Human flea

Human dwellings, bedding, carpets, upholstery, and animal resting areas. Adults live on hosts while immature stages develop in sheltered floor debris.

Adults feed exclusively on blood, primarily from humans and other mammals. Larvae consume organic debris, including dried blood in adult flea feces.

Wingless, laterally flattened, and highly adapted for jumping; adults can leap many times their body length. Eggs, larvae, and pupae occur off-host, while adults seek hosts through warmth, movement, and carbon dioxide.

Bites cause itchy papules, allergic reactions, and occasionally secondary infection. Fleas can transmit pathogens, though human fleas are less important disease vectors than rat fleas; they provide minor prey value in food webs.