The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-06-25
Romance of Mosquito Campaign
By GERTRUDE SEYMOUR Exclusive Service the Survey Press Bureau)

empty shell-a pest, but also a mystery. During midsummer heat, the life cycle is completed in about 10 days. That
 means a whole new generation of mos quitoes every fortnight.
 Your newborn Culex seems a feeble
 thing, as yet. It does not try to fly. You can study it with your pocket mag
 nifier. Has it, clearly, stripes on it's legs? Does it stand hump -shouldered, its
 anterior legs bent to form an MP It is doubtless one of your Culex friends troublesome, but as far as yet known. harmless Should it stand on straight legs, proboscis and body all in one straight line, you know it for an Ano- pheles, malaria-bearer. Does it sing forth cheerily, brave buzz. high in pitch? Another token of Culex. The Anopheles has a lower, quieter note-an interesting parallel, says How ard, to the bass voice of the villain in the piece. And finally, if your speci- men displays feathered antenae and other decorative touches, you recognize these as
 part of natures compensation to the short-lived, usually harmless, not always indispensable male.
 THE INCONSPICUOUS MALE
 
 he has been known to bite, but only rare- ly, since his proboscis is softer than the
 females and cannot usually penetrate
 human skin. But as a balance to the blood-thirstier tendencies of his spouse, he lives long enough to develop a dis tinct taste for alcoholic beverages and has been often found lowering around the
 mouth of recently opened beer or wine bottles, and exhibiting every sign of dis sipation.
 The female of all species contributes more to race history and has, in insur- ance parlance a greater expecation of life Bite and die is long since dis proved adage In the yellow fever tests in Cuba, Finley and the army men mo- tlced that the same mosquito bit again and again, living for several weeks, or, in summer, for an indefinite time. She lays her eggs in moist places, pre- ferably, in most ingenious hiding places The leaves of pitcher plants, holows in trees, broken bottles and empty cans on the scrap heap, fire buckets in the very halls of hotel, empty flower vases, hoof prints and wheel tracks-all have been utilized by the persistent breeder. Eaves and gutters are ideal for her purpose. As one mosquito may lay from 50 to 500 eggs at once, the importance of ascer- taining every possible breeding place is obvious-and of making 1t uninha bitable. Dry eggs may live for months, develop ing when water again reaches them. They may even be carried far afield by the wind.
 With so many inconspicuous breeding places nearby. the old theory that mos quitoes are blown in from long dis tances," is more labor saving than scien- tific. Until lately, human indifference to backyard conditions and to nearby swamp areas has made special exertion on the mosquitoes part unnecessary Sanitation, like charity, begins at home. It may, however, very well learn lessons from abroad; and into northern extermination work are introduced many features of the tropical campaigns-what Le Prince calls the attack by filing" the attack by drainage" and that by oiling.
 A letter from southern mill town says that before the anti-malarial mosquito work the company averaged 65 looms standing idle daily for lack of weavers; after, there was abundance of help. Be- fore the campaign, 26 days of work pro- duced 2SS.04o pounds of cloth; after, 26 days work produced 316S04 pounds An interesting development in anti mosquito work is the utilization of na- tional enemies of the mosquito. In Ha- vana, small surface feeding fish were of great value in devouring the larvae as they hung at the surface, breathing. Tad | certain night birds-all are enlisted in this battle.
 Until this spring Anopheles Maculipen- his, or spotted-wing, has been held chief ly to blame for malaria. But since the opening of the year three investigators have found that another variety, the handsome A. punctipennis, may also dis tribute that interesting atom, the malarial parasite. These two varieties are &C., cording to Howard found practically everywhere in this country, from New Hampshire to Florida and New York to Oregon. A capulipennis is a permanent suburban resident of New York city, with marked preference for the ill ventilated dwellings. By it's shyness, it's terror of light, and it's low, indistinct song, it is both difficult to catch and we'll worth catching; for not until the parasite is drawn into the mosquitoes stomach does it complete the sexual phase of its exist ence and start out strengthened and null tiplied for new ravages in red human blood corpuscles. at the first bite.