Bug FAQJigger Flea
Tunga penetrans · Order: Siphonaptera · Family: Tungidae
Also called: Chigoe flea
Source: Wikipedia
Jigger fleas are tiny, about 1 mm long, and the adult female burrows into the skin of mammals to feed on blood. Infestations, called tungiasis, can lead to serious complications like secondary bacterial infections.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
Adults have an angled head and lack the usual pronotal and genal spines. Males possess an exceptionally long intromittent organ relative to their body size.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
The flea measures roughly 1 mm (0.039 in) in length.
Source: Wikipedia
Is it a pest in the house?
An infestation is known as tungiasis.
Source: Wikipedia
How to get rid of it
An adult flea emerges from its puparium in 9 to 15 days if the cocoon is undisturbed.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it lives
No outdoor life stages have been found in samples, indicating it lives on hosts rather than in the environment.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Only adult fleas feed, and they feed on the blood and fluids of mammals; females stay in the host for life. The flea creates a breathing opening that also lets it reproduce and release eggs into the soil.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
After hatching, the flea passes through two instar stages, unlike most fleas that have three. A female can enlarge up to 80 times her size in 8 to 10 days while feeding on blood inside the host’s skin.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Infestations tend to drop during the wet season.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
It now occurs in tropical and subtropical regions worldwide.
Source: Wikipedia
More photos
Questions people ask
What is tungiasis?
Tungiasis is the name for an infestation of jigger fleas that burrow into the skin of humans or animals.
Source: Wikipedia
How big are jigger fleas?
They are about 1 mm long, roughly the size of a grain of sand.
Source: Wikipedia
Do jigger fleas bite?
Yes, the adult female bites and feeds on blood while embedded in the host’s skin.
Source: Wikipedia
What complications can result from a jigger bite?
Bites can become infected with bacteria such as Staphylococcus, Streptococcus, enterobacteriaceae, or Clostridium tetani.
Source: Wikipedia
Sources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tunga_penetrans
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-23 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-23.