Every mosquito starts as an egg in the beginning and then grows to an adult. In adulthood the purpose and role of every mosquito is different depending on their gender. There is a big difference between male and female mosquito from size to flight speed. Even their feeding needs are too different.
Make mosquito does not bite .They only feed on nectar. They just swarmed around people but they rarely land.Most of us are aware that only female mosquitoes bite and suck human blood. However, there are several reasons to understand why. In this article, we shall focus on the core topic of does male mosquito bite and what kind of species get attracted to humans. Female mosquitoes not only suck human blood; they also love to feed on plants and flower nectar.
Other than female mosquitoes, there are thousands of species that are attracted to biting humans. Before we proceed, let’s understand what mosquito are.
What is a mosquito?
Mosquitoes are small insects that fly and feed on various juices, plants, and the blood of animals and humans for reproduction. Some suck blood to even survive. Most researchers consider mosquito as parasites as they survive by sucking the blood of living beings and in return, they infect the living organisms with various mosquito-borne diseases.
These mosquitoes are born with long mouth parts that help them to puncture the skin and suck blood. These mouth parts are also referred to as proboscis. It means they have six thin needles called Stylets that help them to suck human blood and animal blood.
What happens when a mosquito bites?
When a mosquito bites, it inserts some amount of saliva that
contaminates the blood. Along with saliva, they also transfer various types of viruses into the body. Some are harmless, some are mild, whereas some are life-threatening. It would be difficult to differentiate which mosquito bite is harmful in the initial stage and so mosquitoes generally are considered harmful insects
Some harmful mosquito-borne diseases include Zika, Dengue, Chikungunya, and more… Research also states that there are mosquitoes that do not stop after feeding one person; they bite several people and suck blood to satisfy one meal. This process is also referred to as sip feeding. Sip feeding is one reason why viruses infected by mosquito become contagious to several people.
Mosquito lay their eggs or hide near water bodies. When a mosquito bites, you may experience the below common symptoms:
- Redness in the skin
- Small itchy and annoying bumps
- Swelling in the surrounding area of the mosquito bite
- Mild fever
- Scar of the bite
Certain worse complications caused due to mosquito bites include:
- Malaria
- Impetigo
- Cellulitis
- Lymphangitis
- West Nile Fever, and other illnesses mentioned above
We have also discussed in our other articles how to treat mosquito bites. Let’s quickly discuss a few simple remedies to save time:
- Diluted apple cider vinegar with water can help you reduce the itchiness due to mosquito bites. All you need to do is dab it with a cotton swab on the infected area.
- A paste of baking soda to the bite and letting it dry can help settle down the mosquito bite. Let the paste dry. You can also take a warm bath mixed with baking soda.
- Epsom salt also helps in settling itchy mosquito bites. Preferably, add Epsom salt to warm bathing water.
- You can also apply ice packs to reduce swelling and redness.
- Other natural ingredients like honey, aloe vera, vinegar, and more can help you settle mosquito bites naturally.
Reasons for biting human
Just like we humans need proteins, amino acids, iron, and similar things to survive, mosquito need blood to survive. Male mosquito survive on plant fluids, juices, and animal blood. Female mosquito rely on human blood. Human blood contains iron, protein, and amino acids for female mosquito and similar bugs to develop eggs and reproduce. Thus, they suck blood.
In simple words, those bugs who can reproduce survive on human blood. Female mosquito also consume nectar from flowers and juices from plants. However, for producing eggs, they will always suck blood. On the other side, insects that do not reproduce (male mosquito) live on flowers and plants.
Female mosquito can attack humans for blood throughout the day. Thus, there is no specific time for them to attack humans. When they smell human blood, it’s a feast time for them.
Mosquitoes are considered to be one of the deadliest creatures in the world. They are also responsible to spread hundreds of diseases annually. Human blood possesses protein that is highly needed for the female to make eggs. On average, female mosquito lay about 100 eggs at once. In total, they produce about ten broods in their entire life. However, other than the scientific reasons, blood is like a healthy beverage to female mosquito. They can easily smell an able host that can give mosquito a healthy drink. 
As per a few more studies, mosquitoes that are thirsty or dehydrated tend to be more aggressive than other insects. They are on the lookout for a host to quench their thirst. By sucking more than one human’s blood, these mosquitoes are highly responsible for spreading several viruses in humans.Try to apply any mosquito repellent cream on your skin to avoid mosquito bite.
How to recognize male and female mosquito?
There is a big difference between male and female mosquito. It’s very easy to recognize them.
Size- The most important factor of difference between male and female mosquito is their size. The female size is bigger than male.
Lifespan- Male mosquito has shorter lifespan than female mosquito. Female mosquito can survive anywhere from two to four weeks. But male mosquito can only survive for a week or two weeks.
Feeding Habit- Male mosquito only eat nectar from plants and they stick to water. On the other hand female mosquito only goes where there is blood. They need human blood to reproduce also.Even they can fly mile for feeding with more speed.
Buzzing Sound- Male mosquito buzz at a lower speed as compare to female mosquito.Female mosquito beat their wings for 500 times per second and create a high pitch buzzing to attract a mate.So if it’s a very annoying buzz it would be a female mosquito.
How to protect the house from female mosquito?
Female mosquitoes are the riskiest creatures responsible in spreading dengue as they survive on blood. The core mosquito breeding areas are flower pots, still water, sink, trash cans, etc… One of the best ways to protect your house from mosquitoes is to switch to plants that these little creatures hate. For instance, planting more basil, lemongrass, mint, and neem produce an amazing aroma for humans. However, the smell of these plants is something that mosquito cannot stand.Many natural plant based mosquito repellent spray available in the market for use.
Install tools like mosquito bat,mosquito net for bed,mosquito repellent spray and take all the essential steps inside and outside your house to kill the temptations of mosquitoes. You can also get your house sanitized once in a while or at intervals at the advice of an expert so that there is cleanliness and less scope for mosquito breeding corners.