On a quiet summer evening, near a lake or stream, or maybe over a path in the forest, you probably watched mosquitoes swarm. By the way, this randomly moving mass consists of only male mosquitoes. Swarms have been described in science that measured up to 5 m wide and 7 m high.
How a male mosquito mates
The whole swarm of mosquitoes are waiting for the female to be nearby. This space-consuming way of mating is called "eurygamy", that is, mating at the time of swarming. Males, in an amount of up to 100,000 individuals, jostle, making ringing wings, which attract females. The first one who manages to grab a curious person who has flown into the swarm impregnates her right in the air.
But an urban male mosquito mates without a swarm. This is called "stenogamy" and allows the urban insect to breed in basements, which are usually limited in size.
How bloodlust wakes up
The male mosquito, ready to mate, detects the female with the help of antennae covered withmicrohairs, they serve as hearing organs for him, capable of picking up the sounds made by the female. The squeak of a mature female causes more mosquito activity than the sounds produced by a young individual.
From the moment fertilization occurs, the female mosquito begins to urgently need blood. Without it, she will not be able to lay eggs and breed full-fledged offspring. Therefore, the female is looking for an object for feeding. A hungry fertilized individual can sense the presence of a warm-blooded object at a distance of up to 3 km! And in one go, the bloodthirsty "lady" can drink a portion more than her original weight.
Why is the male mosquito a vegetarian?
Probably it's not news to anyone that only females bite us. And without exception, all species of mosquitoes involve males that feed on nectar, pollen, or not at all. For example, like bell mosquitoes, which live only 3 days and do not even have a mouth opening. And although they itch just as disgustingly as their bloodsucking young ladies, they do no harm to a person.
By the way, if for some reason a female mosquito cannot find blood, she becomes a forced vegetarian. True, she also loses her ability to lay eggs.
Protein found in the blood of a human or animal gives strength to mosquitoes in order to lay eggs that can produce he althy mosquitoes. The male mosquito, whose photo you see in this article, does not need such a solid feed. He has enough carbohydrates to enjoy life.
And whydo you need them?
Do not rush to reason: “They bite painfully, they squeak disgustingly - they interfere with life!” Well, yes, they interfere to some extent. Mosquitoes - females and males - seem to be created in order to annoy people and animals. And they carry diseases too! But the disappearance of this important link in the natural food chain would lead to incredible cataclysms.
For example, in places with harsh climatic conditions, sometimes only mosquito larvae serve as food for a huge number of birds. The disappearance of a mosquito is the death of birds … And then, probably, there is no need to tell. In addition, on their bodies, these insects carry so many trace elements necessary for the growth of both blades of grass and giant trees that arguments about the need for a mosquito in our world move aside. There is nothing superfluous in nature!
