how old are fleas when they can lay eggs?

Question

just wondering how old a flea is when it can lay eggs

Answer 1

Life cycle and habitat

Fleas are holometabolous insects, going through the four life cycle stages of embryo, larva, pupa and imago (adult). The flea life cycle begins when the female lays after feeding. Adult fleas must feed on blood before they can become capable of reproduction.[2] Eggs are laid in batches of up to 20 or so, usually on the host itself, which easily roll onto the ground. As such, areas where the host rests and sleeps become one of the primary habitats of eggs and developing fleas. The eggs take around two days to two weeks to hatch[1].

Micrograph of a flea larva.

Flea larvae emerge from the eggs to feed on any available organic material such as dead insects, feces and vegetable matter. They are blind and avoid sunlight, keeping to dark places like sand, cracks and crevices, and bedding. Given an adequate supply of food, larvae should pupate within 1-2 weeks. After going through three larval stages they spin a silken cocoon. After another week or two the adult flea is fully developed and ready to emerge from the cocoon. They may however remain resting during this period until they receive a signal that a host is near - vibrations (including sound), heat and carbon dioxide are all stimuli indicating the probable presence of a host.[1] Fleas are known to overwinter in the larval or pupal stages.


Once the flea reaches adulthood its primary goal is to find blood - adult fleas must feed on blood in order to reproduce[1]. Adult fleas only have around a week to find food once they emerge, though they can survive two months to a year between meals. A flea population is unevenly distributed, with 50 percent eggs, 35 percent larvae, 10 percent pupae and 5 percent adults.[1] Their total life cycle can take as little as two weeks, but may be lengthened to many months if conditions are favourable. Female fleas can lay 500 or more eggs over their life, allowing for phenomenal growth rates.

Answer 2

Where Do Fleas Lay Eggs

Answer 3

That a pretty good question. To put it simply, flea eggs hatch into flea larve which become flea pupae, which then molt in toadult fleas. As soon as a flea reaches the adult stage of a lifecyle, they're ready to breed. How long this takes actually varies according to climate and environment - if the conditions are not right e.g no animals to feed on or it's too cold, flea eggs can lay dormant for about as long as it takes. If conditions are just right however, it can take as little as 10 days for a flea egg to become an adult flea, but more commonly 3-4 weeks.

So you see it's not quite the same as our growth - we have to wait until we've reached sexual maturity fleas just throw off their old skin and then they're ready!

Chalice