Mosquitoes have been around for over 210 million years. They lay eggs in water that hatch into larvae and pupae, which mature in water before emerging as adult mosquitoes. Female mosquitoes require blood meals to develop eggs and are responsible for transmitting deadly diseases like malaria. Though they have a short lifespan of around 2-3 weeks, female mosquitoes can lay up to 300 eggs at a time, making mosquito prevention and control important. Effective methods include removing stagnant water, wearing light-colored clothing, using mosquito nets, and practicing good sanitation.

1. Interesting facts about mosquito

2. How do mosquitoes breed?
Like other insects, mosquitoes lay their eggs in water and
hatch from eggs and go through several stages in order to
become adults. The females lay their eggs in water. After
hatching their larva and pupa stages completed entirely in
the water. Once pupa changes into adults, they leave the water
and become full-fledged flying insects. Their life cycle varies
from one to several weeks depending on the species,
temperature, and food availability.

3. Mosquito life cycle and breeding

4. Look at some more interesting things from the
mosquito's perspective
Mosquitoes are the
insects who are
universally hated the
world over. These pesky,
disease-carrying pests
make a living by sucking
the blood out of just
about anything that
moves, including us.

5. 1. Mosquitoes have been since the Jurassic
period
It means mosquitoes are around for about 210 million years
old. They have been mentioned throughout history and
mentioned in the works of Aristotle around 300 B.C. and in the
writings of Sidonius Apollinaris in 467 B.C.

6. 2. Mosquitoes are the deadliest animal
Anopheles mosquito, in particular, is very dangerous as it
transmits malaria, which accounts more than one million
deaths every year. It is also believed that Alexander the Great
died of malaria in 323 B.C.

7. 3. Mosquitoes don't have tooth
The mosquitoes bite with a
long, pointed mouthparts
which are used for piercing
and sucking. The paired
mandibles and maxillae are
formed into needle-like
structures which are enclosed
by the Labium. It acts like a
tongue and is used to suck up
the blood.

8. 4. Mosquioto sucks blood thrice of its own weight
A mosquito requires a blood
meal to develop her eggs. So,
only female mosquitoes bite,
while the male mosquitoes
feed on nectar as do the
female when she is not full of
eggs. Don't worry. It would
take them about 1.2 million
bites to drain all the blood
from your body.

9. 5. Female mosquitoes lay upto 300 eggs at a time
A female mosquito can lay anywhere upto 300 eggs at one
time. So, it is so important to eliminate all possible breeding
sites or apply larvacide which prevents the larva from
becoming adult mosquitoes.

10. 6. Mosquito lifespan is less than 2 months
On average a mosquito’s life
span is typically 2-3 weeks.
However male mosquitoes
have the shortest lifespan
about 10 days. And because
female mosquitoes find a
hideout for the winter like a
garage, culvert, or attic so
they do have a chance of
surviving upto 6-8 weeks.

11. 7. Mosquitoes do not transmit HIV/AIDS
AIDS causing viruses don't
replicate in mosquitoes
because they not only do
they hold enough blood in
their mouthparts to spread
the disease, but also they
actually digest the virus in
their stomach and brake
down without being passed
on. Thereby, they can't
transmit HIV/AIDS.

12. 8. Dark clothing attracts mosquitoes:
Mosquitoes use their vision and
smell to locate their hosts from a
distance and find a blood meal.
So, they are more attracted
towards dark colour because
they see dark objects more
easily and clear than light
objects. So light color will help
in avoiding unwanted bug bites.
It also keeps you cooler in the
summer heat.

13. How to protect from mosquitoes?
Might be you are still experiencing the redness, the
swelling and the unbearable itching due to mosquito bites.
Therefore, to keep mosquitoes away from your skin, you
need to keep your residential places always neat and
clean. Such as: always use dustbin and keep cleaning it
regularly. Clearing bushy areas around your homes. Do not
store the garbage or wastage water for long hours near
your residence. So, make good water to drainage to avoid
stagnant water, otherwise it will be more likely to invite
mosquitoes with honor and respect.

14. Choose your best mosquito repellents
Many people wish to choose best mosquito repellents to
keep mosquitoes away. And so, they sometimes turn to
store and buy insect repellents. But due to these insect
repellents often contain a toxic pesticide, so it is
dangerous to human health. This pesticide is known as
DEET. Infact, heavy exposure to DEET is linked to memory
loss, headache, weakness, fatigue, muscle and joint pain,
tremors and shortness of breath in humans and is
particularly toxic to children. Thus, instead of using this
pesticide, there are so many more effective ways to keep
mosquitoes away from skin.

15. Use mosquito nets for bed
Mosquitoes attack mostly when
you are sleeping in night. In
that case, you can use
mosquito net for bed. It is also
one of the best repellent which
has the only aim to provide
protection against mosquitoes,
even flies and insects which
causes multiple diseases for
example malaria, dengue,
encephalitis and yellow fever,
etc.

16. Importance of using mosquito nets

17. Malaria and other diseases are communicated by the bite of
mosquitoes, eventually causes higher risk of death in
children and new born babies. Using mosquito net for bed
reduces such incidence among them by anywhere from 15-
70%. Based on the Uganda Demographic and Health Survey
(UDHS), it is estimated that only 13% of households in
Uganda own a mosquito net and 8% of under fives usually
use them. In order to avoid the mosquito bite, these nets are
treated with insecticides which provides effective and better
protection by keeping the mosquitoes away and also killing
them.

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