Artificial system and method for breeding fleas

A system for breeding fleas comprises a blood reservoir with a feeding membrane and a feeding and reproduction chamber which either has a height dimension of 1.4 to 1.8 mm so as to restrict jumping by the fleas or includes fibrous material so the fleas can walk thereon substantially to a feeding location thereby reducing the amount of jumping required by the fleas to reach the feed location. The method involves providing access by the fleas to a blood food supply for at least 18 continuous hours and influencing the fleas to conserve energy expenditure either by restricting jumping by the fleas or by providing a walking path permitting the fleas to walk substantially to the feed location so as to reduce the amount of jumping required to feed. The feeding period and the system whereby the fleas conserve energy expenditure because they are either restricted from jumping or given an alternative to jumping enables obtaining practical reproduction outputs, i.e., at least 10% of the reproduction output of fleas feeding on host animals.