Lying under the window at night I can hear the constant buzz of mosquitos swarming on the other side of the window screen. Almost asleep I hear the buzz become louder and louder until it is next to my ear. I slap the side of my head but miss–I won’t be falling asleep until I stop that annoying buzz.
While in Bettles, Alaska this time of year, I have a nightly ritual of going around the house and killing all the mosquitos I can find–the other night there were 24 in the bedroom alone. There is satisfaction in zapping a mosquito with one of those yellow tennis racket-looking contraptions–especially when they pop and smoke. I don’t consider it cruel because their annoying buzz has kept me up many nights as they lurk just beyond my grasp.
The arctic tundra seems to be the ideal breeding ground for mosquitos. All mosquitos need is water, warmth and blood to thrive. Water is everywhere–from lakes to stagnant water in depressions smaller than a soup bowl. Mosquitoes don’t need much water and it doesn’t have to exist for long. A mosquito egg can hatch into larvae in as little as 48 hours and develop into an adult in four to seven days.
Did you forget about that old tire behind the shed that filled with water during the last rainstorm? It won’t be long before a female mosquito lays eggs there and not just a few eggs, a female can lay between 100 and 300 eggs at a time. All the female needs is a blood meal to produce the eggs. Most mosquitos will stay within one mile of their hatching site but some will range up to 20 miles.
As for warmth, the midnight sun rarely lets the temperature drop below 50 degrees Fahrenheit, which is perfect for mosquitoes. Since mosquitos are cold-blooded, they thrive in warmer temperatures. They function best around 80 degrees, become lethargic around 60 degrees and are mostly inactive below 50 degrees.
Though they still seem to find me quickly in the morning when the temperature is hovering in the 50’s. The heat and carbon dioxide my body emits is easily detected by mosquitos. Since mosquitos can see in infrared, they can see a warm human body against a background of cooler trees and make a bee-line for it. They can also smell the carbon dioxide I exhale up to 100 feet away!
There is no escaping mosquitos–not for humans, not for any animal. While it may seem mosquitos gravitate towards people, some species of mosquitos actually prefer cows, horses, dogs, squirrels, birds and even frogs. Unfortunately mosquitos don’t have a main predator, such as lynx with snowshoe hares, instead they are a minor food source for numerous species, such as birds, fish, bats and other insects like dragonflies. Not even the dozens of swallows nesting around the airport can eat enough of them to put a dent in the population.
With a rapid reproduction rate and a lifespan ranging from three to 100 days, mosquitos can easily adapt to the changing conditions of the seasons. Some mosquito eggs can lie dormant for up to five years waiting for water to refill a depression. And when cold weather strikes, mosquitos are capable of overwintering in any life stage (depending on the species). No matter what conditions prevail during the summer, mosquitos will be ready to annoy you with their buzz.
Lying under the window at night I can hear the constant buzz of mosquitos swarming on the other side of the window screen. Almost asleep I hear the buzz become louder and louder until it is next to my ear. I slap the side of my head but miss–I won’t be falling asleep until I stop that annoying buzz.
