Mosquitoes During The Winter

Before you know it, the warmer weather will be here, which means mosquitoes! Do mosquitoes die in the winter? Where do mosquitoes go in the winter? Mosquitoes have different strategies for spending the winter, depending on the species and the climate. Mosquitoes during the winter, overwinter as eggs; some as larvae and for many, the adult stage survive the winter.

The Asian Tiger Mosquito, can’t survive extended cold weather. In northern areas, it deposits cold hardy eggs that will make it through the winter. The eggs are deposited in the fall in moist areas and are programmed to hatch in the spring when those areas are flooded and temperatures are warmer.

Most mosquitoes survive cold winters in the adult stage in a sort of hibernating state, called diapause. After mating in the fall, the female house mosquito fattens up on nectar to have resources for the winter. Female mosquitoes during the winter nestle in animal burrows, hollow logs, tree holes, under bark, in storm sewers, shed and crawl spaces. As you can guess, in spring these females are among the very first mosquitoes looking for a blood meal so they can lay eggs.

A few mosquitoes use another strategy. They spend the winter as larvae, submerged and relatively inactive in very cold standing water. When their frigid water warms in the spring, they will complete their development.

Winter can be a good time to practice mosquito management.

• Check your yard for standing water.
• Puddles, overlooked buckets, and other sources of standing water are easier to see with the dieback of ground level vegetation.
• Clean out downspouts and roof gutters so that water doesn’t collect during spring rains.
• Flush out ponds before they are cleaned and restocked for spring.
• Early spring is a good time to add mosquito dunks to ponds and water bodies that can’t be drained. The floating cakes slowly release a bacterial agent into the water which kills mosquito larvae that have spent the winter there or that have just hatched.

The risk of mosquitoes in Clifton Park and surrounding areas is real! With cases of West Nile in and around Albany NY increasing it is important to protect your family, health and property. A combination of our mosquito service and eliminating harborage areas, Thomas Pest Services can help you reduce mosquito populations so you can take back your property. Learn more about getting rid of mosquitoes today with Thomas Pest Service’s green mosquito service for a free estimate!