4 American Midland Naturalist Monograph No. 3 



ticated species such as Aedes aegypti feed eagerly on human blood and 

 definitely prefer it. Semi -domesticated and wild species vary in their feeding 

 preferences. 



The length of life of adult mosquitoes under natural conditions is diffi- 

 cult to determine and great variation occurs. Appearance of males in the 

 spring is usually taken as indicating the emergence of the first brood. 



The mating habits vary considerably among the different species. With 

 many species of Anophelines and Culicines the males swarm together in 

 large numbers in the evening at which time the females invade the swarm, 

 each emerging united with a male in the act of copulation. Some mosquitoes 

 will mate in very small containers while in captivity. Males and females of 

 a few species have been observed in copulation while resting on objects near 

 their breeding places. 



The flight range varies considerably with different species of mosquitoes. 

 The salt marsh mosquitoes are notorious wanderers, a flight of 50 miles or 

 more is not considered too unusual. Aedes vexans is a strong flier and has 

 been taken 10 to 15 miles from points where stained specimens were released. 

 Most Anophelines are considered to be weak fliers and seldom disperse more 

 than a mile from their breeding areas, however, many exceptions to this 

 broad statement have been recorded as a result of the recapture of marked 

 specimens. 



Males are seldom found far from their breeding grounds, although upon 

 occasions they are reported to accompany the miprating females. Flight may 

 be with or against winds of moderate velocity. Few mosquitoes are on the 

 wing when the velocity of the wind exceeds 10 miles per hour. 



Mosquitoes may, on occasions, be dispersed by artificial means, includ- 

 ing automobiles, trains, ships, and airplanes; and the danger of introducing 

 disease-bearing species is now more critical than it ever has been in the past. 



Many of our southern species retire to sheltered locations during the 

 daytime to rest and digest their blood meals. Such places as hollow trees, 

 culverts, caves, stables, etc., are especially attractive and are frequently used 

 as collecting stations in mosquito control operations to determine the species 

 present and their relative abundance. 



A great many of our species of Anopheles and Culex hibernate as adult 

 females in protected, moist, semi-dark shelters and come out in the spring 

 in search of food and suitable places in which to deposit their eggs. Males 

 do not overwinter but die with the advent of cold weather. 



Medical Importance 



Mosquitoes are known to transmit several important diseases of man and 

 animals. These diseases are briefly described as follows: 



Human Malaria. — This is an acute and chronic febrile disease caused by 

 the invasion of the red blood corpuscles by protozoa belonging to the genus 

 Plasmodium and transmitted by Anopheles mosquitoes. Four species of para- 

 sites are pathogenic to man; namely P. vivax, the causative agent of benign 



