Mosquitoes swarming in your yard may not make you smile, but when you have calmed down, there are fun facts about mosquitoes that might make you grin.
For a bit of international interest, we’ll explain how Brazil, a country with more than 140 mosquito species, manages its mosquito population in a personal experience below.
14 Fun Facts About Mosquitoes
Mosquitoes Need Blood to Lay Eggs
- Females mate only once, but from that mating are able to lay as many as 10 clutches of eggs.
- There 50 to 500 eggs per clutch.
- The female needs a blood meal before depositing her eggs. Human or animal blood will do.
- A female takes 5-millionths of a liter of blood when it feeds. It only seems like more.
Mosquitoes Prefer Pregnant Women
In the name of research:
- The gathering: 36 women who were pregnant and 36 who were not.
- The placement: They were divided into groups of three.
- The experiment: They slept for a night in identical huts.
- The arrangement: They were allowed to sleep under netting.
- The following morning: The number of mosquitoes found in each hut was counted.
- The result: Twice as many mosquitoes were attracted to the pregnant women.
It turns out that pregnant women:
- Give off more carbon dioxide than people who aren’t pregnant. Some 21% more, according to further research.
- Have warmer bodies than others. Specifically, their abdomens are 0.7 degrees C warmer.
There is an irony here: Only female mosquitoes wanting to fertilize their eggs go after humans, and they prefer to go after ones as pregnant as they are.
Mosquitoes Need Only a Small Nursery
Mosquitoes need only a bit of still water for their eggs. One discarded object that, if it gets water in it (hello, rainfall), can become a nursery: A bottlecap.
How good a nursery is a bottle cap? It can fit 300 eggs.
Other small objects work as well:
- Discarded toys. The kids drop them all over, don’t they?
- Discarded cans. Remember that empty tuna can you set out to measure rain?
- Bottles. They do get left out, don’t they?
- Cups. Paper and plastic cups are put down and not picked up, aren’t they?
- Pet dishes. You make sure they are there just in case, but do you keep refreshing them?
And did you think about bird baths and other landscaping features (fountains, yard ponds, basins) in which water might sit? At the very least, rinse them out every week.
Know Your Wrigglers and Tumblers
- “Wrigglers” is the nickname for mosquito larvae. They sit in water, hanging just below the surface, breathing through tubes at the end of a long, thin abdomen. When disturbed, they wriggle.
- “Tumblers” is what folks call the pupae. They are crescent-shaped and hang just under the water surface, breathing through air tubes. When you look at them, they appear to be tumbling.
Both wrigglers and tumblers are about a ¼-inch in size.
There Are a Lot of Mosquito Species
There are about 2,700 species of mosquito in the world. There are 176 species in America.
Other countries with a lot of species:
- 148, Brazil
- 135, Australia
- 128, Philippines
- 107, Indonesia
- 85, China
Firsthand Experience: Brazil’s Mosquito Campaigns
Having lived in Brazil, we had to deal with mosquitoes all year round. Since Brazil is home to 148 known mosquito species, city halls promote yearly campaigns against dengue and other mosquito diseases. In 2023, Brazil ranked number one in dengue cases in the Region of the Americas, according to an OCHA epidemiological alert.
We learned very early in school how to eliminate pools of still water and prevent mosquitoes from reproducing. Before the rainy season, the local government usually sends fliers or warnings to the local population with advice on how to get rid of standing water sources. Even with all of our efforts, as soon as the rain comes, mosquitoes will start to worsen.
In some cities, where dengue cases are severe, the local administration even sends health agents to check homeowners’ yards and help them remove any still water. Those visits also help educate the local residents about the dangers of mosquitoes and how simple measures (such as turning over pots or bottles) can help control their spread.
A Mosquito By Any Other Name …
The name “mosquito” comes from the Spanish for “small fly.” Here is how to say “mosquito” in languages throughout the world.
al-Ba’oudha: Arabic
Ghiti: Quechua (language used in Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Northern Chile, Argentina, and Southern Colombia)
Ka: Japanese
Komar: Russian
Kosu: Tamil
Machar: Urdu
Mbu: Swahili
Mogi: Korean
Moustique: French
Mozzie: A slang term used mostly in Australia
Muskiet: Afrikaans
Myg: Danish
Mygga: Swedish
Nyamuk: Indonesian
Wenzhi: Chinese
Zanzara: Italian
The scientific name for the mosquito family is “Culicidae,” from the Latin word for “gnat.”
Disney, Mosquitoes, … and Chickens
Disney World is billed as “the Most Magical Place on Earth,” a name they live up to when it comes to mosquitoes: About the only way a mosquito gets in there is to buy a ticket.
There is a reason that it is mosquito-free despite being built in a swamp: Hard work. And chickens.
At the 1964 World’s Fair, Walt Disney met General William “Joe” Potter, the former governor of the Panama Canal Zone, an area ravaged by malaria-carrying mosquitoes. Walt asked him how they went about controlling mosquitoes. By the time Potter finished answering, Walt hired him.
Here’s how they do it:
- Keep the water moving. Mosquitoes breed in still water, so Disney put in ditches, called “Joe’s ditches,” both to remove stagnant water and to keep the water they needed flowing. Among other things, it explains why there are so many fountains.
- Build with mosquitoes in mind: Buildings are designed to keep water from collecting. Lots of curved areas on roofs.
- Plant the right plants. Don’t use water-holding plants, like bromeliads, or water lilies, under which mosquitoes will place larvae. Do favor the plants that repel mosquitoes: lavender, citronella, clove, peppermint, basil, cedarwood, eucalyptus, peppermint, lemongrass, and rosemary.
- Favor mosquito predators. Stock the water with mosquitofish, minnows, and goldfish. Disney World has a bat population; they come out at night, eating any mosquitoes they find while the tourists are sleeping.
- Sentinel chickens are in place. The park keeps chickens in cages spread about. Technicians monitor the blood of the chickens; if a mosquito-borne disease is found, they know to fight it, and where to fight it.
- Spray responsibly. Walt Disney did not want to use a chemical pesticide, so a natural one was developed: using garlic! They still spray it. They developed one that humans can’t smell (!) but mosquitoes can. (Pro Tip: Garlic is still considered one of the best mosquito sprays for your yard.)
Having Fun With Mosquitoes
What is that funny looking thing a mosquito uses to draw your blood?
It is called a “proboscis.” It isn’t so funny looking when it is drawing your blood.
Some Mosquito Observations
- When a mosquito is slapped while feeding, its death is in vein.
- When a mosquito decides to get a blood meal on an exposed arm or leg, it is going out on a limb.
- You can tell mosquitoes don’t like to go to restaurants. After a few bites, they leave.
- Who do you call if you are overwhelmed by a swarm of mosquitoes? A SWAT team.
- A mosquito’s favorite sport is skindiving.
Making Yourself Attractive Also Attracts …
What They Do in India
In India, a nation of 1.4 billion, a survey found that 87% of the people living in urban areas called the mosquito problem severe in their community.
There are things that people who know mosquitoes do inside their homes that are not expensive:
- Lemons and cloves. They slice a lemon in half, push cloves into it, and set it out in a bowl as a repellent.
- Make a garlic spray. They crush a few cloves of garlic and boil them. Then they pour it into a spray bottle and spray around. Mosquitoes do not like the smell of garlic.
- Bowls of soapy water. They put dishwashing detergent in a bowl. Mosquitoes that land in it (attracted by the standing water) will be trapped (by the soap).
- Have beer in a dish. Mosquitoes seem to hate the smell of beer, or any other alcohol.
Mosquitoes, Your Feet, and Limburger Cheese
Mosquitoes love your socks, especially ones you have worn, according to research by an entomologist. Socks worn for 12 hours a day for three days were feasted on.
The same research found that mosquitoes love Limburger cheese:
- The main ingredient in Limburger cheese is a bacterium that is found on the human foot.
- That distinctive ingredient comes from the monks who first made Limburger cheese by stomping the milk and curds … with their feet.
Mosquitoes and the Full Moon
A full moon also increases mosquito activity by 500 percent. Scientists don’t know why.
The Okanagon Indians (who lived along the Columbia River that runs in British Columbia and Washington state) don’t know why, either, but they knew before the first European settlers arrived that the full moon brought out swarms of mosquitoes.
Mosquitoes Are the Deadliest Animal in the World
It may surprise you to know that yes, mosquitoes are the deadliest animal in the world.
Source: AMCA, Gates Notes
| World’s Deadliest Animals | People Killed Each Year |
| Mosquitoes | 1 million |
| Humans | 580,000 |
| Snakes | 60,000 |
| Dogs | 17,400 |
| Scorpions | 3,500 |
| Crocodiles | 1,000 |
| Lions and Tigers | 150 |
| Sharks | 6 |
Mosquito-borne diseases are defined by the CDC as those spread by the bite of an infected mosquito. The major diseases spread to humans by mosquitoes are:
- Malaria
- Zika virus
- West Nile virus
- Chikungunya virus
- Yellow Fever
- Dengue
Mosquitoes Have Some Surprising Habitats
Wondering where mosquitoes live? You may be surprised.
Other surprising breeding areas outside the home include:
- Irrigated places: If your irrigation process results in standing water, you are over-irrigating, and likely will attract mosquitoes.
- Trash cans: Don’t allow water to sit in the bottom.
- Flat roofs: Remove any standing water from them.
- Outdoor faucets, especially ones that leak
- Pool covers
- Plastic sheeting that catches water
- Wheelbarrows left in the yard
- Rain barrels: Add a larvicide. Bti larvicides (also called mosquito dunks) are safe and effective.
- Bird baths: Change the water twice a week (and the birds prefer fresh water). Bti larvicides are safe here, too.
- Tin cans
- Car bodies
Other surprising breeding areas inside the home include:
- Vases: Empty and scrub, turn over, cover, or throw out any items that hold water, such as vases.
- Pet water dishes: Check them when you fill them. If you aren’t filling one, turn it over.
- In showers
- In closets
- In the laundry room
Other surprising breeding areas near the home include:
- At the base of vegetation in places that periodically flood
- Trees that were uprooted leave depressions that collect seepage and rainwater.
- Swamps and other standing water
- Ditches, if stagnant water lasts for a week or they were washed with floodwater
- Tire swings or old tires that have been discarded
- Cisterns: Covers should fit tightly and screens should be intact.
- Canoes and other boats: Turn them over.
- Tarps on wood piles or in the yard
- Watering troughs for animals: Flush them twice a week.
FAQs
Female mosquitoes will live from 3 to 100 days. Male mosquitoes will live 10 to 20 days.
Mosquitoes have a preference for the colors that humans see as red, orange, and black, according to a research report published in the journal Nature Communications. The study also found that mosquitoes are attracted to contrast, such as wearing a dark shirt on a sunny day. And to a mosquito, red is considered dark.
300 feet is what many of them still fly at a time.
1-3 miles is the range of most of them.
40 miles: Salt marsh mosquitoes fly this far for a bloodmeal.
For the most part, mosquitoes fly no higher than 25 feet.
About 1 to 1 ½ miles per hour.
A Call to Action
Mosquitoes can be fun to talk about, but are seldom as much fun if they land on you. If you decide that the mosquitoes call for more than a DIY effort, Pest Gnome can connect you to the best pest control experts in your area.
But make a decision, then act on it.
Main Image Credit: nechaev-kon / Canva Pro / License
