Head lice bites

A head lice bites usually shows up as small red bumps on the scalp and neck, with tiny pale eggs glued to hair shafts, red bumps; eggs are pale and stuck fast, unlike dandruff, appearing itch begins 4 to 6 weeks after first infestation. It peaks around ongoing until treated and generally lasts until treated. Concentrated behind the ears and at the nape is the usual arrangement.

How to tell it apart

The bites are secondary — what identifies lice is the eggs: pale ovals cemented to hair shafts within a centimetre of the scalp, which do not brush off the way dandruff does. Itch behind the ears and at the nape is the usual complaint.

Where and when you meet it

Habitat: head-to-head contact, most often among school-age children; lice cannot jump or fly.

Across 576 verified US records in the GBIF biodiversity database, sightings of Pediculus humanus concentrate in July. That is the window when bites are most likely — it is observation data rather than a guess, and it shifts with latitude.

States with the most recorded sightings

• Florida 218 records
• California 29 records
• Utah 24 records
• Texas 23 records
• Pennsylvania 17 records
• Alaska 15 records
• Iowa 12 records
• Washington 11 records
• Illinois 10 records
• North Carolina 10 records
• New York 9 records
• Georgia 7 records

Record counts reflect where people report and identify specimens, not exact abundance. They are useful for ruling a species in, not for ruling it out.

Where it is recorded

Verified records from the GBIF biodiversity database across the seven countries we cover. A country missing from this table means we have no records for it, not that the species is absent.

What it means for you

Head lice are a nuisance, not a health hazard, and carry no disease. They are also not a sign of poor hygiene. Treatment failure is usually reinfestation or a missed second dose rather than resistance.

Care at home

1. over-the-counter or prescription pediculicide, repeated per instructions to catch newly hatched lice
2. wet-combing with conditioner every three days for two weeks
3. wash pillowcases and hats — extensive house cleaning is unnecessary

Preventing the next one

• check heads weekly during an outbreak
• avoid sharing hats, brushes and pillows
• tie long hair back at school