Welcoming address to young Tiger Mosquitoes:
Good morning children, or should I say larvae? You are soon going to pupate and then fly off to a bright new future. The USA really is a ‘land of opportunity’ for us. Humans were kind enough to bring us here on their boats back in 1985, and now we have unlimited horizons.
Encouragement for males:
Do not worry about competition – you will find it easy to get enough nectar. Your main competitor is no match for you.
Exhortations for females:
Fly by day – humans do not expect this and are unprepared for us.
Get your blood very quickly – humans are not usually drowsy during the day so you need to be ‘in and out’, as fast as possible.
Do not fly far from where you were born – there will always be a tasty meal nearby.
Advice for females:
Humans are tasty, and good for a quick snack – but be careful. They can use all sorts of chemical warfare against you. Some humans cover themselves with poisons, and you would do best to avoid these individuals. Others will cover their bodies with clothing, and you will find these people very difficult to get at.
My best advice is to stick to birds for your blood meals, and if you do have to indulge in a mammal feast then go for horses. You will often find them nearby and they pose no threat. They cannot even infect you with anything.
Warnings:
Most of our cousins have to fear airborne attack. Humans will pour insecticides on them from aeroplanes, but fortunately they are unlikely to do this to us since we fly at the same time as their precious Bees. If they sprayed in the daytime they would kill many of their pollinators – and surely even humans are not that stupid!
Much more serious is the threat from germ warfare because they are starting to use Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis (BTI) against us, and this produces a deadly poison. Avoid it if you can.
Future problems:
Humans are considering enlisting the help of one of our relatives in their fight against us. They are thinking of deliberately introducing the evil Mosquito Hawks (such as Toxorhynchites splendens) to live alongside us, and this might be a become a problem soon.
But for now – fly off and suck blood. The future really is very bright!
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