Male mosquitoes don’t bite you. They drink fruit nectar up until the time they meet a female in mid-air and copulate. Sounds romantic? Well... up until a few seconds after copulation when she kills him. Just that one fertilisation by the male allows her to lay eggs for the rest of her life. Aedes Aegypti mosquitoes and Culex, the two varieties found in Bermuda, live about 25 days. Females in these varieties can lay a single or several hundred eggs at a time. To help sure up survival the eggs hatch in a staggered sequence. Further strengthening the prospect of the species is that the eggs are able to lie dormant for years waiting for ideal weather conditions before hatching.

Like all insects, mosquitoes develop in four distinct stages; egg, larvae, pupa, adult. Culex lay their eggs on water, in bunches called rafts while Aedes Aegypti like wet soil and lay eggs individually. It is easy to differentiate the adults of each specie. The annoying buzzing sound you associate with mosquitoes is Culex while the silent ankle biters and all striped mosquitoes found locally are Aegypti.

Female mosquitoes need blood as protein to nourish their eggs. The amount of blood they are able to get directly affects the number of eggs they produce. Humans and other animals are the source of blood for these insects. Because mosquitoes will suck from a variety of sources, they are a dangerous vector of disease.

Locally we are at risk of a Dengue Fever outbreak because Aedes Aegypti can carry the virus.

Here are a few steps you can take to help curb mosquito breeding.

1) Ensure all containers left outside are upside down.

2) Check your property weekly and after heavy rains for standing water.

3) Have guppies in your water tank and fish and turtle ponds.

4) Do not grow bromeliads.

5) Don’t wait for a situation to go out of control. Call Government Vector Control on 278-4998 at the first sign of problems on land or boats.