CHAPTER X 



The Class}fication of the United States Mos- 

 quitoes 



THE mosquitoes belong* to that order of insects known 

 as the Diptera. The Diptera are the true flies. They 

 possess but two wings, the second pair being repre- 

 sented only by two little projections known as halteres or 

 poisers. The mouth-parts are formed for sucking and the 

 transformations are complete, that is to say, the early 

 stages differ radically from the adult. In the order Diptera 

 the mosquitoes are separated into a distinct family known 

 as the Culicidse, the family name being derived from the 

 name of the typical genus Culex (see Chapter III.), the 

 generic name Culex being taken from the Latin word 

 culex, which means a midge or a gnat. The true mos- 

 quitoes of the family Culicidae are distinguished l)y hav- 

 ing the antennae furnished with whorls of hairs, which are 

 very delicate and long in the male, and sparse in the 

 female. The head is furnished with a long, projecting 

 beak, which in the female is capable ot piercing the skin 

 of human beings. The wings are as a rule transparent, but 

 to the veins, when seen under the compound microscope, 

 are attached scales of different shapes, something like 



229 



