Mosquitoes: World’s Most Wanted Public Enemies  

September 13, 2019


They are the world’s most wanted. Their kind is responsible for the murder of hundreds of billions, or perhaps trillions, of human beings all over the world throughout history. They took more lives than all of the wars in history combined, and it is not even close. They are generally regarded as the most dangerous creatures to ever grace the planet. People should do well to stay away from them and are fighting back. They are the mosquitoes. 

If you see these mass murderers around your house, it is important that you get rid of them at once.  Seek and destroy these mosquitoes with the help of Go-Forth Pest Control if you are ready to get rid of mosquitoes.

What Makes Matters Worse Is That They May Be Getting Immune To DEET

DEET - or N.N-diethyl-meta-toluamide, is the most common active ingredient in mosquito repellents. It is a yellow oil meant to be applied onto the skin or clothing to provide protection against insects like mosquitoes, ticks, fleas, and other biting insects. An estimated ⅓ of the entire United States population use DEET for protection. It is believed that it works because mosquitoes simply do not like its smell, rather than killing them. It is considered safe for use by humans, which explains its popularity.

Unfortunately, there are now increasing concerns that mosquitoes are becoming more resistant to it. 

Scientists conducted a study at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine about the effectiveness of DEET, and whether mosquitoes can develop an immunity to its effects. To learn more about it, researchers used the species Aedes Aegypti, known to transmit dengue fever and yellow fever.  These mosquitoes were offered a human arm covered with DEET. The DEET worked, as the mosquitoes were repelled by it. Then they tried it a second time a few hours later but found out that DEET was not as effective as a few hours earlier. The same group of mosquitoes that were initially turned off with the arm was no longer repelled. They were simply no longer as sensitive to the chemicals as with their initial foray.  

With this study, researchers concluded that mosquitoes evolve very quickly. And we have to find newer and more effective ways to combat these murderers.  

What Are Mosquitoes?

There are as many as 3,000 species of mosquitoes, but only three are responsible for the spread of the diseases: Aedes, Anopheles, and Culex. Its Scientific name is Culicidae.  

Mosquitoes are tiny, somewhat fragile-looking insects. Its size is about .125 mm to .75 inches and weighs about 0.000088 oz. They have a slim, jointed body. They are equipped with a pair of wings each; they have six legs; prolonged mouthparts; and antennae attached to their heads. The mouths of the mosquitoes are called proboscis. The proboscis is described as needle-like mouthparts that they use to pierce the skin to find blood vessels. Their antennae, on the other hand, contain proteins to help them find their next victim. These proteins also help them find which puddle of water contains enough nutrients to support their larvae. Mosquitoes have poor eyesight and rely on scents to find their host. They feed on human or animal blood. That is how they are able to spread diseases. Mosquitoes are very slow flyers too and do not get very far.

The mosquitoes life cycle starts from being an egg, larva, pupa, and adult. Female mosquitoes lay their eggs on the surface of standing water. Female mosquitoes love to breed on the water surface that has become stagnant for at least a week. Mosquitoes can live from 2 weeks up to as long as 6 months.

Mosquitoes are identified as the most dangerous creatures on the planet. Each year, millions of people die of diseases caused by mosquito bites. It is said that more people have been killed by mosquitoes than all of the wars in history combined. They can often be found on items that can hold water for a long time, like clogged gutters, old tires, water containers, jars, old cans, clogged gutters, old tires, neglected birdbaths, swimming pools, and any similar items. Inside the house, they like to stay in the bedroom, the kitchen, and the bathroom.

Mosquitoes cannot clearly see their potential hosts because they have poor eyesight. They rely on the carbon dioxide emitted by humans or animals to home in on them. They also use scent to help them find a host.  

How They Transmit The Disease

Mosquitoes spread such dangerous diseases like dengue fever, malaria, yellow fever, and West Nile fever.

Mosquitoes do their damage in a variety of ways. Parasites make themselves at home inside the stomach of the female mosquitoes. As the female sucks blood, the parasites then shifts to this new host. The parasites then would cause the host to be sick. In other cases, it would be the host that has the parasite and when the mosquito feeds on the infected host, the virus enters the mosquito. The mosquito then moves to another human for its next blood meal and infects the next person through its saliva.  

Only female mosquitoes bite because male mosquitoes do not have the essential mouthparts to bite and suck blood. Males can only feed on nectar. The female mosquito’s mouth has two tubes: one is for secreting enzymes that would prevent blood clotting of the host, the other tube is for sucking blood.  

Other Mosquito-borne Diseases

Of course, they cannot be considered the most dangerous creatures on earth if they transmit only dengue fever. Among the other fatal diseases they transmit are the following:  

1. Malaria - Malaria is caused by a bite from a female Anopheles mosquito. Americans get malaria due to increased travel to countries where the parasites are endemic. This disease then reaches the United States when they go back home after being bitten by an infected mosquito. If the infected person is once again bitten by another mosquito, then malaria would spread in the United States. Signs and symptoms of malaria are fever, headache, muscle aches, nausea, muscle aches, chills, and tiredness. If not treated within 24 hours, malaria can progress to severe illness and even death. Consult a doctor if you think you are infected with this disease. 

2. West Nile Fever - The most common mosquito-borne disease among Americans here in the United States is the West Nile Fever. Only 20 per cent of those infected show symptoms. These symptoms would appear after 3 days to two weeks of being bitten. Signs include mild fever, body aches, headaches, diarrhea, vision loss, numbness, body rashes, swollen lymph glands, muscle weakness, and paralysis. There are some patients who will show severe symptoms; they will have meningitis and permanent brain damage. When the central nervous system gets affected, the patient may die. People who are at high risk are those over 60 or those with medical conditions. Some tests may be prescribed to verify if you contracted the virus.

3. Yellow Fever - It is called yellow fever because of jaundice that appears in some patients. For most people who are affected, there are no symptoms. But for those who exhibit the symptoms, they have a fever, chills, severe headache, body pains, nausea, vomiting, fatigue, and weakness. The unlucky ones will progress further into a  more severe phase in a span of one day. Jaundice, high fever, dark urine, and abdominal pains will appear in more severe cases. There may be bleeding in the eyes, nose, mouth, and stomach. Death of the patient may occur after 7 to 10 days.

4. Dengue - Dengue fever is a debilitating and life-threatening disease. It is caused by one of four viruses and transmitted through the bite of the Aedes mosquito, named simply named as Dengue virus 1, 2, 3, and 4. Dengue is the number one illness and cause of death in tropical and subtropical countries. Most of these cases are in Africa, Mexico, the Pacific Islands, Taiwan, the Philippines, and Central and South America. Signs and symptoms include sudden high fever that lasts for a week, vomiting, severe headaches, difficulty breathing, a tendency to bruise easily, pain behind the eyes, nausea, skin rash, black and tarry stools, and bleeding nose or gum. As of now, there is no known cure for this disease.

Finding the best pest control management is important if you are ready to get rid of mosquitoes and want to completely eradicate these troublesome pests in your home safely and efficiently. For their pest control needs, people from North and South Carolina trust only one name: Go-Forth Pest Control.

Let Go-Forth Pest Control Take Care Of Your Pest Control Needs

Go-Forth Pest Control has excellent experience in exterminating pests like mosquitoes, flies, termites, cockroaches, rats, mice, wasps, and weevils.  We only use the latest and most advanced equipment in the business, making our service more efficient. 

Go-Forth Pest Control has been around since 1959 and has earned the trust of residents and businesses alike.  




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