HOUSEHOLD AND CAMP INSECTS 29 



more or less regular overflows of water and occasional heavy rains 

 result in successive batches of eggs hatching and the production of 

 hosts of mosquitoes from time to time during the season. 



The swamp mosquito*^^ under certain conditions becomes very 

 abundant and annoying. This is a medium or small mosquito with 

 the tarsal segments narrowly white-banded basally. It is one of 

 the more abundant of the woodland mosquitoes and is typical of 

 other species occurring under similar conditions, some of which are 

 locally abundant and very annoying. 



The irritating mosquito*^* is easily recognized by its large size and 

 the strongly contrasting colors, especially the broad, white band 

 near the middle of the beak, and the similar bands on the legs, the 

 broad one on the posterior tibiae being characteristic. The abdo- 

 men is distally white-banded and the wings, with their large, white 

 and dark-colored scales, have a somewhat pecuHar mottled ap- 

 pearance. This insect is one of the fiercest and hardest biters, 

 entering houses readily. It is peculiar among native forms in that 

 the wrigglers or larvae attach themselves by the strongly tapered 

 and pointed airtube to the submerged roots of cat-tails, water loose- 

 strife and possibly other plants. This pecuHar habit restricts 

 breeding to permanent swamps, particularly cat-tail areas, having 

 more or less floating or semifloating vegetation. 



Other mosquitoes may be locally abundant, and in some cases 

 even more serious pests than those briefly noticed above. It is 

 impossible to treat all these within the limited space available, and 

 as many of the statements relating to the forms noticed are also 

 true of others, such treatment is unnecessary. 



Mosquito Control 



It is self-evident that the disease carriers, the malarial mosquito 

 and the yellow fever mosquito, are of primary importance wher- 

 ever there is an opportunity for these insects to become infected 

 and thus in turn be able to act as carriers of these diseases. The 

 keeping of all such mosquitoes from sources of infection renders 

 them harmless so far as dissemination of disease is concerned, and 

 if for any reason this is impractical, a thoroughgoing campaign of 

 destruction is the only safe course to pursue. This is especially 

 true of the yellow fever mosquito. 



^^Aedes sylvestris Theo. 

 6*Mansonia perturbans Walk. 



