 | Urban Integrated Pest Management |
| Return to: Mosquitoes and West Nile, Tucson, 2005 There are three key species in Tucson that account for the vast majority of mosquitoes. Wetland Species Two of these species are good vectors (can transmit) West Nile: Culex quinquefasciatus and Culex tarsalis. Both of these species are typically present in wetland areas. Culex quinquefasciatus is a non-descript brown color and is also called the "common house mosquito". Links to some pictures are given below: New South Wales Arbovirus Surveillance and Vector Monitoring Program has several good shots of Culex quinquefasciatus. Culex tarsalis has distinct black/white bands on its legs; also it has a white ring on the proboscis (part of the mosquito that actually penetrates you). See South Dakota State University mosquito website for some good shots of Culex tarsalis. Residential Area Species Culex quinquefasciatus is also common in residential areas where it can breed in plugged down-spots and eves-troughing, in discarded coffee cups and other liquid-holding debris, unmaintained swimming pools, bird baths, and the like. The third species, Aedes aegypti is common in residential areas. It is not a good vector for West Nile. It has striped legs and a general "pepper" type appearance. Like Culex quinquefasciatus is readily breeds in human-made environments and will come indoors to lay eggs in vases and saucers under plants, etc.. It mainly targets below the knees; it's the notorious 'ankle-biter' in town. In addition to mosquitoes, you may see many mosquito-like things. These will typically be chironomids and are not blood-feeders. There are some awesome pictures of chironomids at K P Brodersen's web site on chironomids. If you look closely, you can see that they lack the proboscis of mosquitoes. Sometimes they can literally form a cover over a window (if a light is on) or on other light-colored surfaces. Enjoy exploring! Copyright © The University of Arizona. All rights reserved. June 8, 2005 Mail to: willott at u.arizona.edu |