Mosquitoes are two-winged insects that cause discomfort to humans in spring and summer. After their bite, local itching, redness, and swelling appear. But these are harmless symptoms compared to the harm mosquitoes that carry diseases such as encephalitis, malaria, and fever can cause to health. To defeat these insects, you need to know the duration and characteristics of their life.
Lifespan of mosquitoes
The lifespan of mosquitoes is influenced by factors:
- sex of the individual;
- air temperature;
- humidity level;
- availability of food.
The average lifespan of males is 3 weeks, females - 2 months. At an optimal temperature of +10...+15 oC, females can live up to 119 days. At +20 °C their lifespan is reduced to 57 days, at +25 °C - to 43 days. These figures are valid if mosquitoes have access to carbohydrate food and the air humidity in their habitat is high.
Attention! At temperatures below +10 ° C, mosquitoes fall into torpor. They can remain in this state until spring. Then the time during which the insect “slept” is added to the lifespan.
Reproduction and development
Males do not feed on human blood; their food is nectar from flowering plants. The function of a mosquito is to fertilize the female, after which it lives for some time. Mating lasts several days, in hot weather. When the insects have mated, the female begins to actively search for food, as she needs nutrients to maintain strength and develop eggs. The amount of blood affects the number of embryos: the better the insect is saturated, the more offspring will be born. During the period of egg maturation, one female can bite people 8 times a day and even more often.
The masonry develops in a special way. When blood enters the body and is digested, a portion of eggs is formed. After this, the insect flies again in search of food. The volume of blood that needs to be consumed is individual for each individual and depends on the size. If for some reason the female remains half-starved, the eggs will still ripen, but there will only be a few of them.
The insect lays eggs every 3 days, throwing future offspring into a standing body of water located in the shade, or into an ordinary puddle. To ensure that the clutch is distributed evenly, the mosquito quickly flies along the water surface. The eggs, shaped like elongated sticks, fall into the water and attach to blades of grass and algae. In the process, some of the offspring die. Appearance of insects at different stages of development:
- Egg. Under a microscope, the masonry appears colorless and translucent. The elongated sticks have an oval shape; an air bubble is formed inside each, thanks to which the embryos do not drown.
- Larva. At this stage of the life cycle, a mouthpart with several brushes through which water passes is formed. Algae, microorganisms and protozoa remain inside the larva and are digested. The respiratory organ is a tube on the abdomen. The larva breathes by exposing the edge of its body to the surface.
- Doll. After entering this stage, the individual resembles a worm and an adult mosquito at the same time. The pupa does not need to eat; it only breathes while at the surface of the water. Air enters through the respiratory tube, as in the larvae. Within a few days, limbs and wings grow, after which the mosquito takes off from the water surface.
Insects remain active as long as the weather is warm, but most of them die in summer and early autumn. The causes are natural regulators, such as fish, swimming beetles, dragonflies, ticks, water striders, bats and other fauna.
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Everyone knows how much trouble blood-sucking insects can cause. Their buzzing makes it impossible to sleep, and the skin becomes red, itchy and swollen after bites. Particularly sensitive people experience blisters, swelling, and sometimes it comes to an allergic runny nose. Therefore, many people want to find out how long mosquitoes live in an apartment or house and whether they are able to go without food for a long time.
The masonry develops in a special way. When blood enters the body and is digested, a portion of eggs is formed. After this, the insect flies again in search of food. The volume of blood that needs to be consumed is individual for each individual and depends on the size. If for some reason the female remains half-starved, the eggs will still ripen, but there will only be a few of them.
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Life cycle of a mosquito
The life cycle of a mosquito includes 4 stages:
- Egg. After mating with the male, the female looks for a pond with standing water or damp soil, lays eggs and flies away. Each clutch can contain from 30 to 280 eggs.
- Larva. Depending on the air temperature, after 2-8 days the eggs form into larvae that look like small worms. They feed by filtering water from which they extract nutrients. About 1 liter of liquid passes through 1 mosquito larva per day.
- Doll. After about 20 days, the larvae pupate.
- Adult. An adult mosquito appears 5 days after pupation. It will be able to start reproducing within a week.
Adult insects feed on carbohydrate foods – nectar of flowers and juice of plant leaves. Decaying vegetation can serve as a food source. Only females feed on blood.
Panic in southern Russia
The Rostov region is the “homeland” of Russian West Nile fever.
Doctor of Sciences, Head of the Department of Infectious Diseases of the Rostov State Medical University (Rostov State Medical University) Yuri Ambalov was the first domestic virologist to encounter an invisible disease in 1999. Then he and a group of scientists went to the village of Oblivskaya, where a mysterious epidemic was announced.
Scientist Yuri Ambalov has been studying fever for 20 years. Photo: Rostov State Medical University
Patients with high fever and chills were admitted to the hospital. Five people died, three of them were children. Panic arose in the village. “Cholera” posters were hung along the coastline; all vacationers were sent home by police in cotton and gauze bandages.
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Residents recall that dead silence reigned in the village. Those who could went to their relatives, others did not leave the yard. Neither local nor regional doctors could qualify the disease, so epidemiologists from Moscow came here.
“I remember well what trouble happened in Oblivskaya. We didn't know then that it was West Nile fever. At least 100 people fell ill. I got out of the car, and mosquitoes immediately swarmed me,” recalls Yuri Ambalov. – A few weeks later, a similar thing happened in the neighboring Volgograd region - mosquitoes flew there with the wind. Then this disease was called Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever, which is transmitted from a tick bite. But now we understand that it was West Nile fever.”
How long can a mosquito live without blood?
Males and females, eating only plant foods, can live to their maximum lifespan. But in order to lay eggs, the female needs protein and lipids. She receives them from the blood of mammals, including humans. Until a protein source of nutrition is found, she will not be able to lay eggs. Having bitten the victim, it fills its abdomen with blood and flies off to a quiet place to form eggs.
This is interesting! Females of some mosquito species can reproduce without feeding on blood. But the lack of protein food leads to a decrease in the number of eggs laid.
Nutrition
Only the female feeds on the blood of animals and humans. She needs protein, which is used for reproduction, maintenance of vital functions, and full activity.
Females find the source of blood quickly; they sense it by the emanating heat and the smell of carbon dioxide that a person or animal exhales.
But mosquitoes bite and drink not only human blood, they can attack wild animals in the forest. Livestock in rural areas, rodents, and even birds. An individual weighing 2.5-3 mg can drink up to 5 mg of blood at a time.
Mosquitoes also use plant sugars as food. They are extracted from plant nectar, which contains useful nutrients.
The latter are required to replenish strength and energy. Insects prefer the following plants:
- burdocks;
- blooming tansy;
- broadleaf yarrow.
How many days does a mosquito live after being bitten?
Some people believe that mosquitoes, like bees, die after being bitten. This opinion is incorrect. After the female drinks blood, she forms eggs and lays them. Then she mates again, looking for a warm-blooded victim. Under favorable conditions, the insect can lay eggs at intervals of 2-3 days. This will continue until the death of the individual.
To combat mosquitoes, people use fumigators, sprays and creams. But these funds are not enough, since the insect population is growing exponentially. To reduce the number of blood-sucking individuals, you need to carry out professional disinfestation of the area. After it is carried out, there are fewer mosquitoes in the area, and the frequency of bites is reduced. This leads to a reduced risk of contracting severe infections.
How to recognize a fever
West Nile fever is an acute infectious viral disease. Out of 100 people who get sick, four to five people die.
Symptoms of the disease are a sharp deterioration in health, increasing headache, high temperature, tremors in the body, nausea, and vomiting may be observed. Fever is often confused with ARVI, so the diagnosis is determined only in the hospital. The most terrible complication is meningitis, that is, inflammation of the membranes of the brain.
Today, only personal protective equipment - sprays, ointments, plates that repel mosquitoes - will help you protect yourself from mosquitoes. Fever vaccines are in the testing phase.
Food preferences
Many people notice that mosquitoes can bite one person twice, bite another completely, and not touch a third at all.
- Insect bites are usually located in areas not covered by clothing, a blanket, or thin fabric.
- Mosquitoes are attracted by the smell of lactic acid, carbon dioxide, and heat. Children are much more likely to suffer from mosquito attacks. This is explained by thin skin, rapid metabolism with intense release of lactic acid and heat.
- The smells of females attract and repel. Men's cologne acts as an effective repellent, while sweet women's perfume attracts the attention of pests.
- More often, people who sweat a lot, suffer from hormonal disorders, and heart disease complain of mosquito bites. Females are attracted to increased levels of estrogen, testosterone, cholesterol, nonanal, and steroids. At risk are pregnant women, people with diabetes, and men who play sports.
In the apartment
Mosquitoes are distinguished by their ability to quickly adapt to environmental conditions. They can survive even in an apartment. The lifespan of females depends on the temperature in the apartment:
- +25°C and above – up to 45 days;
- from 20°С to +23°С – up to 57 days;
- from +15°С to +19°С – up to 115 days;
- from +10°С to +14°С – up to 120 days.
For males this figure will be two times less. In a city apartment after mating, they do not live longer than 4-5 days. How many days do mosquitoes live in a person’s house? The average life expectancy for a male is 3-4 weeks, for females this figure is 6-8 weeks.
The lifespan of mosquitoes can be different and range from 3 weeks to 3-4 months. This depends on many factors: ambient temperature, activity of natural enemies, availability of a power source. Insects adapt well to their environment and can easily survive even in severe winter conditions or in a city apartment.
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Mosquitoes are two-winged insects that cause discomfort to humans in spring and summer. After their bite, local itching, redness, and swelling appear. But these are harmless symptoms compared to the harm mosquitoes that carry diseases such as encephalitis, malaria, and fever can cause to health. To defeat these insects, you need to know the duration and characteristics of their life.
