Mosquito Life Cycle

EGGS – Different species of mosquitoes deposit their eggs in specific habitats. Those eggs are deposited either singly in moist soil or in the form of rafts on the water surface. These eggs are usually laid in groups ranging between 100 and 400 eggs. Within a few days the eggs hatch into larvae.

LARVA – The larva comes to the surface to breathe through a tube called a siphon. It sheds its skin four times during the next several days. Mosquitoes are called instars between these molts (1-4 instars). On the fourth molt it changes into a pupa.

PUPA – The pupa of the mosquito is similar to the cocoon or chrysalis of a butterfly. The pupa cannot eat. It breathes through two tubes on its back. The adult mosquito develops inside the pupal case. In two days or so, when it is fully developed, it splits the pupal skin and emerges as an adult.

ADULT – The newly emerged adult rests on the water surface until it is strong enough to fly away and feed.