Mosquito κουνούπι

Anatomy of a mosquito

The male mosquitoes feed on the nectar of flowers. The female mosquitoes suck blood of animals and humans. They especially attack when they feel the sweat and exhaled air (CO2). The male mosquitoes feed on the nectar of flowers.

Why do they bite ? ANSWER: The female mosquitoes need a blood, which contains proteins to lay the eggs.

Mosquito larvae are developing in the water Mosquito larvae are developing in the water. There can be the wet meadows, lakes, ponds, rivers or just the puddles.

- The saliva of a female mosquito contains a chemical substance which irritates the skin. Because of this, when the mosquito bites us, the skin becomes red and itches. - Mosquitoes fly at speeds about 2 km per hour. IT'S ONE OF THE SLOWEST INSECTS

Mosquito wings beat 300-600 times per second !! It explains this buzzing sound you hear before a mosquito lands on you and bites.

How to protect ourselves from the mosquitoes ? Wear proper clothing, long but airy sleeves and trousers. Avoid the dark colors of your clothes. It’s better to wear bright color clothes but also not the very vivid ones like yellow, green or orange. These colors attract the other insects, like small flies, bees, wasps. Avoid perfumes and cosmetics of floral and fruity scents.

Where do they live ? Mosquitoes live in the area from the Arctic to the tropics. Because of the climate changes, the tropical species of mosquitoes are moving to Europe, what makes the threat of diseases which they spread…

In some parts of the world they spread the diseases, for example Malaria.

Mosquito life cycle http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wFfO7f8Vr9c