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Species Ctenocephalides felis - Cat Flea

Cat flea? - Ctenocephalides felis Gravid cat flea - Ctenocephalides felis - female Flea off of one my cats - Ctenocephalides felis Flea off of one of my cats - Ctenocephalides felis Dead flea found in cat's bed - Ctenocephalides felis Flea off of one my cats - Ctenocephalides felis Female, Ctenocephalides felis felis? - Ctenocephalides felis - female Male, Ctenocephalides felis felis? - Ctenocephalides felis - male
Classification
Kingdom Animalia (Animals)
Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods)
Class Insecta (Insects)
Order Siphonaptera (Fleas)
Family Pulicidae
Genus Ctenocephalides (Cat and Dog Fleas)
Species felis (Cat Flea)
Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
Orig. Comb: Pulex felis Bouché 1835
Explanation of Names
felis - Latin for a cat, the principal host of this species.
Numbers
one of two species in this genus in North America
Size
body length 1.5-2.5 mm
Identification
Forehead low and sloping; genal comb with 7-8 sharp teeth, the first tooth about equal in length to the second.
"Cat fleas are commonly found on both cats and dogs in North America, while dog fleas are found in Europe. The two species are distinguished by a slight morphological difference which is detectable only under high magnification." (Zentko and Richman 2011)
Range
Cosmopolitan, most commonly found in North America, unlike the dog flea which is European.
Habitat
Common on cats and dogs; also occurs on coyotes, foxes, rabbits, rats, humans
Food
Adults feed on blood of the host. Larvae feed on any kind of organic debris found on the floor.
Life Cycle
The adult cat flea, unlike many other fleas, remains on the host. Adults require a fresh blood meal in order to reproduce. (Zentko and Richman 2011)
Remarks
The most common domestic flea is the cat flea (Zentko and Richman 2011)
Implicated in the transmission of murine typhus in south Texas, California and Hawaii. A mean of 48 cases of murine typhus were reported annually from 1990 through 2006 in southern Texas. (Adjemian et al. 2010)
See Also
The Dog Flea (Ctenocephalides canis) has a high and well-rounded forehead, and the first tooth of its genal comb is shorter than the second.
Print References
Adjemian J, Parks S, McElroy K, Campbell J, Eremeeva ME, Nicholson WL, et al. 2010. Murine typhus in Austin, Texas, USA. Emerging Infectious Diseases. 16(3): 412-417. Available at: http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/16/3/09-1028.htm
Internet References
Featured Creatures - Diana C. Zentko and Dina L. Richman, 2011
preserved adult image and other info (U. of California, Berkeley)
preserved adult image plus classification, references, and links (David Maddison, Tree of Life)