Species introCountry intro
Plague Flea - Xenopsylla cheopis
Description: Female rat flea. The dark squiggle near the end of the abdomen is a spermatheca, which tells us this is a female. Males would have a penis rod instead. Sadly, this girl has lost most of her legs.
Fleas are definite parasites, and this species is no exception. It is a parasite of rodents and is the primary vector of bubonic plague and murine typhus.
Fun fact: Fleas can jump tp to 200 times their own body length.
*Whole mount microscope slide
The Oriental rat flea , also known as the tropical rat flea, is a parasite of rodents, primarily of the genus ''Rattus'', and is a primary vector for bubonic plague and murine typhus. This occurs when a flea that has fed on an infected rodent bites a human, although this flea can live on any warm blooded mammal.
