or beach flea Hopping terrestrial crustacean (family Talitridae). The European sand flea (Talitrus saltator) is about 0.6 in. (1.5 cm) long. The long-horned sand flea (T. longicornis), found on the North American Atlantic coast, has antennae the same length as the waxy white body, up to 1 in. (2.5 cm) long. During the day, sand fleas lie buried near the high-tide mark; at night, they forage for organic debris. The common sand flea (Orchestia agilis, or platensis) lives along Atlantic coasts of Europe and the Americas