Category Archives: Mosquito Control

The mosquitoes in your yard can seem relatively absent during the day, but most of us have experienced the excessive amount of activity in the evenings, and the resulting bites we greet the next morning. So why are they so active at night, and where do they all go the next day?

Before we answer this question, we must add a caveat. Asian Tiger mosquitoes are the oddity here as they are out during the day as well. If you see larger than normal mosquitoes, with an easy-to-spot black-and-white color, you have Asian Tigers. These mosquitoes are container breeders – their favorite home is an old tire. If you want to reduce the quantity of these mosquitoes have a quick spruce up, flip pots and open containers, and check your woods for discarded trash under leaves.

For the rest of the mosquito breeds we have in this part of Texas, we don’t tend to see them during daylight hours. So why?

Much of it has to do with their size. Mosquitoes are very small, and they are unable to regulate their body temperature efficiently. Sun exposure in Texas can dehydrate a mosquito and kill it rapidly. Mosquitoes also expend a lot of energy in flight, which makes sense given their size.  As a result, they must feed, and feed a lot.

It’s a common misconception that mosquitoes bite us to feed off our blood. It’s only the female that bites, and she does so only when she needs protein to lay eggs. Every time you get a bite somewhere in the yard a female mosquito is preparing to lay about 300 eggs.

Mosquitoes obtain their energy from and eat, plant nectar. During the day they head for the green plants in your yard and shelter on the undersides of leaves – keeping them fed and safe from the sun. At dawn and dusk, when the temperatures drop, mosquitoes can safely leave their hiding spots, and the females set about finding warm-blooded creatures to bite, while the males look for breeding partners.

Beyond the sun, there is also another factor that impacts the number of mosquitoes that will be out, and that is all related to water. Mosquitoes need water to survive, and we are not talking in the sense that they must drink it. Rather, mosquitoes need water to lay eggs – the life cycle of a mosquito is such that they spend the first part of their lives in water as larvae and pupae. The geography of your yard will impact your mosquito population – a creek, uneven ground, stagnant water (in a wheelbarrow, trash can, the hole at the base of the tree, and French drains, are some locations to name a few), and damp ground covered in leaf debris or pine needles all increase the presence of mosquitoes nearby.

Mosquitoes are also attracted to light. However, they will only be attracted into your yard – they won’t fly towards a bug zapper, or hover around your patio lights like moths do. Keeping your yard tidy, removing standing water and ground cover, and minimizing your bright lights will all go a long way to making your yard less hospitable. Mosquitoes have been around since the dinosaurs for good reason. If you are tired of having your evening ruined by mosquitoes, just give us a call for a free quote for mosquito control services. We will manage the water in your yard, eliminate the mosquitoes living in it, and help you adjust your yard so you can enjoy your outside again. Call us today at 281-815-0228 if you have any questions!

We thought it would be fun to gather a group of interesting facts about mosquitoes, that you may not know, into one list. There is far more to the mosquito than meets the eye, and each year we continue to learn more and observe more about their behavior. So here are 29 facts you may not know:

• There are over 3,000 species of mosquitoes in the world. Only about 200 bites.
• Texas has the highest number of mosquito species at 85, while West Virginia has the fewest at 26.
• Male mosquitoes do not bite. It is only the female one that sucks your blood and gets the protein from it. This protein helps the mosquitoes to develop their eggs.
• Mosquitoes feed mainly on plant nectar.
• Mosquitoes cannot regulate their body temperature, so they will shade from the sun during the day.
• A female mosquito can drink 3 times her body weight in blood.
• Mosquitoes prefer the blood of horses or birds or cattle to humans.
• Mosquitoes have been around since the Jurassic period. They have been on Earth for over 210 million years!
• Mosquitoes are the deadliest animal on the planet, far more so than sharks.
• Mosquitoes can spread several life-threatening diseases including West Nile, Dengue, and Malaria.
• Many mosquitoes don’t die from a freeze. Instead, they hibernate and reawaken once temperatures climb over 50 degrees.
• A mosquito egg can lay dormant for up to 10 years, and hatch once water touches it.
• All mosquitoes need water to breed.
• A mosquito spends the first 7-10 days of its life in water.
• Mosquitoes live up to 6 months (the majority live 2-3 weeks).
• When mosquitoes hatch out of the pupae they first breed before the female searches for a blood meal. She then lays her eggs and only then will settle to feed from nectar.
• The female mosquito lays her eggs in stagnant water, 300 at a time. Only a teaspoon will do.
• Mosquitoes beat their wings 500-600 times per minute. When mating they will synchronize their wings.
• Mosquitoes only fly 1.5 miles per hour.
• Mosquitoes mostly keep to 6-8 feet above ground. They can fly up to 25’ high but they are not strong fliers and cannot manage the breeze well.
• Mosquitoes generally fly 2-3 miles at best (some saltmarsh mosquitoes can fly 100 miles, however).
• Mosquitoes use several methods to locate a blood meal. They first detect CO2 plumes, which they can do from 75’ away.
• Once a mosquito gets closer it turns to smell to home in on a victim. Sweat, beer, and a host of other odors can make us more attractive.
• Movement also attracts mosquitoes.
• When they are close mosquitoes turn to heat sensing to find us to bite.
• Mosquito traps don’t work well as they do not emit heat. They attract mosquitoes into your yard but, if you are outside, they will find you first.
• Bug zappers don’t kill mosquitoes. The light attracts them in, but they won’t fly into it. The same is true for outside lights you turn on at night.
• When the female bites she inserts her proboscis into our skin. Her saliva helps the multiple tubes inside this to slide through our skin. It also has a mild pain-killing property, to help her go undetected, and has anti-coagulant properties.
• The bumps and itch that result from a bite are the result of a common allergy to saliva. Some lucky people don’t have a reaction.

We make outside fun again by keeping mosquitoes and other outdoor pests away! Give us a call today at 281-815-0228 for a free quote!

While our most popular mosquito service is our barrier service, we have many tools in our tool belt to help our customers manage their mosquito population. Every yard is different, and sometimes there is very little barrier for us to treat, while other times drainage systems under the ground or outside the yard make it difficult to access all the larvae and breeding sites.

Many of our customers prefer the use of all-natural products in their yard while combating mosquitoes. A downside to these is that they don’t last quite as well as synthetic options in our heat and with strong rains. The In2Care trap is an eco-friendly option that puts the mosquitoes to work in ensuring they don’t live on your property.

The In2Care trap is excellent in the management of the Aedes mosquitoes, including the Aedes aegypti, pictured here, and Asian Tiger mosquito. The Asian Tiger has a tell-tale black and white striped coloration, and they are typically larger than other mosquitoes, very aggressive and you will see them during the day. Aedes mosquitoes are container breeders, meaning they look for anything from a hole in a tree stump to a bucket or pot, that is holding water and they lay their eggs inside – mostly man-made containers. The In2Care trap mimics this container – providing water and shade, which is exactly what the female mosquito is looking for.

Mosquito Joe installs the traps throughout the yard, taking care to place them in the shade in likely locations for mosquito activity. A sachet is installed inside the trap and water is added. This water attracts the female mosquitoes when they are ready to lay their eggs. To do so, she will land on the side of the floater installed within the trap and lay her eggs on to the water. Those eggs will hatch into larvae which will wriggle around in the water until they start developing into become pupae. It is at this point that they will die.

But this is not the main purpose of the trap. It does far more, and that’s what makes it so exciting. When the female lands on the floater she picks up the biological fungus in the sachet and carries it off with her. She spreads that fungus to the places she lands – other egg-laying sites in particular. When she lands in these areas she kills the larvae there (when they pupate). She also spreads it to male mosquitoes when she breeds with them. A few days after landing on the floater she dies from contamination, but not before spreading the fungus to other areas of the yard for other mosquitoes to pick up and spread. In this way, the mosquitoes do all the work.

The fungus is not toxic to birds or mammals, but only insects. Taken to the In2Care website, “The larvicide deployed in the trap specifically targets mosquito larvae and is not toxic to higher organisms in this low concentration. For example, in other products, this larvicide has even been approved by WHO for use in drinking water. Contaminated females will only spread tiny amounts of larvicide (a few micrograms) to other artificial small water bodies, which limits any risk for other aquatic organisms and fish.”

If you want to learn more, this video and this video provide a great overview, while this one provides more insight into how it works.

Mosquito Joe of NW Houston will install the traps in your yard, and then manage them by replacing the sachets at each visit. Combining the In2Care system with our barrier service provides customers with our supreme protection service – taking care of the Aedes (In2Care) and the Culex and others (barrier service) with both options working together. Give us a call or text to learn more and we will be glad to give you a free quote and answer your questions – 281-815-0228.

There are many reported ways to mosquitoes at bay. Some work and many don’t. Here at Mosquito Joe, we offer proven options to control your mosquitoes and make your outside fun again. Misting Systems, Barrier Treatments, Traps, Repellants, Adulticides, and Larvicides; all are ways to help fight mosquitos. The key to success is to use the right combination at your property.

Barrier Treatments using both Adulticides and Larvicides have shown to be highly effective for most properties. They reduce the population of mosquitos by up to 95%. That’s pretty close to perfect and for most property owners it is all they need. However, for some properties, the 5% that aren’t taken care of can make a significant impact on their outdoor comfort.

Luckily, there are some adjuncts that can be used for those properties.

Mosquito Joe Max Protection – Thermacell LIV+ in conjunction with barrier service

In 2021, Mosquito Joe partnered with Thermacell to provide the LIV+ System to customers.

The LIV+ System comprises of a hub that is wired to a series of repellers that can be controlled by pushbutton or through an app on a smartphone. These repellers can be configured to protect up to about 1000 square feet outdoors. This is perfect for a patio area or for around a pool and when used with Mosquito Barrier Treatments, provides Maximum Protection from mosquitoes, biting midges, and even some flies.

• Completely customizable for your outdoor space.
• Can be used around people and pets.
• Environmentally friendly.
• No odor.
• On-demand, use it only when you need it.
• Can be controlled by your smartphone.
• Durable, handsome equipment installed by a professional

In2Care & Barrier Treatments

Some properties have off-site breeding grounds that hinder how well Mosquito Barrier Treatments work. A 95% reduction in mosquitoes is awesome, however, 5% of millions is a lot of mosquitoes. This is particularly true for those customers who suffer from a high population of Asian Tiger Mosquitoes. For these properties, In2Care traps are a great add-on. In2Care traps are the perfect place for Aedes Mosquitos to lay their eggs. When the female mosquito lays her eggs in the trap she takes a little dose of a biological fungus with her. When she visits the next water source, she will leave some of that fungus behind. She will also pass it along to male mosquitoes when they mate. This fungus targets newly hatched Mosquito Larvae and kills them as they move through their life cycle, preventing them from becoming adults. It also kills the adult carrying it. Over a period of 3-4 weeks, these traps can reduce the number of livable water sources for larvae and in turn greatly reduce the number of adult-biting mosquitoes. These traps, when used in conjunction with a barrier service and a proper Mosquito Management Plan, can make the difference for a customer who has a preponderance of Aedes in their yard.

For some customers a Misting System is the best option:

For some properties, particularly those that have a little barrier between surrounding properties (think golf course lots, for example) a barrier service may not be advised. While the service will kill the mosquitoes in your yard, it cannot prevent new ones from flying in if there is nothing but air between you and an untreated area. In these cases, we recommend a Misting System as an option. Installing a 55-gal drum on the side of the house, a nozzle system is installed that will spray out several times a day (the frequency is of your choosing) and allow you to manually spray as needed. The residue remains on the leaves, much like a Barrier Service, and works to kill mosquitoes as they fly by the mist of land on the leaves.

If you need Mosquito Control, give Mosquito Joe of NW Houston a call. We can come and look at your property and create a plan specific to your yard and needs. If you are currently on a Mosquito Control Plan and not getting the results you had hoped for Mosquito Joe can customize Treatments, Repellants, and Traps to make your Outside Fun Again. Our quotes are always free, and we are always happy to answer questions and help you decide what works for you. Just call us a call at 281-815-0228 or email us at nwhoustonbrazos@mosquitojoe.com.

Over the years we have discovered that the mosquito hawk gets a lot of blame it doesn’t deserve. We have been called back to customers’ homes because they have “giant mosquitoes we failed to kill” only to discover they have mosquito hawks hatching. We thought it was time to clear the air.

There are over 14,000 species of mosquito hawks and likely more have not yet been discovered. They live all over the globe, but we will try and limit our information here to those that we live with here in the Houston area.

The correct name for a mosquito hawk is a Crane Fly, although we have heard them referred to as “Daddy Long Legs”, “Skeeter Eater” and “Giant Mosquito”. Crane flies do not bite – they have no mouth parts with which to do so. They only live about 10 days, spending that time focused primarily on mating. If they do “eat” it is limited to drinking nectar or dew. They also don’t eat mosquitoes despite what you may have heard.

The life cycle of a Crane Fly is typically a year. Eggs are laid in later summer, usually in wet soil or algae, or for some species, in water. The larvae then hatch from these eggs and are grub-like in their appearance. A Crane fly will spend months in its larval form (some species up to 5 years!). They busy themselves breaking down decaying material in your yard and can be very beneficial to your soil as a result.

The European and Marsh Crane flies are considered an invasive species in the USA. They will feed off, and often destroy, crops. Others will feed off rotting wood and can cause damage to homes as they do so. But the majority will spend their time in the soil aerating it for you and participating in the food chain. In mid to late spring the larvae pupate into tough, brown carcasses often referred to as “leather jackets”. They are found just below the soil’s surface.

Crane fly pupae can cause damage to turf grass and can often cause brown spots, particularly seen on golf courses. Keeping your lawn manicured and dry will help prevent an abundance of these insects, thereby reducing your potential for this.

The pupae will emerge as fully-grown Crane flies in late summer or fall. You may see large numbers of them at times as the males swarm in search of females with which to breed. During this short time, they won’t eat, perhaps using their sucking mouth parts to drink if given the opportunity, or to feed on nectar. Most females lay their eggs within 24 hours of hatching, laying them once again in wet soil, algae, or water.

Crane flies are completely harmless to humans, neither biting nor carrying disease. They can provide important sustenance to the birds and beetles in your yard. Some species are attracted to light, and you will often see them kicking around your windows at night, or around your outside lights.

In short, these insects provide valuable benefits both as a food source for birds and other insects and to your soil. They have nothing to do with mosquitoes. On the other hand, if mosquitoes are your issue, we have a lot of blog posts that can give you more information about them. Of course, we can also get rid of them for you. Just give us a call and we can get you a free quote, no strings – 281-815-0228.