Mosquito-Borne Diseases

A number of particularly serious infections are transmitted by mosquitoes and other insects. The risk of infection can be reduced by taking precautions to avoid insect bites in places where infection is likely to be present.

Below is a list of mosquitoes and their diseases, along with some additional information and links to different agencies and their information. This list is not "all inclusive", but contains an overview of some mosquitoes and the diseases they can transmit. The links are provided for informational purposes only. The agencies listed give no direct or implied endorsement of any of the Mosquito Control Trap products.

Mosquitoes and their Diseases

Aedes	Transmitted Diseases: Dengue fever Rift Valley fever Yellow fever
Aedes mosquitoes are painful and persistent biters, attacking during daylight hours (not at night). They do not enter dwellings, and they prefer to bite mammals like humans. Aedes mosquitoes are strong fliers and are known to fly many miles from their breeding sources.
Anopheles	Transmitted Diseases: Lymphatic filariasis Malaria
Anopheles mosquitoes are the only mosquito which transmits malaria to man. Anopheles quadrimaculatus is common in the eastern United States. A. freebonis is found west of the Rocky Mountains. The adult mosquitoes of both species are capable of transmitting malaria. They breed in ditches, ponds, swamps, and puddles. These mosquitoes are problems in areas where extensive irrigation of crops occurs. They enter structures to feed on humans, but, although aggressive, they are not painful biters
Culex	Transmitted Diseases: St. Louis encephalitis Japanese encephalitis Lymphatic filariasis West Nile Virus
Culex mosquitoes are painful and persistent biters also, but prefer to attack at dusk and after dark, and readily enter dwellings for blood meals. Domestic and wild birds are preferred over man, cows, and horses. Culex tarsalis is known to transmit encephalitis (sleeping sickness) to man and horses. Culex are generally weak fliers and do not move far from home, although they have been known to fly up to two miles. Culex usually live only a few weeks during the warm summer months. Those females which emerge in late summer search for sheltered areas where they "hibernate" until spring. Warm weather brings her out in search of water on which to lay her eggs.
Only female mosquitoes bite animals and suck blood; nourishment for their eggs.