American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) - The Clinical Nurse Leader; American Association of Colleges of Nursing's White Paper on the Education and the Role of the Clinical Nurse Leader; American Association of Managed Care Nurses; American Board of Managed Care Nursing; AONE Institute for Leadership Research & Education
1 Female fleas cannot lay eggs until after their first blood meal and begin to lay eggs within 36-48 hours after that meal. 2  The female flea can lay 2,000 eggs in her lifetime.  The female flea consumes 15 times her own body weight in blood daily.
The life cycle of a flea can last anywhere from 20 days to an entire year. It depends on how long the flea remains in the dormant stage (eggs, larvae, pupa). Outside influences, such as weather, affect the flea cycle. A female flea can lay around 20 to 25 eggs in one day.