San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1890-09-02
SONG OF The MOSQUITO.
Some Facts About a Very Interes-
ting Summer Creature

ting Summer Creature
From the Washington Star.
August is supposed to be Washing
toms month for mosquitoes. Happily,
however, the national is but slightly
afflicted by these pests at any time.
People go from here to seashore and
mountains to become prey to the
demoniacal little vampire that finds
congenial haunts in every part of the
known world, even to the Icy wastes
of Greenland. There are in existence
$50 species of the mosquito, the larger
kinds being found mostly in the trop-
ical regions, where everything pestif-
erous attains the utmost size. In
the Southern states some very big
varieties of mosquitoes are found. Ac-
cording to the stories told by natives,
these gallinippers are sometimes
seen sitting in rows, like snipe, along
along the fence rails by the roadside.
1t is very certain that they do grow
to be more than half an inch in body
length, and the find no difficulty in
Inflicting their bites through thick
wooden coat and flannel shirt be.
meath.
Every one feels more or less of
personal interest in the mosquito and
something about her life history can
not be otherwise than interesting.
Doubtless you are aware that 1t is
only the female which bites, the male
not being equipped with beak suit
able for the purpose. She lays her
eggs in little boat-shaped mass on
the surface of the still water and they
are Matched out into the little "wrig-
glers" that navigated the water &C
lively until they are ready to make
their appearance in the world in
fiedged condition. When the wrig-
gler considers that he has wriggled
long enough and is prepared for
graduation from water into air. 1t
comes to the surface and proceeds
quietly to eXtricate itself from its
skin. After it has accomplished this
process it uses the cast-of skin as a
raft and stands upon it out OF the
water while it dries its wings. This
Is the danger point in the mosquitoes
life, for the slightest breath of wind
that ripples the water is likely to up.
set the little raft and drown the I'M
fortunate passenger. But, no such
unhappy accident occurring, Miss
Mosquito, as soon as her wings are
dry and stiff enough to fly with,
abandons her float and fits airly
away, first, however, depositing her
eggs on top of the water, they in turn
to produce more mosquitoes. This is
an ingenious scheme on the part of
nature to prevent the possibility of
such a misfortune as the muequito's
dying out. For now that her eggs
have been laid it will not interfere
with the reproduction of the species
if Miss mosquito should chance to be
killed by well.aimed slap or other
wise.
Now, the male mosquito, realizing
that he is of no earthly use, save for
con tinuing his species, does not make
any appearance in society, but stays
In the woods or other secluded places
until he dies, which is not long be-
cause he never eats anything.
His female relatives, however,
seek inhabited dwelling and
hunt for gore. 1t does not
appear entirely certain that this
blood sucking habit of the mosquito
is an entirely normal one. Not only
is it unnecessary to the continuation
of the creatures life, but some au-
thorities imagine that a single gorge
of blood causes the death of the mos
quito for want of powers to digest it.
The mosquito has projecting from its
nose five long needles, which it
masses together in the shape of an
awl and thrusts the point into the
flesh of its victim. The five needles
thus put together form sort of tube.
through which the pest sucks up the
blood. 1t has long believed that
the mosquito introduces into
the blood, when biting, a
poisonous fluid, for the pur-
pose of making the blood m ore liquid
so that it may flow with greater free,
dom; but this has never been demon
strated scientifically, and in all prob
ability it is not true, inasmuch as no
poisonous glands have ever been
found among the animals organs.
Two of the five needles are barbed at
the ends, and it is surmised that
these may cause the irritation conse-
quent upon bite. There are plenty
of authenticated cases where human
beings have been killed by mosquito
bites. Men have been known to be
driven to commit suicide, to escape the
mosquito torture.