Mosquitoes
Mosquitoes
Mosquito as a carrier of communicable diseases
1. Anopheles are the only mosquitoes known to spread malaria. However, not all species of Anopheles mosquitoes can transmit the disease. According to a survey in Thailand, there are about 70 species of Anopheles mosquitoes. Those transmitting malaria normally feed at night. In early evening, such mosquitoes leave their natural habitat in the forest to residential area to feed on human blood. Before attacking a victim, they will stay on the wall. After finishing their blood meal, they will land on the wall for a while before flying back to their habitat.
Normally malaria-transmitting mosquitoes prefer human blood. Only in case that they cannot find it, they may look for animal blood instead. Mosquitoes lay their eggs on the surface of stagnant water source in a forest, in a small river, or a brook. During rainy season when water collects in many places, it provides ample breeding ground for the mosquitoes. Mosquito larvae always stay at the edge of water where grass grows. During heavy rain when the water runs fast, the larvae cannot resist the current and are driven away. Therefore, during the time when heavy rain occurs more often, the number of mosquitoes are reduced.
2. House mosquitoes or Aedes Aegypti mosquitoes transmit dengue hemorrhagic fever. The disease may be found in any place where there is stagnant water that serves as a breeding ground for the mosquitoes, including water container inside a building, drain, flower vase, catchment area, bathroom, receptacle that holds water, pot saucer, etc.
This kind of mosquitoes only feed at night and prefer human blood. House mosquitoes usually look for their food inside buildings and houses where they were born, though they sometimes fly away to find victims in surrounding areas. After sucking blood, they rest on a wall or things where it is cool and dark getting ready to lay eggs on a pool of clear and stagnant water in that building.
Throughout the life cycle of Aedes Aegypti mosquitoes, they spend most of their time inside a building. That is why they are named "house mosquito”. In addition, another species of mosquito that is a carrier of dengue fever is Aedes Albopictus of which the breeding source is in natural stagnant pool with limpid water.
3. Asian tiger mosquitoes transmit elephantiasis. Their breeding ground is in a swamp full of water all year round, in which plants and trees including water lettuce, duckweed, and water hyacinth grow. In the West of the country are found forest mosquitoes, or Aedes Niveus, that are carriers of elephantiasis. Such mosquitoes live in a forest especially in a bamboo forest where water collects in bamboo stems or other parts of bamboo as well as on large leaves. Elephantiasis-transmitting mosquitoes feed at night outside the building and usually rest on a tree.
4. Encephalitis is transmitted by culex mosquitoes living in rural areas and fields where stagnant water is abundant.
