Invasive Species Lesson Mosquito What are we going

Invasive Species Lesson Mosquito

What are we going to learn today? 1) What are Mosquitos. 2) The problems they cause to our people and our natural environment. 3) What can you do to control and prevent mosquito breeding.

What are Mosquitos? • A mosquito is an insect. It has 6 legs and 3 body parts. • Like its cousin, the housefly, a mosquito has one pair of wings. • The mosquito has a mouthpart called a proboscis. Similar to a straw, it is used for sucking.

Mosquito life cycle • The mosquito has a 4 stage life cycle. • They consist of the egg, larvae, pupae and adult stage. • All stages of the mosquito life cycle, except adults, are found in water. • Adult females lay eggs in stagnant water.

Why are mosquitos a pest? • A bite from a mosquito can be very uncomfortable. The bite feels like a sharp sting and red itchy bumps will appear. • But did you know that mosquito bites can also be deadly? • Mosquito transmit many diseases to humans such as malaria, dengue fever and zika.

A common myth about mosquitos • It is not true that all mosquitos bite and suck blood. • Both male and female mosquitoes use their proboscis to feed on nectar from flowers. • Only female mosquitoes suck blood. It is because blood has special nutrients that feed the female's eggs.

Where are mosquitos found? • With over three thousand different species, mosquitoes are found almost everywhere in the world. • Mosquitoes are found in large numbers in areas with marshes and swamps. • This is because female adults lay their eggs in water that is stagnant, or still. • In fact, mosquitoes will even lay eggs in a backyard birdbath or pond. • This can create quite a neighborhood mosquito problem!

Effective methods to control and prevent mosquito breeding in the house. • Change water in flower vases on alternate days. • Scrub the inner surface of vases and pots, and wash the roots of plants with running water to remove mosquito eggs. • Cover all containers storing water. • Clear water from dish rack trays.

Effective methods to control and prevent mosquito breeding in the garden • Clear water from flowerpot plates on alternate days. • Turn over and keep water storage containers and garden pots when not in use. Store them away from the rain. • Cover rarely used gully and clear roof gutters of debris to prevent accidental built-up of water. Avoid using plastic sheets. • Loosen hardened soil on alternate days. • Place sand granular insecticide in areas where stagnant water cannot be removed easily.

How to prevent mosquito bites? • Apply insect repellent before you go out. • Wear long sleeved clothes and pants and wear a hat. • Close doors and windows to prevent mosquitos from entering your home.

Activity Time! Create a mozzie-free checklist!

Checklist Activity • Students will be grouped into groups of 4. • Students will discuss what they have learnt from the lesson and create an individual mozzie-free checklist. • Students can use the space in the student workbook for this activity. • Teacher to hold a show and tell at the end of the activity for the class to share their checklists.

What we have learnt today • The mosquito is an insect. • The mosquito has a 4 stage life cycle. • Adult females lay eggs in stagnant water. • There are many ways to keep the home free from mosquitos. • Some of the ways are to ensure water do not accumulate in pots and containers. • Using insect repellent and wearing long sleeved clothes and pants help prevent mosquito bites.

See you next time!

References • National Environment Agency of Singapore website: https: //www. nea. gov. sg

Image Credits Slide 1: Image of Stop mosquitos by Elias Schäfer from Pixabay, Image of mosquito on arm by mika mamy from Pixabay Slide 2: Image of mosquito cartoon by Jomar Junior from Pixabay Slide 3: Image of 3 mosquitos by Open. Clipart-Vectors from Pixabay zika-virus-2022699_640. png Slide 4: Mosquito life stages © Luciano Cosmo / Shutterstock Slide 5: Image of mosquito on arm by mika mamy from Pixabay Slide 6: Image of 3 mosquitos by Open. Clipart-Vectors from Pixabay zika-virus-2022699_640. png Slide 7: Image of Stop mosquitos by Elias Schäfer from Pixabay Slide 8: Image of Control measures in the house modified from Do the Mozzie Wipeout website image - https: //www. nea. gov. sg/docs/defaultsource/dengue-zika-pdf/dengue-home-flyer. pdf made available under the terms of the Singapore Open Data Licence version 1. 0 https: //www. nea. gov. sg/open-data-licence Slide 9: Image of 5 step mozzie wipeout modified from Prevent Aedes Mosquito Breeding website image - https: //www. nea. gov. sg/denguezika/prevent-aedes-mosquito-breeding made available under the terms of the Singapore Open Data Licence version 1. 0 https: //www. nea. gov. sg/open-data-licence Slide 10: Image of Stop mosquitos by Elias Schäfer from Pixabay, Image of Protect yourself modified from Fight Zika and Dengue website image - https: //www. nea. gov. sg/docs/default-source/default-document-library/fight-dengue-zika. pdf made available under the terms of the Singapore Open Data Licence version 1. 0 https: //www. nea. gov. sg/open-data-licence Slide 11: Image of Stop mosquitos by Elias Schäfer from Pixabay, Image of 3 mosquitos by Open. Clipart-Vectors from Pixabay zika-virus 2022699_640. png Slide 12: Image of 3 mosquitos by Open. Clipart-Vectors from Pixabay zika-virus-2022699_640. png Slide 13: Image of 3 mosquitos by Open. Clipart-Vectors from Pixabay zika-virus-2022699_640. png Slide 14: Image from Image courtesy of arztsamui at Free. Digital. Photos. net