
03/25/2025
Human Lice Evolution: What came first, head lice or body lice or neither?
Human Lice Develop Separately after clothing. What turned into what?
The evolution of head lice is closely tied to human evolution. Around 13 million years ago, specific species of lice began to evolve to affect only humans. About 42,000 to 72,000 years ago, human lice separated into head and body lice *. This separation is believed to coincide with the time when humans began wearing clothing [1]. While head lice remained on the scalp, body lice mutated into parasites with claws that can grab onto the smoother fibers of clothing rather than needle-thin hair shafts. * Special note about human body lice: P***c lice are another form of human body lice. We will include them in discussing all types of human lice, but not in this article as they are believed to have originated from gorilla lice more than 3 million years ago acquired through direct contact with gorillas, and have always just affected the human p***c area. They are not part of the evolution of the types of lice living only on human heads and in their clothing.
Head lice are obligate parasites, meaning they cannot survive without a human host. They are specifically adapted to live on human hosts and cannot be contracted from pets or other animals . This is because head lice have evolved alongside humans for millions of years].
Read entire article:
Human Lice Evolution: What came first, head lice or body lice or neither? Human Lice Develop Separately after clothing. What turned into what?