Mosquito lava and tadpoles ?

[piffy57]

hI! post number one! I am well new to the pond thing! it was mines first birthday this month, so i aint an expert, but I had 'squigley' guys last year and they are back now. closest I found in t' internet was non biting mossies. I have to be honest and say as a new starter to this kind of thing I thought 'mosquito' was a scary word! but we did not get bitten at ALL last summer!! aren't they more or less just midges? and blood worm is part of the cycle? and our amphibian friends like them for lunch? or do I have it wrong?

[ollyk]

Originally Posted by piffy57

hI! post number one! I am well new to the pond thing! it was mines first birthday this month, so i aint an expert, but I had 'squigley' guys last year and they are back now. closest I found in t' internet was non biting mossies. I have to be honest and say as a new starter to this kind of thing I thought 'mosquito' was a scary word! but we did not get bitten at ALL last summer!! aren't they more or less just midges? and blood worm is part of the cycle? and our amphibian friends like them for lunch? or do I have it wrong?

Yes the blood worms are Chinomorid midges, and are different. the things that wiggle up and down first start tiny, then in the final stages turn into what looks like a 'comma'. This is the pupal stage, but unlike butterflies still quite active. A mosquito soon emerges which could either be biting or non biting. Oh, it is only the female that bites, and this is to draw blood which they feed off, there is no intention to sting! Also, when we say non biting it is normally that a particular species won't tend to bite man for whatever reason, probably not because they can't! (we may not 'smell' right).
I am sure there is someone far more more knowledgable than myself here can correct me on this though!
Oh I am not sure if there are any biting midges or not...

[Krewella]

Well I think I have the biting non biting thing sorted .....both legs and ankles covered in bites spent whole night itching .Was watching mossie like things at the pond yesturday and today the pond is now full of them...I am hoping they will provided great food for soon to be froglets either than Or I am going to have to start wearing a protective suit lol They also choose who to bite as daughter and husband not one

[smartie]

Originally Posted by Krewella

Well I think I have the biting non biting thing sorted .....both legs and ankles covered in bites spent whole night itching .Was watching mossie like things at the pond yesturday and today the pond is now full of them...I am hoping they will provided great food for soon to be froglets either than Or I am going to have to start wearing a protective suit lol They also choose who to bite as daughter and husband not one

A lot of people who say they "don't get bitten" actually do but just don't get much of a reaction to the bites. Unfortunately I do react badly, so I wish brainfarmer was right and mozzies didn't breed here. When I'm out in the season I tend to wear trousers stuffed into socks, as legs do seem to be the preferred feeding sites! If you are prepared to have fish in your pond (they aren't that friendly to the other wildlife so quite a lot of wildlife gardeners don't) golden orfe have quite a taste for mozzie larvae.

[nightshade]

In Spain there is a walled village called SanMartin there the mossies
are famous for the virulence of their bites I set up the mossie net
and went to bed,I awoke with my head against the net and had
been bitten on the earlobe through the net and had a lump the
size of a grape