A number of diseases are transmitted by fleas, including epidemic typhus and the bubonic plague. Fleas also carry tapeworms from dogs and rodents and can transmit them to humans . More than 2400 flea species exist worldwide. A female flea consumes 15 times its body weight in blood daily.
Fleas are blood-sucking parasites.
Fleas are highly mobile and often not particular about what species they visit. In the absence of a pet, for example, humans become the flea's blood meal. Pets experience uncontrollable itching and hair loss. Humans experience small, red itching wounds from flea bites typically around the feet and ankles. Allergic reactions and more serious diseases can occur.