑sucking stylets designed to penetrate skin and draw blood.
- Wings: absent; the insect is wingless throughout its life.
During development, eggs are white, oval, and about 0.5 mm long, deposited on the host’s skin or in the environment. Larvae are slender, cream‑colored, and lack legs, feeding on organic debris and adult flea feces. Pupae form cocoons in the environment; the emerging adult retains the described adult morphology.
Fleas are most commonly found on the cat’s neck, base of the tail, and between the shoulder blades, where the skin is thin and blood vessels are close to the surface. Their movement is erratic; they can quickly shift between host and surroundings, making detection difficult without close inspection or a microscope.