Facts About Mosquito

A mosquito is a small, annoying insect that

leaves itchy and irritating bites all over your arms and
legs. It resembles crane flies and chironomid flies, with
which it is often confused by the observers. Mosquitoes
are responsible for killing more than one million people
per year, through various mosquito-borne diseases.
Studies have revealed
that mosquitoes are
more active during a full moon than the other parts of the
lunar cycle. Most mosquitoes are found in tropical and
subtropical regions, but some have successfully adapted
to cooler regions as well. Mosquitoes living in temperate
zones hibernate during the winters. Read on to know
more interesting facts and amazing information about
mosquitoes.

Facts About Mosquito

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Diptera
Suborder: Nematocera
Infraorder: Culicomorpha
Superfamily: Culicoidea
Family: Culicidae
Group Name: Swarm
Length: 0.3-2 cm
Weight: 2.5 mg
Lifespan: 2 weeks – 6 months
Diet: Carnivore
Habitat: Adaptable to climates ranging from the arctic to
the equator.
Gestation Period: 4-7 days
Number of Offspring: 200 eggs

Interesting & Amazing Information On Mosquitoes

• There are around 3,500 different species of

mosquitoes spread across the world, with over 170
species from North America.
• A mosquito’s wings beat 500 times a second.
• Mosquitoes have poor eyesight, but it zooms
well, like a heat-seeking missile, when nearing a
target.
• Anopheles is the only species of mosquitoes
known to carry malaria, apart from transmitting
filariasis (also called elephantiasis) and encephalitis.
• Culex mosquitoes carry and spread encephalitis,
filariasis, and the West Nile virus.
• Aedes mosquitoes spread yellow fever, dengue,
and encephalitis.
• Mosquitoes breed in standing water areas, like
rain gutters, tree holes, old buckets and tires with
stagnant water.
• Most of the mosquitoes do not like to travel and
prefer to remain within 1 mile radius of their
breeding site.
• Mosquitoes locate bloodhosts by the smell of
their scent, sight and the carbon dioxide that hosts
exhale. They smell their prey from a distance of 100
feet (30 meters).
• Just like humans, mosquitoes too have food
preferences. They do not always bite humans and
prefer birds, horses, frogs and turtles too.
• It is believed that they prefer biting children over
adults and blondes over brunettes.
• Mosquitoes are more attracted towards dark
colors, than light ones. Hence, they are more likely
to bite a victim wearing darker colors.
• A mosquito undergoes four stages during its
entire life cycle, namely, egg, larva, pupa and adult
or imago.
• The average life span of a female mosquito is 3
to 100 days while that of a male mosquito is 10 to
20 days.
• A female mosquito is known to suck about 5-
millionths of a liter of blood per serving.
• It can lay about 1,000 to 3,000 eggs during its
lifespan causing the birth of thousands of
mosquitoes every day.
• Only female mosquitoes bite to use the proteins
from the blood meal to produce eggs.
• Male mosquitoes feed on flower nectars, juices
and decaying matter.
• Mosquito eggs can survive for more than five
years.