Facts

Published January 12, 2013

• There are 3,500 named species of mosquito,

• Malaria infects some 247 million people worldwide each year, and kills nearly one million.

• Anything that can hold water for more than a few days can be a potential breeding ground for mosquitoes.

• Mosquitoes are vectors of diseases. This means they carry and transmit a disease without getting affected themselves.·    The average life span of a female mosquito is three to 100 days. The male lives for 10 to 20 days.

• Mosquitoes breed in standing water so areas like rain gutters, tree holes, old buckets or tires with stagnant water are major breeding sites.

• A mosquito’s wings beat 300-600 times per second, which causes the irritating buzzing sound you hear just before a mosquito lands on you and bites.

• Mosquitoes have weak eyes. Carbon dioxide exhaled by humans and other animals is the key signal to mosquitoes that a potential victim is nearby. — G. T. 

Opinion

Editorial

A difficult story
Updated 12 Jun, 2026

A difficult story

Unless productivity becomes the dominant target of economic policy, Pakistan will continue to oscillate between crises and fragile recovery.
Rough waters
12 Jun, 2026

Rough waters

AMONGST the key potential triggers for fresh conflict in South Asia is water. The Indian state is behaving in an...
Politicised football
12 Jun, 2026

Politicised football

ALMOST three-and-half years since Lionel Messi led Argentina to FIFA World Cup glory, the latest edition of...
GB polls’ aftermath
Updated 11 Jun, 2026

GB polls’ aftermath

The new administration must address the region’s issues proactively.
Peace in retreat
11 Jun, 2026

Peace in retreat

THE ceasefire announced in April was supposed to create space for negotiations. Instead, it has been repeatedly...
A few good men
11 Jun, 2026

A few good men

IT was a brave move, no doubt. This Tuesday, in the land of the Afghan Taliban, a few good men decided to take a...