Marietta Property Owners' Ultimate Mosquito-Control Guide

How much do you know about mosquitoes? Do you know that mosquitoes don't live on blood but feed on nectar and plant sap? Are you aware that only female mosquitoes take a blood meal for the purposes of reproduction? Do you know that all mosquitoes do not carry all viruses, or that some mosquitoes species don't carry any viruses? When it comes to defending yourself from mosquito-borne diseases, the first step is mosquito identification. But that's a little difficult. The mosquitoes in America that carry diseases are sometimes difficult to distinguish from those that don't. We have a jam-packed guide for you today. We're going to start by helping you distinguish dangerous mosquitoes, talk for a moment about why this is important, and then share six eco-friendly tips that will help you keep mosquitoes away from your yard. If you're not into learning about mosquitoes and you just want to get rid of mosquitoes, hop over to our contact page for professional mosquito pest control in Marietta. We offer one-time service as well as seasonal mosquito reduction that address all the mosquitoes in your yard.

How To Identify A Mosquito

There are primarily three kinds of mosquitoes that are a concern in the United States and in our Marietta service area. That's not bad, considering there are over 100 different types of mosquitoes in the country. Let's look at these three and discuss identifying traits.

Anopheles: The most dreaded mosquitoes in the world (but not here in the U.S) is the Anopheles sp. because they spread malaria. Some experts estimate more than 750,000 deaths are linked to malaria. While not endemic to our country and only rarely occurring in outbreaks, we don't have to fear these mosquitoes too much. But it is wise to be cautious. You never know when one has bitten a traveler from a country where malaria is endemic. These mosquitoes are brownish and have two palps that are the same length as their proboscis, which is the pointy needle-like mouth part. It is hard to tell Anopheles apart from other mosquitoes by coloration alone. Fortunately, they have a characteristic that makes them stand out. While other mosquitoes will sit on your skin with their back parallel, these mosquitoes lean forward and their back is at an angle. The problem with using this to distinguish them is that they have to land on you. 

Culex: There are a few species of Culex mosquitoes but they're all similar to each other. The concern with these pests is that they spread the most dangerous mosquito-borne viruses endemic to our country. If you're not familiar with the word endemic, it means they're found in local animal populations and are localized—West Nile virus being the worst. These mosquitoes are gray with white, green, and silver, or iridescent blue scales.  

Aedes: There are primarily two species of Aedes. The aegypti are tropical and subtropical mosquitoes. The albopictus are found in colder states. Both are implicated in the spread of viral outbreaks, such as Zika virus, dengue fever, yellow fevers, chikungunya, and more. These are the easiest of the three to identify. Aedes mosquitoes are a contrasted black and white coloration and banding on the legs.

We realize you're not going to want to spend too much time looking at a mosquito that has landed on you, but a quick two second inspection is likely all that is needed. If you're familiar with the identifying traits, you may distinguish what is biting you.

Along with visual identification, you may use an app on your smartphone to identify mosquitoes. These apps listen to the sound mosquitoes make and let you know what mosquitoes you've recorded. That's some cool tech. Plus, along with finding out what mosquitoes are biting you, you'll help scientists track dangerous mosquitoes and analyze their distribution zones.