In The Line Of Bite: Protecting Yourself Against Mosquitoes In Stuart

War is ugly, and we hope no one in our audience has endured the horrors of conflict. For those who have fought on behalf of our country, we thank you for your sacrifice so that we can freely live. With the advent of CGI and other technologies, audiences witness the gruesome reality of war. As you, the audience member, travel with movie characters into the battle zones, you can feel the tension and the desire to escape the line of fire and preserve your life. When under attack, you must fight back and avoid incoming bullets. 

Although there is no comparison between bullets and mosquitoes, when mosquitoes invade your Stuart property, you feel like you are in a war zone. When these biting insects are present, enjoying the evening outdoors involves suiting up, spraying down, and dodging the insects as they buzz your way. 

The good news is that you do not have to live in the mosquito line of fire when you have mosquito control in Stuart from Above and Beyond Pest Control. Our family-owned and operated company has provided a safe zone from mosquitoes for residents since 1999. Our highly-trained service technicians use advanced pest control methods and environmentally friendly products to deliver results. We use Integrated Pest Management solutions focusing on eradicating the current pest problem and on long-term solutions.

We wrote this article because we understand you are anxious to get out of the mosquito line of fire around your Stuart home. So, please keep reading to learn about our common enemy, how to respond to attacks, and what you can do to stop the current mosquito barrage and prevent future problems.

Understanding Mosquito Behavior: Insights Into Why They Bite

Fleas, ticks, and bed bugs are insects that feed on blood for survival, and it may surprise you that mosquitos do not need blood to live. Plant juices and nectar sustain mosquitoes; surprisingly, mosquitos act as pollinators during the spring season. If mosquitoes do not need blood, why do they bite?

Another shocking insight is that male mosquitoes do not bite humans or animals because they do not need blood, and their mouthparts are not strong enough to penetrate the skin. When you experience a mosquito attack, it is from a fertilized female that needs protein, amino acids, iron, and other nutrients from the blood to enable egg production. 

The most common mosquito species in the Stuart area is the culex mosquito. These pests are active at dusk and dawn in warm, moist areas. When sensors on a fertilized female's two antennae detect body heat and the presence of carbon dioxide, it lands on its victim and anchors itself using the tiny claws at the base of each of its six legs. Once it establishes itself, the female inserts a mouthpart, called the proboscis, into the skin. 

This highly complex needle consists of six stylets. Two stylets hold the skin apart as two other saw-toothed stylets cut through the skin. Once it exposes blood capillaries, it inserts the fifth stylet to draw blood. If we immediately felt a penetrating proboscis, we would swat the mosquito and end its life, so to enable it to accomplish its task, it uses the sixth needle to inject saliva. 

Mosquito saliva contains an anticoagulant to dilate the blood vessels to promote blood flow; it also lubricates the proboscis and temporarily suppresses an immune system response from its victim. During the two to five minutes it feeds, the mosquito's abdomen fills with blood. As the blood flows into its body, the mosquito filters out and releases the water, thus leaving only red blood cells, the essential nutrients it needs for egg production. Once the mosquito is full of blood, it detaches and searches for a suitable location to lay eggs while it digests the blood. 

Fertilized female mosquitoes bite when they are near potential breeding grounds. Ponds, marshes, poorly draining ditches, gutters, and water-collecting items provide perfect locations for the mosquito to lay its eggs. Celux mosquitoes lay as many as 300 eggs in a raft-like formation on the water's surface. The hatching larvae feed on floating organic plant materials and microscopic organisms as they develop into pupa. As the larvae enter the pupal growth stage, they create cocoons that float on the water's surface until they emerge as adults.

Above and Beyond Pest Control provides a mosquito control service that significantly reduces the mosquito population on your Stuart property. By diminishing the presence of mosquitos, you have a far less chance of being caught in the line of fire by these blood-eating insects.

Health Risks Of Mosquito Bites: Warning Signs To Watch For

Because female mosquitoes draw blood from animals and humans, they can contract any illnesses they carry. When pathogens enter a mosquito's body, they eventually migrate to their saliva glands. When the mosquito finds a host and draws blood, it releases infected saliva into its victim. Due to the sheer volume of mosquitoes and their ability to inject pathogen-filled saliva into their hosts, these insects kill about 750,000 people worldwide, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Sadly, most of these deaths occur from malaria spread by mosquitoes in third-world countries; however, Stuart residents are not immune from other mosquito-borne illnesses. 

Diseases carried by mosquitoes in the United States are the following:

• West Nile virus
• Dengue
• Chikungunya
• Encephalitis

Due to media coverage, many people assume malaria, Zika, and yellow fever are threats in our country, but they are not. Except for a few malaria cases, Zika and yellow fever cases occur when a mosquito bites a tourist in another country, and they then travel to the United States.  

While you should have a healthy concern regarding mosquito bites, you should not cower in fear or immediately jump to a conclusion when bitten. Even when an infected mosquito attacks an individual, most people do not experience symptoms. In situations where reactions occur, they are generally fever, nausea, body aches, and other flu-like conditions. However, there are instances when serious and deadly circumstances can result from an infected mosquito bite.

Currently, the most famous mosquito-borne illness is the West Nile virus. Most people do not experience symptoms, and those who do generally have flu-like reactions, but about one out of every 150 people infected with the virus will have a severe, and sometimes fatal, reaction. Perhaps the fear surrounding this particular virus is because no vaccines or medical treatments exist to treat a West Nile infection. We want to reiterate that although one out of 150 persons may have a severe reaction, not all experience a fatality. 

The West Nile virus is not the only disease spread by mosquitoes without medical treatments. For example, dengue causes nausea, vomiting, body aches, eye pain, and other flu-like symptoms in about 25% of people; it does not result in fatalities and is manageable with OTC medications, rest, and hydration. Those infected with the chikungunya virus will experience muscle and joint pain for a week after being bitten.

In addition to the West Nile virus, the other mosquito-borne virus that can trigger significant physical problems is encephalitis. In most cases, our immune system can fight the virus without experiencing symptoms; however, when it is not entirely successful, headaches, fever, and other flu-like symptoms result. However, brain and spinal cord swelling can occur, producing life-altering conditions and even death, but this outcome is rare.

Above and Beyond Pest Control protects your family by working to keep mosquitoes out of the yard surrounding your Stuart home.

Mosquito Bite Prevention: How to Protect Yourself From Bites

Mosquitoes are a part of our ecosystem, and we all occasionally experience bites. Our bodies react to mosquito saliva by dispatching histamines to the location, which causes puffy red bumps to appear. As our bodies fight the mosquito saliva, we experience itching at the wound site. 

The following are ways to protect yourself from mosquito bites when outdoors:

• Avoid working in the yard at dusk or dawn
• Wear long-sleeve pants and shirts
• Use EPA-approved mosquito repellants
• Treat clothing with 0.5% permethrin
• Repair holes in window and door screens
• Keep exterior doors closed as much as possible

Although mosquito bites are annoying, avoid scratching the area to prevent infection. If the location becomes warm and the redness spreads, consult your doctor to stop further complications; you should also contact medical professionals if you experience flu-like symptoms within two weeks. 

Above and Beyond Pest Control company works to keep mosquitoes away from your home to minimize the possibility of enduring the irritation caused by mosquito bites.

Say Goodbye To Mosquito Bites Around Your Yard: Call Us Today!

The best way to minimize the mosquito population around your home and reduce the problems they cause is to contact Above and Beyond Pest Control for mosquito treatments in Stuart. Our process begins by inspecting your property to determine entry points, attractants, and potential breeding locations. 

Once we collect data, we treat the property using a backpack mosquito misting system that allows us to focus on hot spots. For those desiring protection during peak months of mosquito activity (February to October), we apply the product monthly to your property using our backpack system. If you want the ultimate year-round mosquito protection, we will install In2Care mosquito traps in strategic locations. Contact us today to learn more about our mosquito service and to request your free inspection.