Volume 13, Number 5—May 2007
Research
Plague and the Human Flea, Tanzania
Anne Laudisoit*†
, Herwig Leirs*‡, Rhodes H. Makundi§, Stefan Van Dongen*, Stephen Davis*, Simon Neerinckx*¶, Jozef Deckers¶, and Roland Libois†
, Herwig Leirs*‡, Rhodes H. Makundi§, Stefan Van Dongen*, Stephen Davis*, Simon Neerinckx*¶, Jozef Deckers¶, and Roland Libois†Table 2
Distribution of flea species within villages and houses, Lushoto District, Tanzania
| Domestic flea species | Common hosts in Tanzania | Flea species composition, % |
Houses with given flea species, % |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low* | High† | Low* | High† | ||
| Pulex irritans |
Humans |
61.5 |
75.2 |
28.8 |
65.4 |
| Ctenocephalides felis,
C. canis |
Cats, dogs, other animals |
8.8 |
5.8 |
6.8 |
10.7 |
| Echidnophaga gallinacea |
Domestic fowl, Rattus rattus |
19.6 |
13.7 |
12.2 |
15.7 |
| Tunga penetrans |
Humans, dogs, goats |
2.0 |
2.8 |
2.0 |
6.9 |
| Xenopsylla brasiliensis | Rattus rattus, Mastomys natalensis | 6.8 | 2.1 | 4.1 | 5.0 |
*Villages designated as low plague frequency.
†Villages designated as high plague frequency.
