The MN mosquito mambo
she will have you.
(infrared radiation) and the carbon dioxide that
The only solution is to get out of bed, switch on we exhale.
the light, and try to get her before she gets you.
Mosquitoes in Minnesota can transmit some
I shudder to think of what it would be like if unpleasant diseases, such as encephalitis, but we
some larger predator had the ruthlessness of a are fortunate that they don’t transmit yellow fever
Minnesota mosquito.
or malaria. Worldwide, mosquitoes infect about
Grizzly
bears
are
magnifi
cent
animals
and
im-
500 million people with diseases each year, re-
Curmudgeon’s
pressive
predators,
but
they
generally
avoid
con-
sulting in about two million deaths.
Corner
tact
with
humans.
Imagine
what
life
would
be
Recently, an unwelcome addition joined Min-
IVAN RACONTEUR • EDITOR
like if bears developed the thirst for our blood nesota’s mosquito population. The Japanese rock
that mosquitoes demonstrate.
pool mosquito, a potential carrier of the LaCrosse
The shortest season is special in our state be-
A well-timed slap is fatal to a mosquito, but it encephalitis virus and the West Nile virus, has
cause it allows us to venture forth into the great
would only annoy a grizzly bear.
been expanding its territory in the state since
outdoors to enjoy so many activities that we
Of course, swatting the devils is only our last about 2007.
love.
line of defense. An entire industry has grown up
Part of the problem with mosquitoes is that
Every evening, thousands of Minnesotans can
around killing mosquitoes, or at least keeping there are so many of them. A single female mos-
be found on decks, in driveways, at the lake, or
them at bay long enough for us to enjoy a ball quito can lay up to 400 eggs at a time, and eggs
at sports fi elds across the state performing that
game or social event.
can survive for as long as fi ve years. The eggs
unique form of aerobic exercise known as the
We spray chemicals on wetlands and other po- need water in order to hatch, which is why the
Minnesota mosquito mambo.
tential breeding grounds to try to kill them. We fl ying fi ends are so abundant after a heavy rain.
This distinctive exercise involves trying to
cover ourselves with an array of toxic chemicals
Some species of mosquitoes can produce four
slap both arms, both legs, and the spot directly
in a feeble attempt to keep them away.
or more generations per year. Eggs in the ground
between one’s shoulder blades simultaneously,
We rig up elaborate devices to attract and elec- can survive over the winter, waiting to produce
while hopping from foot to foot, and alternately
trocute them, and we even wear clip-on devices the next crop of tiny tormentors in the spring.
waving one’s arms over one’s head and blowing
designed to repel them, but still they come.
Many cities have adopted programs to com-
vigorously to keep the little devils out of one’s
We usually talk about mosquitoes in general bat mosquitoes. It would be nearly impossible to
face.
terms, but there are actually about 170 species eliminate them, but the spraying programs seem
It is a complex activity, but it is one that Min-
in North America. Minnesota is home to about to help.
nesotans learn at an early age.
50 species of mosquitoes, and more than half of
In addition to inspiring the Minnesota mosqui-
This ritual begins at about dusk every summer
these bite humans.
to mambo, mosquitoes, like the harsh Minnesota
evening, and has been taking place since long be-
There are so many of them, in fact, that they winters, help defi ne who we are as a people and
fore Minnesota became a state.
have been described as Minnesota’s “unoffi cial a state.
There is a common misconception about why
state bird.”
They can also help us appreciate those brief pe-
settlement took so long in this rugged region.
Mosquitoes are members of the insect class ae- riods in the spring and fall, between snow season
Many people think it was the harsh winters that
des, genus culex, and the order diptera.
and mosquito season, when we can enjoy the out-
kept settlers away, but that is not the case.
There are about 3,000 species of mosquitoes doors without being covered by winter wardrobes
Even in the days of the earliest pioneers, people
in the world, but most Minnesotans would say or the chemicals of summer.
found ways to cope with the cold and snow, and
that ours are the fi erc-
even embraced them. It is the Minnesota sum-
est. This is probably
mers that people found most daunting.
because we have such
The mosquito mambo is just one of the ways
a short season. It gives
we try to protect ourselves from the state’s small-
them a sense of urgen-
est predators.
cy about getting their
Some might say it is an exaggeration to call
next snack of human
mosquitoes predators, but anyone who has spent
blood.
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any time in a quiet room with one of these winged
Lest anyone get the
•
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Residential,
&
Farm
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demons knows what I am talking about.
wrong idea about the
Their small size does not limit their ferocity or
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fact that only female
their aggressiveness. If one is trying to read while
FAST,
mosquitoes bite hu-
trapped in a room with one of these miniature
Call
Genie
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Cleaning
today!
mans, it should be
EFFECTIVE,
kamikaze’s, one will eventually have to put down
Your drain and sewer specialists
noted that they use the
SERVICE
the book in order to devote all of one’s attention
blood to nourish their
to self defense.
eggs (the males feed on
�������������������������������
If one is trying to get to sleep in the same cir-
plant nectar or sap).
cumstances, the high-pitched whine of one’s tor-
The crafty she-dev-
mentor will drive one to the edge of madness.
ils fi nd us by sensing
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One can try to hide under the covers, but even-
the heat of our bodies
tually one will have to come up for air, and then
W ish it A w ay
by C alling To day
(320) 587-4110
8
Senior
Connections July/August 2019
Senior Connections HJ.COM