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Index of Bugs
This is a mosquito belonging to the Culicidae family. It weighs about 2 to 2.5 milligrams. That is about the weight of a pinhead. All the mosquito families belong to the insect order called Diptera, which includes flies, mosquitoes, midges, and gnats.
One of the most distinctive features of the adult mosquito is the single pair of wings.
Mosquitoes are well-known for their role in spreading diseases, such as the West Nile virus. They are annoying pests to humans, livestock, birds and other vertebrate animals.
Female adult mosquitoes need a diet of blood so they can produce eggs. They pierce the skin of a vertebrate animal and suck the blood into their abdomen. Male adult mosquitoes have short mouthparts and eat plant nectar. Males do not feed on blood.
Mosquitoes go through complete metamorphosis. Culex mosquitoes lay their eggs on the surface of fresh water or in areas that will be temporarily wet, like flood plains. The eggs float alone or in groups that look like rafts. The larvae live at the surface of the water and breathe through a tube. Mosquito larvae are filter feeders. They strain small particles of organic matter, such as bacteria and other microorganisms from the water.
Mosquito larvae live a few days to a few weeks before they turn into pupae. The pupae live at the water’s surface and breathe through two small tubes. Mosquito pupae do not eat, but they are active. They remain in the pupal stage anywhere from one to a few days, depending on the water temperature. While inside the pupa, the larva transforms into an adult.
The adult breaks out of the pupal case and crawls onto the surface of the water. It rests while its exoskeleton hardens. The mosquito is now a flying land insect. Adult mosquitoes mate to produce eggs for the next generation.
To learn more about mosquitos and to see them in action, order the Backyard Bugs DVD.
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