What Happens to Mosquitoes Come Winter? - MosquitoNix®
After a long, hot, bug bite-filled summer, you may wonder, when do mosquitoes go away? Unless you live in Antarctica or Iceland, mosquitoes will be around once the temperatures creep back up, so in that sense, they are never gone for good.
When the weather cools down, mosquitoes don't just magically disappear. How do mosquitoes survive winter? Here's everything you should know about mosquitoes in winter and if there is anything you can do to have a comfortable spring without the threat of itchy bug bites.
The Goldilocks Principle
Remember the children's story, where the blond girl breaks into the bear family's home and establishes her preferences by tasting bowls of porridge to find the one that is just right? Mosquitoes also prefer a particular temperature at which they thrive: 80 degrees. When the temperatures dip below 60 degrees, they can grow lethargic, and when the average temperatures hover around 50 degrees, they will go dormant or die off.
A Long Winter's Nap
Male mosquitoes, with a short lifespan of about a week, are not in it for the long haul. Surviving winter is up to the females and their eggs. Without water or your blood as food, female mosquitoes go into a diapause state, where their biological processes can slow down for several months. When the temperatures start to climb, some adult females come roaring back to life, and boy, are they hungry!
What about the other stages? Can unborn or underdeveloped mosquitoes survive the cold? During winter, the eggs and larvae can stay in moist soil or icy waters and resume their life cycle when the weather is more hospitable.
Cold-Blooded Killers
Don't wait until the warmer weather to do something about mosquito control. MosquitoNix® can help you develop a strategy to eliminate mosquito habitats. By winterizing your property, you can stop these biting pests from coming back in the spring and summer.
Contact us today to learn more about our services and how we keep you comfortable through effective mosquito prevention. With our Misting Systems installed before mosquitoes return in the spring and summer, you'll be ahead of the mosquito-fighting game.
Mosquito Cold Weather FAQ
◾️ What temperature kills mosquitoes?
Many mosquitoes will die off when the thermostat drops below 50 degrees Fahrenheit. However, other types of mosquitoes will only go dormant or reduce their activity come colder weather.
◾️ Do mosquitoes hibernate?
While freezing temperatures can kill adult mosquitoes, it's a common misconception that they all die in the winter. Some mosquitoes hibernate during the winter months when the temperatures fall, similar to hibernating mammals, like bears.
◾️ Do both female and male mosquitoes hibernate?
Only the females hibernate. Male mosquitoes have short lifespans and die after mating, which means they don't usually make it to winter. Females mosquitoes, however, can hibernate for up to six months.
◾️ What happens to mosquito eggs during the winter?
Mosquitoes will lay their eggs in the fall, either before dying or hibernating during the winter. Females can lay up to 300 eggs in damp locales, including standing water, plants, moist soil and containers holding as little as a half-inch of water. When the weather warms up again - and with a bit of rain - the eggs that survived the winter will hatch and start their lifecycle.
◾️How can you stop mosquitoes before they hatch?
Since mosquitoes lay eggs in moist areas and containers that hold water, check damp areas outside your home or business for eggs. Clean up these areas before warmer weather arrives. By removing wet spots and water-holding receptacles from your property, you can cut down on the number of mosquitoes that will hatch in the spring and summer.
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