What does a red flea look like? - briefly
A red flea is a tiny, laterally flattened insect about 1–2 mm long, with a reddish‑brown, hard exoskeleton. Its elongated legs end in minute claws that enable rapid jumps.
What does a red flea look like? - in detail
A red flea measures roughly 1.5–3 mm in length, comparable to a grain of sand. Its body is laterally flattened, allowing movement through the host’s fur or feather layers. The exoskeleton exhibits a vivid reddish hue, often intensified after a recent blood meal, giving the insect a glossy, almost metallic sheen.
Key visual elements include:
- Head: Small, rounded, bearing compound eyes that appear dark against the red background. Two short antennae emerge from the front, each ending in a sensory club.
- Mouthparts: Piercing‑sucking stylets project forward, adapted for penetrating skin and extracting blood.
- Thorax: Compact, supporting six jointed legs. Each leg ends in a pair of tiny, backward‑pointing spines that act as anchors during jumps.
- Legs: Long relative to body size, especially the hind pair, which powers rapid leaps. The femora are thick, tibiae slender, and tarsi equipped with microscopic claws.
- Abdomen: Segmented, expanding noticeably after feeding. The dorsal surface retains the reddish coloration, while the ventral side may appear paler due to thinner cuticle.
Additional characteristics:
- Surface texture: Smooth, with occasional fine hairs (setae) that reduce friction.
- Movement: Capable of jumps up to 150 times its body length, facilitated by a resilin pad in the hind legs.
- Color variation: Redness can range from light pink to deep burgundy, depending on engorgement level and species-specific pigment. Some flea species naturally display a reddish tint even when unfed.
These details collectively define the appearance of a red flea, distinguishing it from other ectoparasites through its size, flattened shape, vivid coloration, and specialized locomotor adaptations.