Just thinking about mosquitoes makes us itch and scratch our arms and ankles, but getting all the facts straight is key to enjoying our time outdoors (and indoors).
Believe it or not, mosquitoes provide a critical service to the ecosystem, so we can’t get rid of them altogether. We can, however, safeguard ourselves, our children, and our homes against them to keep from being bitten.
Today we are explaining what mosquitoes need to live and breed and everything in between. By the end of this read, you’ll be comfortable keeping mosquitoes and their homes away from yours.
Most Common Places To Find Mosquitoes
It’s a common misconception that mosquitoes only live in tropical or humid climates. While mosquitoes prefer hot, humid places, they will and do live everywhere. You can expect to find heavy mosquito traffic near rivers, lakes, swamps, or marshes.
Mosquitoes prefer areas that offer them some ground cover that will help them hide from predators, and only a few species of mosquitoes prefer to live in areas populated by humans.
Why Do Mosquitoes Live Near Water?
Mosquitoes require water to lay eggs, which is where the misunderstanding about where they live originated.
While they do need water, they don’t require as much water as people expect. In fact, a few types of mosquitoes can lay eggs on a single drop of water.
After the mosquito eggs hatch, the larvae will remain in the water. Some varieties of mosquitoes prefer fresh water; others prefer nutrient-rich, more muddy sources. Regardless, during the larvae and pupa stages of a mosquito, they do not feed on anything except the water.
Once they reach adulthood, they will be able to fly and find food. Some may think food equals blood, but that’s also a myth. Males only feed on nectar from flowers, and only a few types of female mosquitoes feed on blood. Blood isn’t just a tasty snack — and we will explain why next.
What Mosquitoes Need To Breed
Females need blood, but when do they need it? Since they don’t need it for an everyday meal, that means they’ll need it whenever they plan to breed.
Mosquitoes use the proteins in human or animal blood to provide them the additional strength to lay eggs. Without that extra source of protein, they would be unable to breed. Another interesting fact, mosquitoes prefer animal blood.
You may feel like a habitual mosquito snack, but you were a last resort when they couldn’t find a cow or pig nearby to feed on.
How Far Will Mosquitoes Travel?
Mosquitoes can travel far, carrying diseases and illnesses with them, but most prefer to stay close to home. In an hour, most mosquitoes can travel about a mile. In a day, some mosquitoes can travel as far as three miles but most only travel about 300 feet.
The issue is that due to their longer than average life, they can travel across countries and continents, and that makes them very dangerous.
Why Are Mosquitoes Dangerous?
Mosquitoes are dangerous for a few reasons, and you need to understand the risks associated with all of them to make sure that you and your family are protected against these issues.
Here are the reasons to watch out for these buzzing beasts:
Bites
Typical reactions to being bitten by a mosquito include subtle swelling at the bite site as well as an intense itching sensation.
These might be typical for most, but there is a heavy portion of the population that is also hypersensitive or allergic. This extreme sensitivity to mosquito bites means you will likely develop intense swelling, pain, heat, and additional bumps resembling the bite.
Breeding
Since mosquitoes only need the smallest amount of water to breed, their ability to reproduce is immense. In addition to this, each female mosquito can lay around 300 eggs at a time.
Life Expectancy
Mosquitoes live a long time, especially when compared to other insects. The typical lifespan for a male mosquito is only ten days, still longer than other insects but not that impressive.
Females, however, can live almost two months. In addition, they can lay dormant in the winter if needed and wake up in the spring refreshed.
Diseases & Viruses
Did you know mosquitoes are one of the deadliest animals in the world?
They carry diseases like Zika Virus, Dengue Fever, and Malaria across oceans and infect anyone they bite if they carry these deadly diseases.
If you’ve been bitten by a mosquito recently, monitor your symptoms and see a doctor immediately if you have intense nausea, fever, flu-like symptoms, or other issues.
How To Keep Mosquitoes Away
To keep mosquitoes away, you have to do the work to keep them off your body and out of your home. Below are simple tips to ensure your family stays bite-free all year long.
At Home
Mosquitoes would love nothing better than to set up their home in your home. Why? They can fly out when they need food and come home without being eaten or threatened to be eaten by predators.
To keep them out of your home, you’ll need tight-fitted, well-maintained screens on all doors and windows. This way, when you open them for a little breeze, you won’t be inviting biting insects in with the wind.
Keep in mind that mosquitoes don’t need a big opening to get into your home. So well-maintained screens, free from any rips or tears, are critical.
On the Move
Obviously, you can’t stay home forever. So you’ll need protection from mosquitoes while out and about. Kids have games and activities, and you all have family outings and BBQs to attend.
While you’re out enjoying the day, try using our BuzzPatch to keep the mosquitoes away. These insects track you down by the carbon dioxide you exhale when you breathe. To keep them from finding you, you’ll need to mask your breathing.
Our patches do this by using all-natural essential oils embedded in our patches that release at perfectly timed intervals to keep you off the radar. Luckily, scents that we generally find pleasant, mosquitoes despise.
What To Do if You Get Bit
No matter how hard we try, sometimes we forget our patches, and a mosquito gets through, and we get bitten. If this happens, you’ll need to work fast to keep symptoms down to a minimum.
After cleaning the bite site with warm water and soap and ensuring it is thoroughly dried, apply one of our MagicPatches. These patches are powered by scientifically-tested grid-relief technology to pull the mosquito saliva out of your skin and bring it to the surface.
Mosquitoes use their saliva to bite us without detection. The proteins in their spit have numbing qualities, so we don’t feel them drinking our blood. But of course, the second they’re done, they release their grip and stop producing saliva into our skin, so we instantly react to the sensation.
Our patches pull that saliva out of the bite and provide you relief fast for up to a whole week. The best part? They’re safe for kids as well as adults and are completely waterproof.
Why We Need Mosquitoes
Mosquitoes eat other insects and are a vital source of food and protein for animals like birds and reptiles. Like it or not, we need these guys around to keep a lot of other animals alive.
They also help pollinate flowers and plants, which keeps the world beautiful… even if it causes us a little annoyance from time to time.
Buzz Be Gone
We are confident these tips and tricks will help keep your home and family mosquito and bite-free. They may not be our favorite bugs, but they do their part to make up for those pesky bites.
Sources:
Where Mosquitoes Live | Mosquitoes | CDC
