Deinocerites Mosquito

Facts about Deinocerites Mosquitos, the Deinocerites mosquito belongs to the tribe, Culicni of a sub family of mosquitoes known as Culicinae. The mosquito genus consists of eighteen mosquito species, which are further divided in various sub-genera including Liria and Navarro. The Deinocerites (die-no-sir-i-tees) mosquito typically resembles the Culex mosquito although the former usually have longer antennae.

Habitat and Geographical distribution

The Deinocerites Mosquito geographic ranges include regions of the Bahamas, the Greater Antilles and Florida. Some of the varieties also live in the coastal areas located in Central America from parts of Bocas del Toro Province in Panama to Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico. The Deinocerites Mosquito is usually found occurring in the upper elevations of the grassy salt marshes and mangrove swamps located along the east coast of Florida extending north to St. Johns County. However, the Deinocerites Mosquito is not popular around the west coast parts of Florida. The Deinocerites Mosquito often inhabits ponds, rivers, marshy areas, medium sized to large burrows, post-holes, crab-holes, tree-holes, rock-holes, and several artificial containers.

Visual characteristics of Deinocerites Mosquito

Most mature Deinocerites adult mosquito has similar features as the Culex mosquito. However, the Deinocerites Mosquito usually has long sized antennae than the proboscis. It has extremely short maxillary palpi with long first flagellomere. The larva of the Deinocerites Mosquito has a wide capsule- shape head, which widens at the base of the antennae and has hairy lateral lobes at the mandibles. Its pecten spines are often trifid or bifid with widely separated ventral sclerites and dorsal on the saddle of segment X.

Feeding of Deinocerites Mosquito

The adult Deinocerites mosquito often remains less active during daylight hours and spends most of their time in the huge burrows. At night or immediately after sunset, they often leave their habitats to look for food. Though its feeding habits are not well established, it is known the Deinocerites Mosquito generally feed on a blood of a variety of hosts including several animal types, toads, birds, toads, lizards and humans.

Reproduction of Deinocerites Mosquito

Juvenile Deinocerites female mosquitoes are often sexually receptive to males. The males initiate mating long before the females are free of the pupal case. The Deinocerites Mosquito usually spend time on water surface exhibiting a pupal attendance behavior. It is important to note that females of other species do not mate for several days or weeks following their emergence. However, the males of the Deinocerites Mosquito have long antennae with less sound enabling them to collect fimbrillae and more mechanoreceptive sensilla and olfactory allowing them to locate the female pupae.

It is important to note that the Deinocerites Mosquito males are able to differentiate between a female pupa and a male’s, particularly during the last hours before eclosion. The Deinocerites Mosquito males then attaches its tarsal claw of the foreleg to the females pupa’s trumpet and leaving the other legs in order to drive away other males from their female territories. The pair can remain together for approximately over thirty minutes. Pupal attendance typically occurs in an individual mosquito.

Danger of Deinocerites Mosquito

The Deinocerites mosquito can be able to transmit certain viruses including St. Louis equine encephalitis and the Venezuelan viruses although they are not prime pests of human beings. The Deinocerites Mosquito play little or no role in the transmission of pathogens to humans.