Badger flea Badger flea The badger flea ("Paraceras melis") is an external parasite of the European badger ("Meles meles"). It has also been found on the fox ("Vulpes vulpes"), the dog ("Canis familiaris"), the cat ("Felis catus"), the European polecat ("Mustela putorius"), the mole ("Talpa europaea") and the fallow deer ("Dama dama"). The badger flea, like other fleas, is a small, dark brown wingless insect with a tough, chitinous cuticle. Its body is flattened laterally and it has mouthparts designed for sucking the blood of a badger. Like other fleas, the badger flea has a life cycle consisting of an egg, a
Meles (genus) Primorskii. Genetic studies of mitochondrial DNA shows the separation of two variants on either side of the Volga but their exact taxonomic rank remains undefined. A further study of cheek teeth from individuals across the entire range supports this division and provides confirmation that "M. meles" and "M. anakuma" are indeed separate species. A further species is "Meles thorali" from the late Pleistocene, known only from fossil remains, specimens of which have been found at Saint-Vallier, Drôme, in southeastern France and Binagady, in Azerbaijan. These have large cheek teeth and characteristics intermediate between "M. meles" and "M. anakuma". It is