FLEAS, LICE, MITE, AND TICKS

FACT ABOUT FLEAS

•  Fleas have four life stages: egg, larva, pupa, biting adult. 

•  Fleas feed on the blood of their host -- humans, birds, reptiles, and wild and domestic animals.

•  The female flea can lay 2,000 eggs in her lifetime.

•  A flea can live more than 100 days without a blood meal.

•  The female flea consumes 15 times her own body weight in blood daily.

•  A flea can jump up to 8 inches high, or approximately 150 times its own height. That's like if you    could leap over tall buildings in a single bound.

•  Pets with fleas may develop anemia, tapeworms or intense bouts of itching (pruritus).

•  Some pets may develop an allergy to flea saliva, which causes severe irritation and itchiness.

•  The best way to check for fleas is with a flea comb.

•  Even though there are more than 2,000 known species and subspecies of fleas, one flea species the cat flea accounts for most of the dog and cat flea cases found in the U.S.

DISEASE CAUSE FLEA

ALSO PLAGUE DISEASE

HOW TO CONTROL

• Use botanical dust mixed with a borate powder or boric acid.
• Fill shallow bowls of water with dish detergent.
• Use a lemon solution in affected areas.
• Use cedar chips in affected areas.
• Spread salt over the surface of your carpet.
• Purchase flea traps.
• Spray floors and bedding with an Insect Growth Regulator (IGR).

LICE

Lice are parasitic insects that can be found on people's heads, and bodies, including the pubic area. Human lice survive by feeding on human blood. Lice found on each area of the body are different from each other. The three types of lice that live on humans are:

• Pediculus humanus capitis (head louse),
• Pediculus humanus corporis (body louse, clothes louse), and
• Pthirus pubis ("crab" louse, pubic louse).

Only the body louse is known to spread disease.

Lice infestations (pediculosis and pthiriasis) are spread most commonly by close person-to-person contact. Dogs, cats, and other pets do not play a role in the transmission of human lice. Lice move by crawling; they cannot hop or fly. Both over-the-counter and prescription medications are available for treatment of lice infestations.

HEAD LOUSE

Adult head lice are roughly 2–3 mm long. Head lice infest the head and neck and attach their eggs to the base of the hair shaft. Lice move by crawling; they cannot hop or fly.

Head lice infestation, or pediculosis, is spread most commonly by close person-to-person contact. Dogs, cats, and other pets do not play a role in the transmission of human lice.

Both over-the-counter and prescription medications are available for treatment of head lice infestations.

BODY LOUSE OR CLOTHES LOUSE

Adult body lice are 2.3–3.6 mm in length. Body lice live and lay eggs on clothing and only move to the skin to feed.

Body lice are known to spread disease.

Body lice infestations (pediculosis) are spread most commonly by close person-to-person contact but are generally limited to persons who live under conditions of crowding and poor hygiene (for example, the homeless, refugees, etc.). Dogs, cats, and other pets do not play a role in the transmission of human lice.

Improved hygiene and access to regular changes of clean clothes is the only treatment needed for body lice infestations.

CRAB LOUSE

Adult pubic lice are 1.1–1.8 mm in length. Pubic lice typically are found attached to hair in the pubic area but sometimes are found on coarse hair elsewhere on the body (for example, eyebrows, eyelashes, beard, mustache, chest, armpits, etc.).

Pubic lice infestations (pthiriasis) are usually spread through sexual contact. Dogs, cats, and other pets do not play a role in the transmission of human lice.

Both over-the-counter and prescription medications are available for treatment of pubic lice infestations.

LICE CYCLE 

Steps that can be taken to help prevent and control the spread of head lice:

• Avoid head-to-head (hair-to-hair) contact during play and other activities at home, school, and elsewhere (sports activities, playground, slumber parties, camp).
• Do not share clothing such as hats, scarves, coats, sports uniforms, hair ribbons, or barrettes.
• Do not share combs, brushes, or towels. Disinfest combs and brushes used by an infested person by soaking them in hot water (at least 130°F) for 5–10 minutes.
• Do not lie on beds, couches, pillows, carpets, or stuffed animals that have recently been in contact with an infested person.
• Machine wash and dry clothing, bed linens, and other items that an infested person wore or used during the 2 days before treatment using the hot water (130°F) laundry cycle and the high heat drying cycle. Clothing and items that are not washable can be dry-cleaned OR sealed in a plastic bag and stored for 2 weeks.
• Vacuum the floor and furniture, particularly where the infested person sat or lay. However, spending much time and money on housecleaning activities is not necessary to avoid reinfestation by lice or nits that may have fallen off the head or crawled onto furniture or clothing.
• Do not use fumigant sprays or fogs; they are not necessary to control head lice and can be toxic if inhaled or absorbed through the skin.

MITE

Mites should be sampled about 40m into the field – not on the field edge.  Mite sampling is often carried out as the checker is walking into or out of the field after a normal crop inspection and can be combined with sampling for aphids and whitefly.

Leaves inspected are from the third, fourth or fifth main-stem node below the terminal.  This is a random selection until you have inspected 50 leaves.  If the plant has less than three leaves, sample the oldest.

Leaves are scored as infested if any stage of mites (eggs or motiles) is present on the underside of the leaf.   A hand lens may be needed to see mite eggs. 

Depending on the size of the field, 4-6 sites are needed to obtain a good estimate of mite abundance.  For further information about mite sampling refer to the IPM guidelines.

MITE LIFE CYCLE

Behavior, Diet & Habits

Beginning as eggs, these arachnids develop through larval and pupal stages prior to full maturation. They can survive on land and in water. Although most mites are not harmful to animals, some species are parasitic in nature.

Parasitic mites that attack animal hosts can cause severe skin irritation known as mange. Bird mites are similarly bothersome to poultry, while spider mites are destructive to crops. Some parasitic species are more dangerous than others, as they reside within the respiratory tracts of their hosts. Others, such as chiggers, can transfer dangerous diseases.

What can I do to prevent being bitten?

If you see brown and crusty edges on oak tree leaves, be aware that mite activity is possible. Don’t sit under oak trees or on nearby lawns.

If you are in an area where itch mite associated rashes are occurring, or nearby oak trees have brown and crusty edges:

When weather permits, keep windows shut from August through October when “mite-showers” can occur.

Remove clothing items each day and launder them. Take a warm, soapy shower after coming indoors, especially after gardening, raking leaves or performing other outdoor activities.

TICKS

1. Ticks are arachnids. Meaning, they are more closely related to spiders and scorpions than insects.

2. Ticks have four life stages: egg, larva (infant), nymph (immature), and adult (mature).

3. There about 850 tick species, some of which are capable of transmitting diseases such as Lyme disease, Ehrlichia, and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever.

4. Ticks feed on the blood of their host -- humans, birds, reptiles, and wild and domestic mammals.

5. Ticks may appear as a small dark speck on your pet's fur.

6. Tick infestations are more common in dogs than cats.

7. Ticks are generally not born with disease agents. They acquire them during feeding and pass them along onto other animals during subsequent feedings.

8. Pets may contract multiple diseases from a single tick bite.

9. The brown dog tick and the American dog tick are the most common carriers of disease among dogs.

10. Never remove a tick with your bare hand. Instead, using tweezers, grasp the tick close to the skin and pull gently.

TICKS LIFE CYCLE

There are several diseases that can be caught from a tick bite in Britain. Three examples are

• Lyme borreliosis [bore-EL-ee-OH-sis]
• Babesiosis [bab-EE-see-OH-sis]
• Ehrlichiosis [air-LICK-ee-O

Find and Remove Ticks from Your Body

1. Bathe or shower as soon as possible after coming indoors (preferably within two hours) to wash off and more easily find ticks that are crawling on you.
2. Conduct a full-body tick check using a hand-held or full-length mirror to view all parts of your body upon return from tick-infested areas. Parents should check their children for ticks under the arms, in and around the ears, inside the belly button, behind the knees, between the legs, around the waist, and especially in their hair.
3. Examine gear and pets. Ticks can ride into the home on clothing and pets, then attach to a person later, so carefully examine pets, coats, and day packs.
4. Tumble clothes in a dryer on high heat for an hour to kill remaining ticks. (Some research suggests that shorter drying times may also be effective, particularly if the clothing is not wet.) 

To reduce the chances that a tick will transmit disease to you or your pets:

• Check your pets for ticks daily, especially after they spend time outdoors.
• If you find a tick on your dog, remove it right away.
• Ask your veterinarian to conduct a tick check at each exam.
• Talk to your veterinarian about tickborne diseases in your area.
• Reduce tick habitat in your yard.
• Talk with your veterinarian about using tick preventives on your pet. 

10 UNIQUE FACTS ABOUT MOSQUITOES:

•  Mosquitoes had been there since age of dinosaurs

•  At the time it was a mosquito three times greater than the time. Now, about the size of a fly.

•  Mosquitoes have sensors carbon dioxide, eating mosquitoes always know where man, because man always remove carbon dioxide .

• Initially mosquitoes live in forest, and did not like blood but man after man open forest to a place stay, then mosquitoes adapt to suck human blood. so mosquitoes live everywhere. including in the city until the mosquitoes more known as the city zoo.

• It turns out that love to suck it is the blood of mosquitoes females, especially females laying eggs. female because it does not suck blood can make protein for mosquitoes.

• The female mosquitoes have a knife small trunk for slicing skin before blood in the suction.

• While male mosquitoes like to eat nectar, she does not like blood. and do not be surprised if he often found around plant.

• Even so mosquitoes females do not like the skin odorless garlic.

• Mosquitoes do not like the heat skin because mosquitoes very thin, therefore, mosquitoes always take refuge in seconds heat.

• If hot air fluid in the mosquito's body will yawn. Her eating mosquitoes always hanging around the place shade.

MOSQUITOES LIFE CYCLE AND SOURCE 

TYPE OF MOSQUITO

Anopheles 

Adults of this genus are found primarily in temporary rain pools, swamps, and ponds. They feed readily on humans. Certain species of this genus serve as the primary vector of malaria.

Culex 

Species of this genus are found breeding in freshwater habitats such as pools, ditches, ponds, and even in effluents of sewage treatment plants.  Species in this genus are considered to be of medical importance in that they have been proven to be the primary vector of St. Louis Encephalitis and also play an active role in the transmission of West Nile Virus. They are most active at dusk, but are known to be active daytime biters.

Ochlerotatus and Aedes 

Once an individual genus, Aedes has now been divided into 2 different genera. Species of these genera are found in temporary floodwater pools, fresh and brackish marshes, and in natural and artificial containers. Adults are abundant and bite readily outdoors at all hours of the day. It is not uncommon for them to enter homes to feed on humans. Certain species are medically important in the transmission of yellow fever and dengue.

LAB RESPONSE

PREVENTING MOSQUITOES FROM BITTING YOU.

1. Wear mosquito repellent.
2. Consider an all-natural solution.
3. Wear loose, long-sleeved shirts and long pants when outdoors. 
4. Don't waste money on an electric hanging bug "zapper."
5. Sleep with a mosquito net over your bed.

LET KNOW ABOUT FLY..

Unique facts about the flies

1. The wing flies healthful

• The only part of the fly's body healthy is wings. Australian scientists have been researching on the fly and discovered that the wings of flies can be utilized for industry and health.

• There are flies on the wings Refling genes that made them able to flap its wings 200 to 400 times per second. Refling genes also contain substances that can treat several neurological disorders such as arterial and main.

2. Smell sharp

• flies have an amazing sense of smell. These animals can smell food up to a distance of 2 km.

3. Many of the eyepiece, but myopic

• Flies have two eyes. In each eye has a lens which about 4000 were able to see almost all directions. That's why you're so hard to swat a fly because they can see you even if you turn away.

• But in fact, flies can not see very well despite having the advantage. Visual resources owned animals are very bad. Scientists say that the fly is also difficult to distinguish colors, but are very sensitive to movement.

4. Vomiting before eating

• Scientists reveal other facts about how these insects eat. They say that the fly would regurgitate the contents of the stomach into the food before you eat it. This is due to fly vomit volidrop contains enzymes that can be redeemed for food so they are easier to digest.

4. Vomiting before eating

• Scientists reveal other facts about how these insects eat. They say that the fly would regurgitate the contents of the stomach into the food before you eat it. This is due to fly vomit volidrop contains enzymes that can be redeemed for food so they are easier to digest.

5. Bearing bacteria most

• The flies are known to be capable of carrying at least about 200 different bacteria both of the legs, body, head, and more.

6. Age short

• Apparently a mere flies have a short lifespan, which is about 30 days. But the female flies can lay about 3000 eggs and hatch within 14 days. Perhaps this is said to be off a growing thousands.

7. Like urinate

• Flies often turns out to urinate, even in a period of 4-5 minutes. So, if you are exposed to flies do not get more than 4 minutes. Because almost certainly limbs you've given 'mine' by flies.

FLIES LIFE CYCLE

TYPE OF FLIES

The house fly

The housefly is the fly that you are probably most familiar with. They are usually unwanted pests, and they can cause some issues in the home if a large population of flies enters one’s house. For food, houseflies rely on their tiny mouths to get food. Scientists have compared the fly’s mouth to a sponge because their mouths absorb whatever food is near by. Once absorbed by the mouth, the fly uses its tiny tongue to help swallow the food.

They need liquid food

An important fact to realize is that because flies have such tiny mouths and tongues, they must turn their food into liquid before they can digest it. They are typically drawn to liquid waste, but they can turn solid food into liquid by saturating it. Their food may not seem particularly appealing to humans, but flies depend upon easy sources.

Fruit flies and other flies

Most species of flies prefer waste and pet waste for food. Some species, like the fruit fly, are a little different. Fruit flies actually get their name from the food they eat. It is easy to identify fruit flies because they are often seen flying around decaying fruits and/or vegetables. Fruit flies land on the fruit and behave similarly to the common housefly by absorbing the juice of the dying fruit through their mouths.

How to Get Rid of them?

The biggest and most obvious way to get rid of fruit flies is to keep the kitchen clean.

If you keep your kitchen nice and clean, the flies will have nothing to be attracted to. They love the smell of fruit and vegetables.Use disinfectant to clean the counters every night, and immediately clean up any spills. Take the time to empty the food out of the siphon in your kitchen, and make sure the garbage can lid is clean.

• It's a good idea to put the fruit in a bowl and cover with a lid, as the flies will have no way of getting to the fruit.

• Empty the Recycle Bin often. Keep clean from all foods wastes.

• Make sure rags are cleaned daily

• Make sure sinks and garbage disposals are clean from pieces of food.

• Pour 1 cup of bleaching solution in your kitchen sink.

• Put all the fruit and vegetables in refrigerator.

• Throw away ripe fruits or vegetables as flies are particularly attracted to these.

 DIY PRODUCE