Know Your Enemy: Mosquitoes

History of the Famous Biting Fly

The word mosquito actually means “biting fly”.  Where did these biting flies come from?  Mosquitoes were around in the Jurassic era. Ancient mosquitoes were three times larger than today’s mosquitoes.  Scientists believe they originated in South Africa and spread to the rest of the world.

There are more than 2,700 species of mosquitoes and 13 genera that live in the United States!  Of these 13 genera, most mosquitoes belong to three:

1. Aedes have abdomens with pointed tips.  They are referred to as “floodwater” mosquitoes because flooding is important to hatch their eggs.  They travel long distances and up to 75 miles per hour.  Beware of these mosquitoes in the early evening, their bites are painful!
2. Anopheleses breed in fresh water.  They include several species including the dreadful common malaria mosquito that spreads in humans.
3. Culex breed in still water, their abdomens have blunt tips.  They are weak fliers and live for a short while during summer.  Their bite is painful, but luckily for us, these prefer the bite of a bird rather than humans.

The Structure of Mosquitoes

To better understand our enemy we must know what the biting fly is made up of.

There are three basic body parts:

1. Head: this is where the sensors are and the biting apparatus.  The head has two eyes and antennae to sense chemicals and the mouth called the palpus for males and the proboscis for females.
2. Thorax:  this is where their two wings and six legs attach,  thorax contains muscles for flying, the heart and nerve cells.
3. Abdomen: contains the digestive and excretory organs.

Gender Roles

Not every mosquito is out to get you, only the females are a threat to humans!

• Female mosquitoes bite humans and animals to recieve protein.  The protein helps lay eggs, bringing more of these blood-sucking mosquitoes into the world.
• A female has ridged proboscis to peirce human skin.  Her bite usually goes undetected until the itchiness begins.
• Male Mosquitoes are smaller than Females
• Only the female mosquitoes make that annoying mosquito sound

Avoid being a Target

Mosquitoes are more attracted to women than to men. Preferrably Blondes.

• Mosquitoes aim for moving targets
• They target people in dark clothing, so keep those bright colors on!
• Mosquitoes purify the blood in their systems after a bite and leave a small puddle of urine on the victims skin.  Notice when you first get bit, there is a small wet spot circling the bite.
• Mosquitoes are prone to attacking people during the full moon.

Unfortunately Mosquitoes carry many diseases one being the West Nile Virus which has lead to over 3,700 deaths in the United States since 1999, 1,300 in just this last year.

Dont take the risk of becoming ill from these blood-suckers; protect yourself in a healthy manner with our all natural oils that make up our products for less than $2.00.  Our scientists took these mosquito facts into consideration when designing the SUPERBAND, BUGBUTTON, and MOSQUITO ELIMINATOR.

Avoid the enemy: stay tuned for part two of Know Your Enemy!

Stock up on your all natural insect repelling products!  Check out our products page today!

http://www.bugbutton.com/products/

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