Pest Control Fact Sheets

Mosquitoes

Mosquitoes are small insects, which make a high-pitched noise when they fly. There are several types of mosquito in the UK.

Each type looks different and bites at different times of the day. The most common type in this borough is called the Culex, which bites at night.

Why should mosquitoes be controlled?

Some types of mosquitoes can transmit diseases to humans such as Malaria and Yellow Fever. Culex mosquitoes in London have not been known to transmit any diseases.

Mosquitoes can cause a nuisance by disturbing sleep and causing irritating bites. Some bites can become infected if scratched.

Where do they live?

Culex pass through 3 distinct life stages, egg, larva and pupa before reaching the flying adult. Culex lay their eggs in dirty water and can be found breeding in:

Dirty water in basements
In dirty watercourses near homes. They are not normally found in fishponds, as fish are their natural predators, eating eggs and larvae
In ditches
Even in water, which has built up on the London Underground

A female may lay over a hundred individual eggs. They lay their eggs on the soil amongst grass roots and organic matter, in low places where water collects, or in rafts on the surface of stagnant water.

The larvae hatch and feed on tiny animals and plants in the water. They breathe through a tube at the end of the body that lets them remain just below the surface. When fully grown, the larvae transform to comma-shaped pupae. Pupae do not feed but move actively in the water.

When the adult is ready to hatch, the pupa floats to the surface, its skin splits down the back and the adult comes out.

What do they eat?

Mosquitoes can feed on plant juices. But a few days after the adult hatches, they mate and the females then search for blood, which they need to produce eggs.

Males only live for a few days but females can live for several months. It is the females that bite humans and will travel from the breeding site until they find their blood meal.

Preventative treatment

Residents and landowners should take reasonable precautions to prevent mosquitoes breeding on their property.

There is a lot we can all do to help control mosquitoes and below are a few suggestions:

Unwanted items that can collect water, such as tin cans and tyres, should be disposed of properly
Clean clogged roof gutters and drain flat roofs
Stock garden ponds with fish, as they will eat mosquito egg and larvae
Change water in birdbaths, fountains and troughs once a week
Turn over unused paddling pools and other containers that tend to collect rainwater. Cover containers and water buttes used to store rainwater
Report rubbish in watercourses and take care to dispose of your own rubbish carefully
Make sure that water does not collect in cellars or other areas around your home
Check air vents at the base of your house and around the building for signs of mosquitoes entering from underground spaces
Make sure drain covers are in place and are not damaged

What can we do?

We are carrying out surveys to identify the potential breeding sites and watercourses that have become polluted by rubbish. We have already started to clean these sites and are working with the Environmental Agency to deal with those not owned by us.

We will prosecute anyone we find anyone polluting or fly-tipping rubbish in to our watercourses.