454 MOSQUITOES 



of a bit of poisonous saHvu into the wound made l)y tlio piercing 

 niouthparts of the insect. The susceptil)ilil\- of some people to 

 tlie c>tTect of mosquito ])oison is much ^reaier than that of otliers. 

 Tlie author has seen individuals on whom moscjuito bites swelled 

 up like bee stings and were even more painful, whereas the author 

 himself has frequently been unaware of the fact that a mosquito 

 was biting him unless the insect was seen by him or was pointed 

 out b}' a less indifferent companion. Moreover, the effect of the 

 bites of different species of mosquitoes varies, so that while some 

 species may produce very little irritation others may prove un- 

 bearablj' annoying. Dr. Smith, of New Jersey, became prac- 

 ticalh' immune to the bites of some of the salt marsh mosquitoes, 

 but was troubled b}' the house mosquito, Culex pipiens, and still 

 more so by Anopheles. The author has had similar experience, 

 and has found himself driven almost to frenzj^ by some species 

 and hardly annoyed at all by others. It is quite probable that 

 the complaints which are heard from visitors to the ocean resorts 

 of the New Jerse}' coast are due to the fact that these visitors 

 are fully susceptible to the poison of the salt marsh mosquitoes 

 whereas they may have become more or less immune to the 

 inland mosquitoes of their own districts. These facts clearly 

 indicate that there is a specific difference in the poison of different 

 kinds of mosquitoes, and Dr. Smith's experiences show that 

 acquired immunity to one mosquito may give little or no relief 

 from another. 



There is a popular belief that if a mosquito is allowed to draw 

 his fill of blood, the bite is less painful and becomes less swollen 

 than if she is killed or driven away. This belief is to a large 

 extent true, the probable reason l)eing that when the insect 

 is allowed to finish hor meal, the droplet of poisonous saliva in- 

 jected into the wound is drawn back into the stomach of the 

 mosquito with the l)lood on which it acts. 



Many different remedies have been recommended for mos- 

 (juito bites. Ammonia, alcohol, glycerine, indigo, iodine, ether, 

 camphor, najihthaline (moth balls), cresol preparations, a 2.*, 

 per cent carlxjlic solution — all these and others have had their 

 adherents amongst entomologists, hunters, travelers and house- 

 wives. All of them probal)ly have some alleviating (>ffect, and 

 it is not unlikely that tlieir effects may vary with different spe- 

 cies of mo.s(iuitoes and perliaps even with individuals. Dr. 



