34 N. J. Agricultural Experiment Station, Bulletin 348 



good breeding seasons, from mid-summer on, the whole of Soutl 

 Jersey, with the exception of the northwestern parts of Burhngton 

 Camden, Gloucester, Cumberland and Salem counties, is infested by 

 this species This band of mosquito-infested territory shows the 

 greatest number of mosquitoes nearest the marsh and a decrease in 

 number as the observer goes farther and farther from it^ Of course, 

 modifications of this general condition are brought about by pre- 

 vailing winds and the character of the plant growth. 



So long as the sand strip bordering the ocean is swept by sea 

 breezes this species of mosquito is not in evidence, but if the breed- 

 inc is active when the winds blow from the marshes, the mosquitoes 

 come in countless numbers, and human comfort for all out-of-doors 

 and for many in-doors is at an end. 



Literally millions of dollars invested in enterprises, which involved 

 as a step necessary to success the bringing in of people from prac- 

 tically mosquito-free places, have been lost. In many places attempts 

 to develop tracts of land for summer-resort and for farmmg pur- 

 poses have proven complete failures because of this mosquito. It 

 is the greatest single factor now operative in South Jersey m de- 

 pressing real estate values and preventing the proper development 

 of that section of the state. 



Life Habits 



The winter is passed by this insect in the egg stage. The eggs, 

 which are black in color, and spindle-shaped, lie in the mud of the 

 salt marshes. They were deposited there the preceding season by 

 the adult females. They occur in every part of the salt marsh and 

 country adjacent thereto which was damp the preceding season when 

 the female mosquitoes were on the wing and ready to oviposit. 



Under favorable conditions, i. e., if covered with water, the eggs 

 begin to hatch very early in March. Wrigglers have been found 

 as early as March 5, although the temperature of the water at that 

 time ranged from 42° to 50° F. Under such temperatures as this, 

 larval growth is slow, requiring almost a month for its completion.^ 

 With the temperatures of mid-summer, larval development is 

 much more rapid. A few hours after a dry salt meadow has been 

 covered by tides or rain, the water left on it may be swarming with 

 tiny wrigglers. A week will suffice to bring the larvae to the pupal 

 stage and 24 hours more may bring the emergence of the adults. 

 The speed of development is directly correlated with temperature 



