Mosquitoes
Is it a Mosquito?
- Mosquitoes DON'T fly in "clouds"
- Female mosquitoes have a probiscus (the long pointy thing they bite you with) and ONLY female mosquitoes bite
- Mosquitoes do not hatch out of moving water. The adults will often use canals and streams to migrate along because of the high humidity levels and the availability of nectar sources.
- Mosquitoes are attracted to the carbon dioxide we breathe out. They are also attracted to light from a distance, however, once they sense the C02 it is a much stronger attraction to them.
- Some species of mosquitoes will bite all day long, however, all mosquitoes are more actively biting just after the sun goes down.
During heavy mosquito infestations precaution should be taken to avoid extra mosquito bites:
- Stay indoors at dusk
- Wear mosquito repellents with DEET
- Wear long sleeve shirts and pants
- Do not over water your lawn
Some more facts about mosquitoes...
A female mosquito will lay between 100 and 250 eggs. They will be laid on the water by some species or in the flood plane to be covered with water at a later date. These eggs can set for years waiting for a flood event to hatch.
Mosquitoes feed on plant nectar for their energy source to live. The blood meal is for protein to develop her eggs.
Many species are very strong flyers and will migrate up to 20 miles.
The average mosquito will live about 10 days but many live long enough to lay multiple batches of eggs.
The mosquitoes, in warm temperature, will grow from egg to adult in 7-10 days and one species can develop in 4-5 days.