Treat your yard and limit the mosquitoes that destroy the enjoyment of your spring and summer outdoor gatherings.

The four phases of life for mosquitoes include the egg, larval stage, pupa, and adult, and the process takes about 10 days. They can survive for as much as eight months until water activates the life cycle and starts the larval stage.

The Asian tiger mosquito and the Culex mosquitoes thrive in the area along with about 50 other species that inhabit the state. All types of the annoying insect can create red bumps and intense itching from a bite that draws blood and sometimes does much more.  Mosquitos can be present almost every month of the year, even in the winter months.

Birds and horses become hosts for West Nile Virus, and Culex mosquitoes can infect people and pets. A bite on an infected animal can let a mosquito deliver it to a person in a cycle of infection. About 20 percent of infected people may experience fever, aches and pains, a rash, vomiting or diarrhea, and severe symptoms may affect about 2 percent. Vaccines and treatments for the virus that has links to encephalitis and meningitis do not yet exist. The Zika virus spreads through a bite from a mosquito, and some Missourians have reported infections. Mosquito Pest Control Southwest Missouri helps control the population of mosquitoes that can produce severe congenital disabilities. Symptoms may show up as a rash, irritated eyes, joint pain, and fever.

Male mosquitoes do not draw blood, but females need the protein for egg development. Females can lay 100 eggs or more at one time, often delivering 300 on three different days before she dies.

Except in icy conditions, female mosquitoes can survive the winter. Males die after about 10 days, but females can find shelter from the cold that makes them unable to fly. Under protection in a hollow log or an opening in the ground, they can enter a phase that resembles hibernation for as long as six months.

The Asian Tiger mosquito can fly a limited distance of about 300 feet, but most other species can travel between 1 to 3 miles. Occasional observances of pool-breeding mosquitoes show distances of up to 7 miles.

The parasitic heartworm spreads through mosquito bites, causing severe health issues that can result in lung disease, heart failure, and even a dog’s death. All 50 states have reported heartworm disease in dogs.  Dogs should be on monthly heartworm prevention prescribed by your veterinarian.  However, spraying your outside spaces will help reduce mosquitos in the area as another layer of protection, but heartworm prevention is also necessary for your pet.

Mosquitoes seem attracted to fragrances, light clothing, your breath, and your body heat, and any of them that you can avoid may increase your defense against getting bitten. Standing water that you may overlook provides a perfect habitat for them, and you can decrease their population by emptying it wherever you find it.