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When giant fleas roamed

Fossils show ancient insects grew as long as 2 centimeters

By Rebecca Cheung

- More than 2 years ago

The flea’s features weren’t always set in stone.

ANCIENT BUG Fleas of the Mesozoic were relative giants, like this 15-millimeter-long fossilized male found in China. D. Huang et al/Nature 2012

Ancient fleas were larger and had longer siphons to suck blood with than today’s fleas, researchers report in a study published online February 29 in Nature.