Echidnophaga gallinacea
Encyclopedia
Echidnophaga gallinacea (Westwood
John Obadiah Westwood
John Obadiah Westwood was an English entomologist and archaeologist also noted for his artistic talents.Born in Sheffield, he studied to be a lawyer but abandoned that for his scientific interests....

, 1875) is a cosmopolitan sticktight flea occurring on a wide range of bird and mammal hosts.

The genus Echidnophaga (Olliff
Arthur Sidney Olliff
Arthur Sidney Olliff , was an Australian taxonomist who was active as Government entomologist in New South Wales...

, 1886) includes some 21 species occurring in the Palaearctic, Afrotropic and Australasian
Australasia ecozone
The Australasian zone is an ecological region that is coincident, but not synonymous , with the geographic region of Australasia...

regions, except for the hen flea which has acquired an inadvertent cosmopolitan distribution through the widespread introduction of domestic animals.

Female fleas attach at one site on their hosts and feed for prolonged periods of up to 19 days, causing tissue to become swollen and ulcerated. Males feed intermittently while displaying mating behaviour. Eggs are laid in the ulcers that have formed on the host's skin. The larvae drop to the ground and feed on any organic debris found. Large numbers of the flea may congregate around the eyes, comb, wattles, and other naked skin on poultry - these are difficult to dislodge as their heads are embedded deep below the host's skin.
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