HOW TO COLLECT MOSQUITOES 
(CULICIDjE). 
INTRODUCTION. 
Systematic Position, Distinctive Characters, and Life History 
OF MeSQU1TOES. 
Mosquitoes or gnats (strictly speaking, the terms are synonj mo us) 
are the names popularly applied to the family Culicidce, of the 
Order of insects known as Diptera ( Two-winged Plies), which also 
includes, besides other families the species of which are more or 
less gnat-like in form, such as the true midges ( Chironomulw ), 
fungus-midges ( Mycetophilidce ), daddy-long-legs {Tipulidce), etc., a 
large number the members of which are more “ lly ’’-like in shape, 
e.g. the, blue-bottles and house-flies (. Muscidce ), tsetse-flies ( Glossma ), 
horse-flies ( Tabcmidce ), hover-flies (Syrphidm), etc. 
Culicidce are by no means the only blood-sucking Diptera, tor the 
Order also comprises the blood-sucking midges (genus Ceratopogon, 
etc., belonging to the family Chironomidce), the sand-flies or 
Sivmlidce, horse-flies or Tcibanidce, and blood-sucking Muscidce 
(Glossma. Stomoxys, Hcematobia). In the perfect state the females 
of all of'these suck blood, while the males are usually harmless, 
thou"h in the tsetse-flies ( Glossma) the blood-sucking habit is 
common to both sexes, as is the case in certain species of mosquitoes 
(see “Observations on Habits, Distribution, etc., ’ p. 88). 
The other blood-sucking Diptera, with the possible exception ot 
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