By: Sarah Adams
Member of the Big Country Master Gardeners
I took the Entomology Advanced Training last year. The class took place over the course of two months for four hours a week and there was a lot of information coming at us fast. (That is code for this was an intimidating class and I don’t feel entirely prepared to be a “Specialist” in this area.) In order to wrap my arms around it all, I decided to take this new information and break it down into bite-sized pieces so that I can begin to get a handle on it. I am going to start a “Bug of the Month” article series throughout 2024.
I will begin with Mosquitos. Mosquitos get a bad rap and they deserve it! Surprisingly, they actually do provide some benefits to our gardens and outdoor spaces, but I am getting ahead of myself. First and foremost, mosquitos are in the Animal Kingdom, Phylum Arthropoda, Class Insecta, and the Order Diptera. Insects within the Class Insecta have three body segments: the head, the thorax, and the abdomen. They have 3 pairs of legs each of which are located on the thorax, and they have wings. Mosquitos have long legs, scales on their wings, and – most notably – piercing-sucking mouthparts.
Mosquitos are in the category of “Insects of Medical Importance” primarily because of the diseases they carry. According to the US Centers for Disease Control, the mosquito is the world’s deadliest animal spreading diseases such as West Nile virus, Zika, and malaria. Interestingly, only female mosquitos bite for blood and they do this because they need the protein from blood to produce eggs. Because mosquitos are key to the transmission of diseases, people and governments place a high priority on the reduction of the mosquito population.
This article was inspired because I heard someone say that they hoped we would get a good freeze this year so that the mosquitos won’t be so bad this summer and I wondered if that was a true statement. It turns out that the answer is “maybe a little.”
A mosquito typically grows from an egg to an adult in 4 – 14 days. A female mosquito can live for up to a month while male mosquitos live for approximately 10 days. A freeze can reduce the population of live mosquitos, although mosquitos will seek warmth and some will survive the freezing temperatures, particularly if it is just a quick freeze. However, a freeze will not have much effect on the mosquito eggs. Once a mosquito egg is laid it is resistant to freezing temperatures, it will stay dormant until the temperature warms up. Once the temperatures heat up, the eggs will hatch and start the lifecycle all over again. Further, our summers have been warmer than usual which will actually speed up the reproductive cycle and speed up their metabolism which will lead to an increase in the mosquito population.
But did you know that mosquitos are pollinators? Their primary food source is flower nectar. As stated above, only females need blood and only when they are laying eggs. All mosquitos carry pollen from flower to flower, thereby, pollinating many of our flowers. Further, mosquitos are part of the food chain for dragonflies, hummingbirds, and spiders, which are typically more desirable to have than mosquitos. I am not proposing that we make mosquitos welcome in our outdoor spaces! However, I am proposing that we keep in mind that when we attempt to reduce the population of any one insect that there are unintended consequences.
The bottom line is that these mosquitos are not going anywhere, so we will have to learn to live with them. Remember to protect yourself with mosquito spray and wear protective clothing when you go out to the garden! Also keep in mind that if you spray pesticides to reduce your mosquito population that the pesticide doesn’t just kill mosquitos, it will likely affect many insects including bees and butterflies. So, try and reduce your mosquito population by reducing standing water around your outdoor spaces because this is where most, if not all, of the mosquitos that live in our area lay their eggs. Also, when you are outside, try running a fan at ground- or a lower-level so that the mosquitos will have trouble finding you and if they do find you it will be difficult for them to fly against the breeze to bite you. There are also many scents that you could try to repel the mosquitos but I have not had luck with any of them yet!
If you have any questions, call the Taylor County Extension Office at 325-672-6048 or email us at mgardeners@yahoo.com. We hope you visit bcmgtx.org for information on all Big Country Master Gardener events, like us on BCMGA Facebook, and check out training presentations on BCMGA YouTube. We are here to help you.
