If you had to ask the most hated insects in humans, mosquitoes definitely have a place.
Not only does it bite humans, causing the skin to become red, swollen and itchy, it also spreads disease. Malaria caused by mosquitoes has historically claimed countless lives, and to this day in some areas, malaria is still a terrible disease.
It's this stuff that bites people very hard
In the impression of the Chinese people, the more flowers the mosquito, the stronger the toxicity, the more itchy after biting, we habitually call this mosquito "flower mosquito". However, few people know that this flower mosquito is not a mosquito native to the mainland, but an invasive species.
Why are flower mosquitoes poisonous? Who is "sending poison for thousands of miles"? What damage has it done to the mainland? And how do we deal with it? Don't worry, take a look at the infamous flower mosquito today!
Fly around and fan without leaving
The poisonous flower mosquito has made a comeback to China, where did it come from? Why is it frightening?
Why are flower mosquitoes poisonous?
The scientific name of the flower mosquito is called Aedes albaceata, and it has black and white stripes on its body. In terms of body size, it is not the largest among mosquitoes, but who makes the most itchy mosquito packs, it is definitely it. Some people are curious, mosquitoes suck blood, why do they leave a bag after sucking blood? Still particularly itchy? This starts with the blood-sucking process of mosquitoes.
Not only is the bite particularly itchy, but it is also one of the vectors of disease
Although the mosquito is small, especially its mouth, it is very thin, but it is this small mouth, and its precision is no less than that of a human scalpel. Mosquito's mouth, a total of six needles! Different needles have different divisions of labor.
The outermost needle on the left and right plays a role in fixation, and there are sharper serrations on it. Before the mosquito prepares to suck blood, it will cut the two needles through the skin, both to fix the head and to open the way for later steps. The skin is cut open, but the blood vessels are still underneath, and at this time the mosquito will use the second pair of needles in the middle. This pair of needles, like the first pair, one on the left and one on the left, is to find the location of the blood vessels. The mosquito put the pair of needles into the incision that had just been cut, found the blood vessel, and then it was time for the thickest needle to appear.
The abominable mosquitoes struck again
The mosquito has the thickest needle in its mouth, and its role is to cut through the blood vessels and suck blood, and its structure is the same as that of human needles, which is hollow inside and the front end is unusually sharp. There is also a needle next to the vampire needle, which is used to inject chemicals.
We humans have platelets in our blood, and as soon as the blood vessels are broken, the platelets will act immediately to prevent the wound from continuing to bleed. Mosquitoes have an enzyme in their saliva that inhibits blood clotting and allows mosquitoes to suck blood "smoothly".
Platelets are trying to clott blood
Of course, in addition to the anti-coagulation enzymes in this saliva, there are other substances, such as anesthetics, that can make the bitten person feel no pain. In addition, there are many acidic substances in the saliva of mosquitoes, and after they enter the human body, they change the permeability of skin cells, resulting in changes in osmotic pressure of that small part, resulting in lumps in the skin. In fact, not everyone who is bitten by a mosquito will itch their bags, and this still varies from person to person.
Mosquitoes are really invincible
Itching after mosquito bites is actually an allergic reaction. The flower mosquito is particularly itchy after biting, on the one hand, its saliva is more acidic than that of ordinary mosquitoes; on the other hand, it shows that most people on the mainland are not immune to it. This partly reflects that flower mosquitoes are not native to the mainland. In fact, the home of flower mosquitoes is in Southeast Asia. So how did it come to the mainland?
Allergic reactions caused by bites
Who is "sending poison for thousands of miles"?
Southeast Asia, the mosquito's home, is still very close to us, so scientists speculate that it came through three routes.
The first is the animal carrier. Flower mosquitoes not only suck human blood, but also the blood of other animals. Zoologists have obtained blood from a variety of animals in the body of flower mosquitoes in the wild, about 60% of which are mammals and 17% of which are birds. Therefore, it is possible that the Aedes albopictus mosquito migrated into the southern part of the continent through animal migration, and then spread in this way.
Cunning flower mosquitoes
The second is transmission through humans. The mainland has been trading heavily with Southeast Asia since ancient times, and mosquitoes will dock on cargo to enter the continent in the process. This is believed to be the main transmission route of flower mosquitoes, because not only China, but also the Americas thousands of miles away have the presence of Aedes albopictus. At present, more than 70 countries around the world have been invaded by Aedes albopictus.
Finally, mosquitoes also migrate spontaneously. Many people think that mosquitoes are small and have a short lifespan, and they cannot migrate long distances. But one study showed that females of Aedes albopictus could survive for more than a month, and they would actively seek out a place suitable for their survival.
"Smuggling" through cargo
Mosquitoes are very perceptive, and they start flying to warm places before winter falls, because mosquitoes below ten degrees Celsius cannot survive. But their longevity determines that the distance of a migration is not too far, so they advance from generation to generation. When the weather begins to warm up, they migrate from generation to generation and return to where they were before. The migration of many insects is accompanied by several generations of insect turnover.
Although the flower mosquito is very powerful, it cannot dominate the world. Because mosquitoes need water to lay their eggs, and the home of flower mosquitoes is in Southeast Asia, cold and arid places are not suitable for its survival. Flower mosquitoes are rarely seen in the northern part of the continent, replaced by the more hardy yellow Aedes mosquitoes.
The formation process of flower mosquitoes
Although the flower mosquito could not push its own line of troops to the northern region, in terms of the area where it was active, it did not do less evil!
What harm do flower mosquitoes cause?
The small mouth of the flower mosquito is like smearing poison, a bite will be red, swollen and itchy, more importantly, the mosquito will coexist with many germs, it is fine, but when it sucks blood, it will spread to other animals and even people, which is really frightening.
Viral transmission by blood sucking
Remember what I said earlier, when mosquitoes bite people, in order to prevent their prey from feeling pain and prevent blood from clotting, they will secrete saliva. This saliva contains not only the mosquito's own chemicals, but also these viruses or parasites.
According to a report released by the United Nations Health Organization, Aedes albopictus is the second largest vector in the world for transmitting dengue fever, after Aedes aegypti. It is capable of transmitting 7 types of alphavirus, such as East Malaysia encephalitis; 8 types of Bunia virus, such as Rift Valley fever virus, Cross encephalitis virus; and 3 yellow viruses, such as yellow fever and Japanese encephalitis. The flower mosquito is more aggressive, it chooses to take the initiative, even if people are still walking and moving, they will be bitten by it.
Flower mosquitoes that are desperately pursuing humans
In addition, because Aedes albopictus is not picky eaters, any animal with blood may be bitten by it. In the process, mosquitoes also transfer germs from some animals to humans.
So there is no way for humans to destroy it? Unfortunately, the mosquitoes have existed on the earth for more than 100 million years, and humans have wrestled with them for more than 2 million years, and the US military has also deployed various high-tech in that year, but they have not been able to eliminate mosquitoes. What we can do is how to treat and control the diseases caused by mosquitoes.
Repellent water can temporarily relieve itching after being bitten
How do humans deal with mosquitoes?
The most serious disease transmitted by mosquitoes is malaria, which is called "swinging" by the people. Malaria is a malaria parasite, a single cell that parasitizes the body of a mosquito and enters the body through mosquito bites. After a person is infected, there will be hot and cold, weakness, high fever, and convulsions.
Even now, 100 million people in the world are infected with malaria each year, and 500 million people live in malaria-infested areas. Malaria is more common in Africa, Central and South America, where medical and health conditions are poor, causing mosquitoes to carry a variety of germs far more likely than other places.
Imported malaria has become a major challenge to the elimination of malaria on the continent in recent years
In the last century, European and American countries developed a series of pesticides, although they destroyed a lot of the environment, but to a certain extent reduced the number of mosquitoes. At the beginning of the founding of the People's Republic of China, the mainland listed mosquitoes as the "four pests" and mobilized the masses to participate in the anti-mosquito campaign. The number of flower mosquitoes that were once suppressed by the anti-mosquito movement is now making a comeback, and we are not afraid, we will still choose to fight with it to the end.
Tu Youyou obtained antimalarial drugs through the study of artemisinin, and this achievement was applied to the whole world, making great contributions to eliminating malaria and saving lives, for which she also won the Nobel Prize. Thanks to continuous efforts, malaria has been effectively controlled worldwide.
The mother of artemisinin - Tu Youyou
However, mosquitoes cause more than malaria, and humans cannot exterminate all mosquitoes, so they can only coexist with mosquitoes while protecting themselves. In general, not every mosquito carries germs, and if there is no adverse reaction after being bitten, it means that it is not infected.
However, if you have symptoms such as fever after being bitten by mosquitoes, you should go to the hospital in time, as long as you get treatment, there will be no danger to your life.