68 HOUSEHOLD INSECTS 



for food. They attain their growth in from seven to eight 

 or ten days. The pupal stage lasts about two days, so that 

 the whole life cycle maybe passed in two weeks or even less. 



The yellow fever mosquito seems to be most active and 

 to do most of its biting in the afternoon and early evening, 

 although Miss Mitchell says that in Baton Rouge it 

 troubled her most before 9 p.m. We have found them 

 particularly active in the early afternoon on shady porches. 



Yellow fever cannot become epidemic where this 

 mosquito is not present. Any one can remain among 

 cases of yellow fever with perfect safety if he avoids being 

 bitten by an infested mosquito. 



BREEDING PLACES OF THE MORE COMMON MOSQUITOES 



In general, it may be said that almost any body of 

 fresh water in almost any situation, if left standing long 

 enough, will become infested with larvae of mosquitoes. 

 In the ditches that receive sewage, we have seen a black 

 fringe of larvae on both sides for nearly a mile. 



It is ordinarily supposed that mosquitoes breed only 

 in stagnant water, or in water that is changing very little. 

 We have found them breeding in considerable numbers in 

 troughs for watering stock, when the water ran in at one 

 end and out at the other all the time. We have found an 

 unused room swarming with mosquitoes that came from 

 a bucket of slop water. 



A friend of mine tells me of finding an abundance of 

 wrigglers in a glass globe of water standing on a table in 

 the parlor of a house at which he was visiting. Fish 

 had been kept in the globe, among some water plants 

 growing there. The fish had died some time before and 



