Mosquito method of ingestion
Answers
Mosquitoes are members of a group of about 3,500 species of small flies within the family Culicid (from the Latin clue meaning "gnat"). The word "mosquito" (formed by Musca and diminutive -into) is Spanish for "little fly". Mosquitoes have a slender segmented body, one pair of wings, one pair of halters, three pairs of long hair-like legs, and elongated mouthparts.
The mosquito life cycle consists of egg, larva, pupa, and adult stages. Eggs are laid on the water surface; they hatch into motile larvae that feed on aquatic algae and organic material. These larvae are important food sources for many freshwater animals, such as dragonfly nymphs, many fish, and some birds such as ducks. The adult females of most species have tube-like mouthparts (called a proboscis) that can pierce the skin of a host and feed on blood, which contains protein and iron needed to produce eggs. Thousands of mosquito species feed on the blood of various hosts — vertebrates, including mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and some fish; along with some invertebrates, primarily other arthropods. This loss of blood is seldom of any importance to the host.