South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1918-07-16
By Rene Bache.
YCW far can a mosquito fiy7

- TOW far can a mosquito fly
RI n Is a mighty important question,
- and until now nobody has been able
20 answer It
the answer IS that GERS species OF
mosquitoes are able to fly fortJ miles on a
calm day. II helped by wind. they may fly
100 miles
Il f. long way to go for bite. but the
"szeet@ Is hungry insect
Recent Investigations have proved that
two species OF Jersey mosquitoes-one OF
them the famous -gallinipper." with striped
iegs-hsVe 9, migratory habit. Breeding ex.
clusively IN the salt marshes along the
coast. they ny inland thirty or even forty
miles. seeking blood.
They can accomplish this fight BY mere
strength OF wing. though an easterly breeze
viii accelerate their travel. Thus the pop
ulations OF many inland cities and towns
are in the Summer time assailed by swarms
of seashore mosquitoes. so numerous as far
20 outnumber all species locally produced.
This IS very discouraging. The local
production OF mosquitoes may be checked
by ditching and draining or by other
meansI but how Is Il possible TO deal with
ravenous flocks that come from acir?
Just TO find out how far mosquitoes can
ny, or migrate with the aid OF favoring
winds. Professor S. O. Ball OF the
Massachusetts, Agricultural College. re-
Gently spent month at the Rebecca shoal
Light Station, which stands out in the
ocean on a small bank that is q submerged
part OF the Florida Reef II is a wooden
house squattins like a huge spider over
the water. the legs Of the spider being
represented By iron framework bolted
into the rock
Beneath the house is ~ feet OF water.
The nearest land is the Dry Tortugas.
twelve miles due west Key West is
forty-eight miles 10 the east The nearest
point on the mainland OF Florida is Cape
Sable. 100 miles northeast Cuba is
ninety-fve miles distant, on the south
Between Re0ecca ShOal and Key West
several keys OF the Florida Reef inter
vene. or these the largest and nearest
are the Marquesas group. twentyfour
miles 10 the east, and largely covered
with mangTove swamps, which breed
mosquitoes by millions.
Professor Ball made business OF catch
ing and counting the mosquitoes that ar
rived az the light station He got most of
them with a hand net. When the wind
blew from the west he could reckon upon
8 few. which came presumably from the
Dry Tortugas. When It blew from the
east there were sure 10 be some, most
likely from the Marquesas
But II was the winds that blew hard
and continuously from the north or south
that brought the insects IN fiocks. Ii was
obvious that under such conditions they
could not come from the east or west, and
60 II was manifest that they must have
been blown ACROSS from the coast OF
Florida IN the one case and from Cuba IN
the ether.
Whenever q strong wind blew from the
south mosquitoes in large numbers began
20 appear AZ the light station ten hours
later. The distance from the Cuban coast
being ninety-fve miles, they must have
travelled about ten miles an hour When It
blew hard and continuously from due
north considerably more time elapsed be-
fore the advance guard OF the inevitable
fOcks arrived. Why Probably because
they came all the way from Tampa, $50
miles up the west coast OF Florida. that
point being directly north Of Rebeeca
6hOaL