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Shawn Clayton. Clayton and ClaytonReviewing the Efficacy of 20 Popular Natural Mosquito RepellentsMosquitoes can be a big problem for travelers, outdoor enthusiasts, and even homeowners. Once they get settled, they breed very quickly. Killing insects that only live for a week or two may feel like rearranging chairs on a sinking ship. However, mosquitoes are not just an annoyance. Their bites can cause significant short-term discomfort, and spread diseases that could turn into chronic conditions. …

It's always you, isn't it? The person busy swatting away buzzing backyard mosquitoes or nursing an arm full of itchy red lumps after a weekend camping trip.You're not imagining it—mosquitoes really are attracted to some people more than others.Why do mosquitoes need blood?Only female mosquitoes bite. They do it for the nutrition contained in blood, which helps develop their eggs.Mosquitoes don't just get blood from people. They're actually far more likely to get it from biting animals, birds, fr …

When his mosquitoes refuse to feed, Willem Laursen dons a pair of pantyhose.“The smell [of feet] really attracts them,” says the Brandeis University biologist, who wraps his hosiery in a ring around the insects’ blood-filled feeding discs. “When you go outside, they go straight toward your ankles.”Wild mosquitoes may harbor a seemingly insatiable thirst for blood, but their lab-grown counterparts—taken out of their natural habitats and penned in teeny, artificially lit chambers—sometimes st …

If you think you have been seeing or feeling more mozzies lately, you are not imagining it — the pests are thriving in parts of New South Wales. Key points: Recent rain and high tides have provided the ideal conditions for mosquito numbers to boomExperts are warning people not to be complacent about mosquitos protection and avoidanceMosquitos can pass on diseases they have picked up from birds and animalsThe most recent NSW Arbovirus Surveillance and Mosquito Monitoring Report found a high num …

The blood suckers evolve resistance, but their predators don't, according to a new study in Costa RicaBy Jake BuehlerPUBLISHED MAY 31, 2019INSECTICIDES IN AT least one area are not only failing to control mosquitoes, new research suggests, they’re actually allowing the blood-sucking pests to thrive—by killing off their predators.The study, published this month in the journal Oecologia, reveals a new wrinkle in how insecticides may be impacting ecosystems. Mosquitoes in the study area in Costa Ri …