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 Zenawi need for reform." Author Dan Connell, who had interviewed Meles in June, said that "he seemed focused [then] on wrapping up a number of major projects as if he were aware the end was near. Meles knew his days were numbered." The Committee to Protect Journalists cited and criticised the secrecy around Meles' death. The "Washington Post" said that the "circumstances of his death remained laced with intrigue." Regional groups responded with the Ogaden National Liberation Front saying it hoped his death "may usher [in] a new era of stability and peace" and Al Shabaab that it was celebrating the