How to Manage Pests

Mosquitoes

Managing Mosquitoes on the Farm Section 3: You May Be Raising the Mosquito That Is Biting You! Mosquito Prevention Published 2005 Sections of this publication:

Why You Should Care About Mosquito Control West Nile Virus You May Be Raising the Mosquito That Is Biting You! Mosquito Prevention Three Basic Principles of Mosquito Prevention Natural Waters Associated With Farms Managing Stagnant Waters Created by Agricultural Activities Irrigated Fields for Upland Crops Mosquito-Free Irrigated Pastures Rice Dairy Operations Biological and Chemical Mosquito Control Common Mosquitoes and Their Life Cycles Acknowledgments For More Information

If you minimize mosquito production on your farm, you protect your family, friends, and employees from disease and keep your livestock healthy. You can't grow crops or livestock without water. You can't grow mosquitoes without water, either—young mosquitoes hatch and develop in water before they mature into flying insects. Although some areas experience problems with mosquitoes flying in from longer distances, locally grown mosquitoes usually cause the most problems. Many mosquitoes stay in the general area where they matured, especially if there is water and animals to feed upon.

Water

Mosquitoes breed in standing water, that is, any body of water without turbulent flow. They do best in weedy ponds and stagnant water that collects in ditches, fields, or containers, and they require water for just 4 to 14 days to mature (but sometimes longer in cold weather).

Managing Mosquitoes on the Farm, UC ANR Publication 8158 Sharon P. Lawler and Gregory C. Lanzaro, Department of Entomology, University of California, Davis

Copyright © 2005 The Regents of the University of California, Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources. All rights reserved.