46 MISC. PUBLICATION 336, U. S. DEPT. OF AGRICULTURE 
AEDES AEGYPTI (L.) 
(Syn., Stegomyia fasciatus F., Culex calopus Meig., OC. argenteus Poir., etc.; the yellow- 
fever or dengue-fever mosquito) 
The adults are rather small and dark, with conspicuous rings of 
white scales on the tarsi, and patches of white on the sides of the 
thorax and abdomen. The lyre-shaped pattern on the mesonotum 
(fig. 12, A), formed of lines of white scales, is characteristic of the 
species. 
This species is the most thoroughly domesticated of any of the 
mosquitoes and apparently greatly prefers the blood of man to that 
of other animals. It breeds almost exclusively in artificial water 
containers in the vicinity of dwellings or in the dwellings them- 
selves. The larvae are found occasionally in tree holes and similar 
natural collections of water, but so far as known the eggs are never 
deposited in ground pools. The eggs are usually laid on the sides of 
the receptacle just above the water line, or on the surface of the 
water. It appears that places which are of solid material at the 
water line are selected for oviposition. In Orlando, Fla., the writers 
have found the larvae abundant at times in the underground street 
catch basins, which, although partly filled with sand and dirt, were 
lined with brick or concrete. Fairly clean water is preferred, and 
sewage-polluted water in wooden or concrete cesspools is not a favor- 
able breeding medium. The eggs are able to withstand drying for 
several months, and hatch very quickly when the receptacle is filled 
with water. 
The adults are abundant during the summer in cities and towns 
throughout the South and are troublesome house pests. Biting is 
confined largely to the daylight hours, especially early in the morning 
and late in the afternoon, and the females seem able to gain entrance 
even into well-screened houses. They are wary biters and are espe- 
cially annoying about the ankles. Aedes aegypti is thought to have 
been the only species involved in the epidemics of yellow and dengue 
fevers in the United States, although other species in other countries 
have been proved capable of transmitting both these diseases. 
The adults have been kept alive in the laboratory for several 
months, and in the summer they probably live longer than any other 
of the southern species. They are very susceptible to cold, however, 
and are said to die out at temperatures below about 40° F. The eggs 
are more resistant, but the species probably does not overwinter in 
the United States except in the extreme southern part. Each sum- 
mer it becomes widely dispersed into territory farther north, prob- 
ably by carriage in trains, boats, etc. Although the adults are strong 
fliers, the usual flight range is considered to be not more than a few 
hundred feet. 
The control of this species is discussed in the section on Mosquito 
Control (p. 13). A more extended account of its life history may be 
found in a bulletin by Howard (82). 
AEDES SOLLICITANS (Walk.) 
(The eastern salt-marsh mosquito, sometimes called the New Jersey mosquito) 
This bronze, or golden-brown, species breeds in salt marshes along 
the Atlantic and Gulf coasts and, except in southern Florida, is by 
far the most important of the salt-marsh species. It is a strong flier 
