• Question: Why do moquitos suck blood?

    Asked by asiansupreme to Anil, Blanka, Cees, Emma, Mike on 28 Jun 2012.
    • Photo: Blanka Sengerova

      Blanka Sengerova answered on 28 Jun 2012:

      I had to look this up but apparently it’s only the female mosquitoes that suck blood and they do this to get protein to nourish the eggs that they are carrying.

      For a bit of trivia, if you prick yourself with a needle, your blood will soon start clotting and sticking together to stop you bleeding too much. When a mosquito bites you (or rather pricks you) it injects a substance called an anticoagulant, which stops the blood from clotting too much so that it continues to flow into their little sucking tube…

    • Photo: Emma Trantham

      Emma Trantham answered on 28 Jun 2012:

      As Blanka said, it’s only the females that feed on blood (in some species this is because they can’t make eggs until they have fed on blood, whereas in others the blood provides the nutrients for the eggs they are already carrying).

      Both male and female mosquitos feed mostly on nectar, plant juices and rotting vegetation. Yum…

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