Mosquito Life Cycle

Mosquitoes are a resilient species that have been torturing people and other animals for as long as mankind has existed on the earth. Understanding the life cycle of a mosquito can help us understand how to prevent new mosquitoes from breeding and the best way to prevent them from developing into adults.

Eggs

Mosquitoes will lay their eggs in a wet area. This may be a swampy area or in water that has collected in pots, or even in soda bottle lids. The eggs may be laid individually, but they also laid in groups of up to 200 that float in the water connected to each other. The eggs will wait until the conditions are right to hatch. They can last through a mild winter or they may hatch with 48 hours if the conditions are right.

Larvae

The larvae live in the water. They will go through several stages of molting as larva. The mosquitoes need oxygen and will either breathe through tubes or live very close to the surface of the water. During this stage, they will feed on microorganisms. They need water that is not running, but still to grow in.

Pupa

The pupa stage is when the mosquito changes from the larva to an adult. They will do this inside of a cocoon, but they can move it through the water with a tail that remains. They may only spend two days in this phase.

Adult Mosquitoes

When the mosquitoes emerge from the cocoon, they will rest until their wings are dry. Male mosquitoes feed on nectar and will not bother people. Female mosquitoes need to feed on blood so that they can lay eggs. They will find victims by looking for heat and CO2 emissions.

Once you understand the life cycle of them mosquito, you can see that it is not enough to just kill the adult mosquitoes, since there will always be more mosquitoes that are produced. You can treat the adults by using a barrier spray that will keep mosquitoes off your property. You can also treat the larvae with a larvicide that they will feed on during this stage. This kills them and stops them from developing into adults. Another way to prevent mosquitoes is to make sure there is no standing water on your property and that you have proper drainage so that the mosquitoes do not have a place to lay their eggs.

Learn about how mosquitoes spread the West Nile Virus and the dangers it can present to you and your family

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