News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1888-07-19
THE INTERESTING FLEA.
Habits, Capabilities and Personal
Qualities of a Gifted Creature.
From the Swiss Gross

Let US put our flea under the micro
scope. 1t seems to be clothed in sort
of armor formed of brown, overlapping
plates that are so exceedingly tough as
/ to be almost indestructible. It's head is
small and thin, and it has single eye
upon each side. This eye is black, and
the rays of light scintillate within it like
sparks of fire. Puget managed to look
through one of these eyes, and he found
| that it diminished objects in size while
it multiplied them in number "a man
appearing like an army of fairies, and
the flame of a candle becoming thou
sand tiny stars. From the shape of its
/ head, and for other reasons, the flea is
supposed to use only one eye at time.
! The offensive weapon of the flea is COM
/ posed of two palpi, or feelers, two pierre
ers and a tongue. When it feeds it
stands erect, thrusting this sucker into
the flesh, and Will eat without intermis-
sion until disturbed, for it vOids as fast
as it swa lows its food. 1t is interesting
to put several in glass, and, giving
them q piece of raw meat, see them
all standing on their hind legs to suck
up its juices.
Their manner of breathing is still I'M
determined, but it is thought most prob
able that they receive air into their
bodies through small holes at the end of
the palpi.
The legs of a flea are marvels of
strength and elasticity. They are joined
to the body by long tendons thatact like
wire springs. In making its leap, which,
it is said, can cover 200 times its own
length, the flea draws the leg up close
to the body, and then throws it out with
great force; but the impulse proceeds
from the first joint alone, the others
only increasing it by their stretch while
the leap is being made.
Fleas are possessed of great strength.
Moutfet tells of a mechanic who made .
gold chain as long as his finger that a
flea dragged after him, and gold chariot
which he drew also. Bingley writes of
a matchmaker in the Strand who had an
ivory four wheeled chaise, with coach
man on its box drawn by a flea. The
same man afterward made a carriage
with six horses, n coachman, four per-
sons inside, two footmen behind, and
position on one of the horses, all of
which was drawn by a single flea.
Latriella mentions flea which dragged
own weight, mounted on wheels, and
showed no fear when it was charged with
and fired off. Rene says that
he saw three feas drawing tiny Omni-
bus, that pair drew a chariot; and that
D brass cannon was dragged by a single
One.
There are several varieties of feas, but
hey are so much alike that their differ
ences are interesting only to scientific
people. The cat-fea will do as well as
my to show US the process of breeding.
During the spring and summer months
she simply drops her eggs into the fur
If the cat, but in the autumn and winter
,he CLUES each firmly upon a hair. These
Eggs are so small as to be barely visible |
o the naked eye, but under the micro
scope they are beautiful, looking like |
he loveliest pearls, and are perfectly |
translucent.
The flea deposits nearly 200 at time,
.unning about and dropping them here |
md there. They soon hatch into small,
white, footless worms. In from one to
5wo weeks they go into cocoon.