A Treat for the Mosquitoes

Concept: Life Cycle of a Mosquito

• Mosquitoes are famous for spreading some of the worst diseases, like malaria, yellow fever, encephalitis, and dengue.
• They are insects and they belong to Arthropoda.
• The members of Arthropoda are characterised by joint legs.

Physical features of a mosquito:

• Mosquitoes have sucking and piercing mouthparts.
• The body of the mosquito is slender and elongated. On reaching maturity, the body gets covered with scales.
• Veins can be seen in the wings.
• The antenna is more feathery in males as compared to females.
• The males survive only on plant juices, whereas the females require blood to meet the nutrient demands for laying eggs.
• The humming of mosquitoes is actually the high-frequency sound that is caused by the beating of their wings.

Species of mosquitoes:

1. Anopheles:
• It is also known as the carrier of malaria.
• It can be recognised when it is in a resting position.
• Its proboscis, head, and abdomen lie in a straight line in the resting position.
• Female Anopheles lay eggs in water that is covered with algal growth and other vegetation.
• The life cycle of an Anopheles mosquito varies from 18 days to several weeks.

2. Culex:
• It is the carrier of viral encephalitis.
• At the resting position, the body of this mosquito lies parallel to the resting surface, and the head is bent downward.
• The female’s abdomen is blunt.
• Female mosquitoes lay eggs in freshwater.
• The life cycle of this mosquito lasts up to 14 days.

3. Aedes:
• It is the carrier of the pathogens of yellow fever, dengue, and zika fever.
• Its body is parallel to the resting surface, with the proboscis bent downward.
• Females lay eggs generally in floodwater and rain pools.
• The life cycle of this mosquito lasts for around 10 days.

Life cycle of a mosquito:

A mosquito completes its life cycle in almost 2 weeks. However, the number of days differs in species and varies based on external factors like temperature and availability of food. The life cycle of a mosquito comprises the following stages:

1. Egg:
• An adult female mosquito lays eggs near or on stagnant water.
• Female mosquitoes are attracted by the smell of even a tiny amount of water.
• Female mosquitoes generally lay around 100-300 eggs at a time. The number varies from species to species.
2. Larva:
• Hatching of eggs requires a time of 2-3 days.
• The eggs are to be submerged underwater for the hatching of larvae.
• The larva of a mosquito is also called a wriggler.
• The eggs may not hatch in case the water dries off.
• Larva feeds on microorganisms in the water.
• The larval stage lasts from 3 to 14 days, depending on external conditions like light and temperature. The duration varies from species to species.
• Moulting occurs in the larva for its conversion to a pupa.
• The larva of a mosquito undergoes moulting thrice.
3. Pupa:
• They are also called tumblers.
• They stay in the water for around 1-4 days.
• It is a resting stage.
• They do respond to light and temperature changes.
• The mosquito develops into an adult during this stage and emerges out of the covering at maturity.
4. Adult:
• Adult male and female mosquitoes emerge from the pupa on maturity.
• The male mosquitoes start feeding on plant juices and nectar.
• Female mosquitoes feed on human and animal blood to lay eggs. Blood is required to fulfil the nutrient requirements for laying eggs.
• Once the females lay eggs, the cycle repeats.

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Did You Know?

• There are more than 3500 species of mosquitoes on Earth.
• Mosquitoes can hibernate like other animals.
• Mosquitoes can drink blood weighing approximately 3 times their body weight.
• Mosquitoes can smell carbon dioxide from 75 feet away, and for this reason, they can locate their host from a long distance.
• The redness that appears after a mosquito bite is due to the saliva it injects to stop blood coagulation.