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Mosquitoes

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Common Mosquitoes in the Southeast

There are over 80 species of mosquitoes (13 known genera: Aedes, Anopheles, Coquillettidia, Culex, Culiseta, Deinocerites, Mansonia, Ochlerotatus, Orthopodomyia, Psorophora, Toxorhynchites, Uranotaenia and Wyeomyia) living in the Southeast region with a wide range in habitat preference. Below you can learn more about the medical relevance of each of these mosquitoes. Locally transmittable pathogens are bolded.

Aedes

Photo: CDC

Anopheles

Photo: James Gathany (via CDC and Prevention Public Health Image Library)

Coquillettidia

Photo: Sean McCann

Culex

Photo: CDC

Mansonia

Photo: Sean McCann

Ochlerotatus

Photo: James Gathany (via Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Public Health Image Library)

Culiseta

Photo: Sean McCann

Psorophora

Photo: Mary Keim

Wyeomyia

Photo: Andreas Kay

Mosquito Life Cycle

Mosquitoes go through a four-stage life cycle: Egg, Larva, Pupa, and Adult.

After a female has fed (usually on blood), she lays eggs. Depending on the species, eggs can be laid directly on water, on the surface of an object containing water, or in a flood-prone area. Eggs hatch into mobile, microorganism-feeding larvae. Larvae then develop into non-feeding pupae. Pupae develop into flying male and female adult mosquitoes. Blood-feeding adult female mosquitoes can transmit pathogens that can cause diseases such as West Nile and Zika in humans. This entire process, from egg hatching to adult development, can take anywhere from 1-3 weeks.

 
 

Photo: Knox County Health Department

Prevent and Protect

The image to the left is a component of Prevent & Protect: Mosquito Control Messages for Your Community, where you can also access school lesson plans on mosquitoes and a mosquito control communications campaign.