Fight The Bite – Mosquito Control
FIGHT THE BITE!
It’s that time of year when you just want to enjoy being outside without being pestered by mosquitoes.
The whine of a mosquito may be the most annoying sound on earth — and if you’re in a zone where mosquitoes transmit disease, it can also be a dangerous one. If you’re planning to camp, kayak, hike, or garden, you can prevent mosquito bites before you’re attacked by the bloodthirsty arthropods. Please see the attachment for bite prevention. Also, a rundown of a mosquito’s lifecycle.
The Mosquito Lifecycle
EGGS
Eggs are deposited mostly on Sarcocornia vegetation that will come into contact with water either via tidal inundation or rainfall. Eggs of some species can survive long periods of dry conditions. Once they come into contact with water they begin to hatch often in batches.
Mozzie LifecycleLARVA
The larvae is the aquatic stage of the mosquitoes lifecycle, without water this stage cannot be completed. The larva grow and moult through four stages. Water temperatures and other factors can dictate how quickly the larva develops through these stages. During warm conditions larval development can be as little as 4-5 days.
PUPA
Once the larva has completed its development the pupa is formed. This is the non-feeding stage and the adult mosquito forms within the pupa casing. The pupa breathes through tubes on its head. The pupa stage lasts for about 2-3 days before the pupa casing splits open and the adult mosquito emerges.
ADULT
Once emerged the adult mosquitoes will leave the breeding sites and commence the life cycle all over again.
Males generally have a short life span and only feed on plant juices and nectars. Males do not seek blood and are of little importance for disease transmission.
Females will mate once with a male and then seek blood meals to produce eggs over it’s lifetime made up of feeding, resting, developing and laying numerous batches of eggs.
Original source can be found here.
Alerts Sign-up