"Sandflea" redirects here, but can also refer to members of the Talitridae family.
Sandfly biting a human's little finger
noseeum is a colloquial name for any species or genus of flying, biting, blood-suckingDipteran encountered in sandy areas. In the United States, sand fly may refer to certain horse flies that are also known as "greenheads" (family Tabanidae), or to members of the family Ceratopogonidae, also known in Florida and elsewhere as a sandflea, no-see-um, no-see-em, noseeum, sand gnats, chitras, punkie, or punky. In practice, nearly any fly found on a beach could be called a "sand fly". Some of these insects are a type of midge, which do not bite. Sand fleas or no-see-ums do bite and are a 1/4 of an inch in size. They leave large, red itchy bumps that may turn into a rash.
The female no-see-um is responsible for biting and sucking the blood of mammals, reptiles and birds. She requires the protein in the blood to make her eggs.
The sandfly is attracted to human flesh, and sandfly is used to refer to members of the subfamily Phlebotominae within the Psychodidae, including the primary vectors of leishmaniasis and sandfly fever. In the New World, leishmaniasis is spread by sand flies of the genus Lutzomyia. In the Old World, the disease is spread by sandflies of the genus Phlebotomus.
Infectious skin disease found in TexasSeptember 15, 2007 Breaking News - Sandfly may carry parasites that will cause infectious skin disease called leishmaniasis.
