Mosquitoes are regarded as one of the world’s most stubborn, and annoying pests, but this might keep you thinking what eat mosquitoes? as a predator what could possibly eat it. Search no more, this article is fully comprehended to answer every question in your mind about what eat mosquitoes and the full list of mosquito predators is in detail.
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What Eats Mosquitoes?
There are certain predators that are known for eating mosquitoes on a large scale they are pests, birds, reptiles that feed on mosquitoes. At first, you might think that there is nothing that can kill mosquitoes except the clap of your hand, but no! there are other predators that feed on mosquitoes in which mosquitoes are afraid of that. The bloodsuckers are now in fear and danger of their new primate. The most wonderful part of this research is that there is a bug as small as the mosquitoes that also feed on it, we shall look into some of these pests in full detail.
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Full List of Mosquito Predators
- Bats
Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera and have forelimbs adapted as wings, they are sometimes referred to as the flying mammals being the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more flexible than birds, flying with their very long spread-out digits covered with a thin membrane.
Bats are known for feeding on insects and yes mosquito is not an exception.
- Birds
Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates belonging to the class Aves, have bodies covered with feathers, toothless beaked jaws, lay shelled eggs, have a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweight skeleton. Birds are also greatly known for their social behaviors such as, communicating with visual signals, calls, and songs, and participating in other such behaviors as cooperative breeding and hunting, flocking, and mobbing (an activity in which birds (prey) gang up on predators together usually to protect their offsprings) of predators.
Birds feed on a variety of things such as:
- Insects, worms, and grubs.
- Seeds, grasses, and plant material.
- Nectar and pollen.
- Nuts, fruit, and berries.
- Rodents, snakes, and other small animals
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And among the variety of insects they feed on include the mosquitoes! Even though it has been established that birds feed on mosquitoes, it should be considered that not all birds feed on mosquitoes as birds are of various types and categories. Examples of birds that feed on mosquitoes are the purple martins, swallows, waterfowl and migratory songbirds, etc. they feed on both the adult and aquatic stages of mosquitoes.
- Fish
A fish is an aquatic and limbless cold-blooded vertebrate animal with gills and fins living wholly or partially in the water. Some common fish predators that feed on mosquitoes are the Goldfish, Gambusia affinis, guppies, bass, bluegill and catfish prey, etc and are known to feed specifically on mosquito larvae. But among all these listed the most popular fish predator is the Gambusia affinis commonly known as the mosquito-fish and is probably the most effective predator of mosquito larvae and is used by many mosquito control agencies to augment their control efforts.
- Turtles
A turtle is a large marine reptile of the order Testudines with a bony or leathery shell properly used as a shield for protection. They are also known to come ashore annually on sandy beaches to lay eggs. There are two categories of turtles; the land turtles and the sea turtle. Sea turtles feed on worms, grubs, snails, beetles, caterpillars to grasses, fruit, berries, mushrooms and, flowers. Although there are various categories of turtles, the most popular turtle known for feeding on mosquitoes is the Red-eared slider turtle thought to be the most voracious turtle that feeds on mosquito larvae.
- Frogs and Tadpoles
A frog is any member of a diverse and largely carnivorous group of short-bodied, tailless amphibians composing the order Anura with a short squat body, moist smooth skin, and very long hind legs for leaping. A tadpole is the larval stage of an amphibian known for breathing through its gills and lacking legs until the later stages of its development.
Although frogs feed on mosquitoes, they do not take them as a greater part of their diet. Tadpoles as well feed on mosquitoes but not all tadpoles. The 3 categories of tadpoles known to feed on mosquitoes are the spade-foot toad, green tree frog and, giant tree frog all belonging to North America.
Other insects are also known to feed on mosquitoes, so we can’t leave all the fun to the aquatic and flying mammals. These insects include:
- Spiders
Spiders are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs and chelicerae with fangs capable of injecting venom and are the largest order of arachnids in the world. Spiders feed on common indoor pests, such as Roaches, Earwigs, Mosquitoes, Flies and Clothes Moths. Yes, the mosquito is also part of the menu!
However, before we further our steps lets look at what mosquitoes eaters eat;
What Do Mosquitoes Eaters Eat?
What do mosquitoes eaters eat? it might sound strange or hard, to get the meaning of what mosquito eaters eat. Least we proceed, let’s take a blink on what mosquito eaters eat. There are bugs in this world, which looks like a mosquito but are not, the body shape looks the same long and thin legs, which might look like a more dangerous category of mosquito commonly found in the garden or at home. However, most mosquito eaters do not eat mosquitoes.
To a fact, mosquito eaters might not likely be a mosquito, I know what your thinking its true mosquitoes do eat mosquitoes. Mosquitoes eaters feed on larva in the Laval stage, but their main source of food is flower nectar. mosquito eaters are not fond of biting humans, but the sound produced from their wings is annoying to the ear. There are two of the world’s most fearsome mosquito eaters, the all known crane fly not that familiar and the very common crane fly, found in the garden and domestic surroundings. The crane fly is known to be wild but yet do not bite and the common crane fly is domestic in the sense that it is found in the house.
This fly is known for its multiplying speed, the weather is always warm when you hear their annoying buzz around your light bulb. They might just be called an animal, but their attack on a plant that the reason we refer them as a pest, they live and build a nest on the soil’s first layer feeding on crops and roots and knowing this the might not be allowed to stay around plants so that’s where you will need to act first cause with them around there is no point of the possibility that plants will survive.
For identification, the are far bigger than mosquitoes cause like humans the are omnivorous pest giving them the ability stronger than mosquitoes yet it is a miracle the cannot kill the bloodsuckers. In a case where you grow a beautiful garden living in the woods, you invite birds which is good but then wildlife joins like raccoons then you better have a point to control a large population of mosquito eaters, don’t try killing them by also harming the wildlife instead take a more moderate way of controlling this pest.
These pests are mostly found in rural areas near rivers not urban except in your home near a riverine zone the main reason the stay in the rural areas cause weak mosquitoes are found there easily and there is not a large number of local resident.