Experimental Implantation Trials of Smit (Siphonaptera: Pulicidae) in Northern France with the Objective to Use it as Vaccine Vector.

To combat animal diseases, we propose that Smit (Siphonaptera: Pulicidae), a specific flea of the European wild rabbit L. (Lagomorpha), can be used to carry a vaccine into wild rabbit populations to protect them against lethal diseases. is widespread throughout Europe, but occurs naturally only in drier areas of Morocco, Spain, and southwestern France, raising questions about the flea's general use and the subsequent risk of uncontrolled proliferation outside its natural distribution.