What Do Fleas Look Like?

Fleas are small, blood sucking insect pests that can live in the fur and hair of animals and humans, as well as in areas of the house that have sufficient cover for the insects to live and breed, such as sofas, carpet and bedding.  Most often, you will first notice that you have fleas in your home because you will begin to see red bumps or small welts on your legs and other parts of your body where the fleas have bitten you - not because you'll see the bugs themselves.

Fleas are small and flat, typically appearing to be less than one eighth of an inch long in their full grown size, although immature or partially developed fleas can be much smaller. 

• When fleas have fed, they temporarily increase in size and can be easier to spot than those fleas that have not fed in a period of time and that have decreased back to their normal flat status. 
• When flat, they are about the thickness of a business or index card. 
• They typically appear to be black or brown, and may appear shiny due to the hard outer shell of the insect that is present.
• Because they are of the insect family, fleas have six legs. 
• Fleas cannot fly, and do not have any wings at all, although the speed with which they are able to move throughout your home or around your body may make you think that they can fly. 
• Fleas also have incredibly powerful legs that allow them to jump quite a distance. 

• If you were able to view a flea under a microscope, you would notice that their thin, shiny bodies are covered in a sort of hair or fur that helps to stick them to their prey – similar to Velcro, fleas use this hair to help bind them to the skin or hair of whatever animal or human they are preying on.

It is extremely important to know what fleas look like, because knowing the physical description of a flea will allow you to determine whether or not you have fleas in your home, or some other type of insect pest that should be dealt with.

Because fleas can transmit diseases and cause irritation, it is important to identify them quickly so that you can begin to mitigate the situation.

Signs of Fleas

Fleas move rapidly and are hard to spot, so knowing what fleas look like may not be a helpful as you'd think. However, fleas also leave some telltale signs called "flea dust."

• You can usually see this on your pet if your pet has fleas.
• "Flea dust" sort of looks like flakes of pepper.
• If you put the little flakes into water, the water will turn red- this is because there is blood in the flecks from when the flea feeds on you and your pet. 
• Fleas can usually be seen best around your pet's tail, or on the belly of your pet.

It is difficult to kill fleas by hand, as they move very rapidly and their bodies can withstand a great deal of pressure before they are crushed.  In most cases, flea infestations also occur at a very rapid pace, allowing for the fleas to quickly outnumber any potential mechanical means of killing them.  If you suspect you have fleas in your home, you may want to call a pest control professional.