IT’S MOSQUITO SEASON

Mosquitoes.  They are event spoilers. With the hot temperatures comes an explosion in the mosquito population, sending people scrambling for the bug spray and the citronella candles.  Many call in the professionals, companies that kill and ward off mosquitoes and other pests so that backyard barbecues can go on without the guests doing the “mosquito dance.”

Mosquitoes date to the dinosaurs and have played an important part in every ecosystem since giant reptiles ruled the world, acting as food sources for birds, frogs, fish, and others, while also acting as pollinators.  Their larvae rid water of detritus, helping to clean the environment.

The proboscis of the mosquito has long been studied by scientists.  Its shape has been used to design better needles for medical uses, as well as insertion guides for electrode placement in the brain. 

Mosquitoes have survived meteors, ice ages, mass extinctions, and the pest control guy. Those electric zappers you hear buzzing around the subdivision don’t attract mosquitoes at all.  In fact, the zapper is zapping bugs that eat mosquitoes. Mosquitoes are attracted to carbon dioxide, not light, so it is your very breathing which brings those pests to the picnic.

 <SMACK> Nice!  One less mosquito in the world. 

So, if you are feeling bad about eliminating the breeding grounds around your deck and shed, we are pretty sure the species is going to survive without the water in your basement window well. 

Have a great summer… and may it be mosquito-free.

Eric Schlehlein, 06/23/2020