(1) Anopheles

1 .anopheles sinensis 2. Anopheles sinensis 3. Anopheles minimus

4. Eight generations of Anopheles sinensis. Anopheles Heihe 6. Anopheles longicaudatus

7. Anopheles stenophylla 8. Anopheles albopictus Anopheles nigricans

10. Anopheles podophyllus 1 1. Anopheles argentinus 12. Anopheles claudius

13. Anopheles Guiyang 14. Anopheles anthropophagus 15. Anopheles street.

16. Anopheles hekanensis 17. Anopheles koreanus 18. Anopheles orientalis

19. Anopheles library 20. Large scale Anopheles 2 1. Anopheles Lin

22. Anopheles menglang 23. Anopheles giganteus subsp. Berberis 24. Anopheles giganteus subspecies Simla.

25. Anopheles minimus 26. Anopheles Michaelis 27. Anopheles Sami

28. Anopheles with beard 29. An Anopheles with a beard 30. Anopheles plains

3 1. Anopheles Aiken 32. Anopheles Bengal 33. Anopheles huadao

34. Anopheles brown 35. Anopheles clavatus 36. Anopheles interruptus

(2) Subgenus Cephalopoda

37. The unfortunate Anopheles. Anopheles striata 39. Anopheles is high in sand.

40. Anopheles chessboard 4 1. Anopheles aconiti 42. Anopheles reservoir.

43. Anopheles riverine. Anopheles jeppel 45. Anopheles minimus

46. Anopheles wallichii 47. Anopheles sessile 48. Anopheles Lloyd

49. Anopheles pallens 50. Anopheles vaginalis 5 1. Anopheles annulata

52. Anopheles Jane 53. Anopheles kava 54. Anopheles was found.

55. Anopheles vector 56. Anopheles philippinarum 57. Anopheles latiflorus

58. Anopheles plum 59. Anopheles stephensi 60. Anopheles viviparous

The Old Enemy of Mankind-Mosquitoes

Let's talk about the most familiar mosquitoes-they are actually just some blood-sucking mosquitoes. The common ones are Aedes, Anopheles and Culex (members of each genus correspond to Aedes, Anopheles and Culex). Here are some brief introductions about them. These mosquitoes not only bite and suck blood, but also are intermediate hosts of pathogens such as dengue fever, malaria, yellow fever, filariasis and Japanese encephalitis, which are really harmful to people. Of course, biting mosquitoes are far from simple. Many kinds of mosquitoes are involved in this "evil" activity, such as gorgeous mosquitoes:

Paraguay, a blood-sucking mosquito. (Photo: S. drexel)

The male of this mosquito feeds on plant juice, while the female feeds on blood. According to the antenna, male and female mosquitoes can be distinguished: the bristles on the antenna of female mosquitoes are sparse, while the rigid capillary of male mosquitoes is like a tube brush, which helps to find the position of female mosquitoes.

When Anopheles mosquitoes mate, pay attention to the difference of their antennae.

A mosquito that can't get revenge.

Among all mosquitoes, the mosquito is the most easily misunderstood. Mosquitoes are the general name of mosquitoes. They are the original species of Diptera, and their body length is generally above 1 cm. Because of its huge volume, it often causes people's panic. But in fact, this is really wrong. Adult mosquitoes only live for ten days. It doesn't eat, but absorbs some water to survive. After mating and breeding, it has completed its mission in this life.

A mosquito. (photo: Bennyboymothman)

Anopheles larvae live in plant roots, soil or water-wet tree holes and feed on plant roots and humus. They are decomposers of nature and food for many animals. Only a few species of larvae are harmful to agricultural production and urban green lawns because they feed on plant roots.

A mosquito's life has nothing to do with sucking human blood, but if it can suck blood like a mosquito, it is really a terrible thing.

"Bloodthirsty" Black Boy-Giant Mosquito

Although it is also huge, giant mosquitoes are not big mosquitoes. It is a close relative of biting mosquitoes and belongs to the mosquito family, but its size is not an order of magnitude at all, and some species can reach 3 cm in length. Despite the horror, their metallic luster is actually very good.

Large mosquito with metallic luster. (photo: bugguide.net)

The larvae of giant mosquitoes live in the water in tree holes and bamboo tubes, and the food they eat is very special-serrated. The larvae of giant mosquitoes are real gourmets. According to the experimental observation, giant mosquito larvae preyed on 106 larvae before pupation. Besides eating different species, they will kill each other. Usually only 65,438+0-2 giant mosquitoes can mature in evil places, and only a few more can be accommodated in the huge tree hole. In the animal world, the competition for houses and resources is also extremely fierce. Although I can eat so much, I am very hungry. The last larvae of the giant short-bearded mosquito can survive for more than 6 months without food.

Fortunately, although giant mosquito larvae are bloodthirsty, their adults are not interested in true blood. They feed on nectar and often appear in bamboo forests. There are only 7 species of giant mosquitoes named in China, mainly distributed in South China.

Chironomid mosquitoes that don't bite.

Chironomid adults are very similar to ordinary mosquitoes in both size and appearance. It's just that their mouthparts have degenerated and they won't bite or suck blood. And if you look closely, you will find that its tentacles are densely covered with fine hairs, and its body has no scales (mosquitoes), and its front feet keep shaking when it is still-this is the origin of the name "Chironomid".

Male chironomids can observe their degraded mouthparts. (Photo: mzephotos.com)

But more attention is paid to chironomid larvae because they occasionally appear in water pipes. The common chironomid larvae are also called "blood worms" because they contain heme. Chironomid pollution is indeed a thorny and evil problem, because even after repeated treatment in waterworks, chironomid larvae are basically eliminated, but as long as a few residual chironomid eggs enter the secondary water supply system, and the design of the secondary water supply system is unreasonable, it may bring new growth conditions to the residual chironomid eggs, which is also the main reason for the emergence of chironomid larvae in the water supply system.

Chironomid larva (Photo: virginia.edu)

Of course, it is not bad news that chironomid mosquitoes have strong reproductive ability. Chironomid larvae in natural waters are not only an indispensable part of the food chain, but also natural bait for economic aquatic animals.

Fierce vampires-midges and gnats

Both midges and gnats seem to have nothing to do with mosquitoes in their names. They belong to Ceratopogonidae and Simuliidae under Chironomidae, but they are not as friendly as their close relatives Chironomidae.

Both midges and gnats are very small. Midges are commonly known as black mosquitoes, and midges are commonly known as blackfly. They are really a pair of bloodsucking little black friends. In summer, the light is not strong, there are many plants, and bare skin can easily attract them. Midges and gnats also like to fly around people's heads in droves, which makes people very disgusted. Being bitten by midges and gnats will be more itchy and uncomfortable than being bitten by mosquitoes, and even cause dermatitis, which will take at least a few days to recover. Midges and midges can spread many diseases, so if you go out, bring mosquito repellent water containing DEET.

Blood-sucking midges (left) and gnats (right). (The pictures are from vnvip.net and seesaa.net respectively)

A dangerous vegetarian eye mushroom mosquito

Ophiopogon is the younger brother of mosquitoes, only 2-4 mm long, but when it comes to their ability to cause harm, it is not a vegetarian. They often congregate in large numbers, endangering edible fungi or vegetables. As long as the adults of Myxomycetes fly into the mushroom house, they will mate and lay eggs on the culture medium and quickly establish a big family. If the environment is suitable, Ophiopogon japonicus can complete one generation in one day, and the offspring mate and reproduce quickly, and a large number of edible fungus mycelium and culture medium are consumed, which makes mushroom farmers have a headache. Besides, maybe you've eaten it.

Like mosquitoes and scorpions that don't look like mosquitoes

Without careful observation, there are many insects that look like mosquitoes. For example, in a jungle with a good environment, you can see an insect called mosquito scorpion-it looks like a mosquito at first glance, but its two pairs of wings and body structure without a balance bar reveal its identity.

A pair of mosquitoes, scorpions, scorpions are giving gifts. The male gives the captured insects to the female as a gift to get a chance to mate. (Image from: brisbaneinsects.com)

Mosquitoes, scorpions and scorpions are long-winged insects of Insecta, which live in humid forests. They are carnivorous insects, as well as leafhoppers, fruit flies and spiders. Are their prey. Mosquitoes are also in their diet and even kill each other when food is scarce.

In the long process of evolution, the mosquito family has developed its own way to adapt to the environment, and blood-sucking mosquitoes are only a small part of it. Although their behavior is disgusting, it is also their survival strategy. It is understandable that people want blood-sucking mosquitoes to disappear, but at present this is only a good wish. If the eradication of mosquitoes will have any impact on the world, it is difficult to evaluate when this scene does not really happen. In the early Jurassic, mosquitoes appeared many years earlier than humans. Now mosquitoes still live on the same planet with us, and the struggle with mosquitoes will continue.

Finally, the mosquito classification map here and the population mentioned in this paper are all marked in blue.