Common house mosquito (Culex pipiens)

Scientific Name:
In the scientific world, this mosquito is known as Culex pipiens. In English, they are commonly referred to as the common house mosquito or northern house mosquito.
Family and Genus:
According to the classification of the animal kingdom, it belongs to the family Culicidae of the order Diptera. It is a type species for the genus Culex.

Origin and Habitat:
Native to Africa, Asia and Europe, they are now widely distributed in temperate regions on every continent except Antarctica. They are heavily found in human habitats and urban areas with poor wastewater management.

Food:
Only female mosquitoes consume vertebrate blood including human blood to develop their ovaries, whereas male mosquitoes limit themselves to sugary food sources like plant nectar and honeydew.

Reproduction:
They breed in stagnant water bodies, flood-prone areas, natural marshes, and unkempt artificial water structures containing organic material. Eggs hatch into water-dwelling larvae and go through the pupal stage before emerging as adults.

Benefits:
They play a role in nature's food chain and act as pollinators for certain plants like tansy and yarrow flowers.

Harmful Aspects:
They are major vectors for transmitting dangerous diseases such as West Nile virus, Saint Louis encephalitis, and avian malaria. Their bites also cause allergic skin reactions and itching in humans.

I learned about them from various sites including iNaturalist, Wikipedia and Google.

_{​(All posts are written in Bengali and translated into English using Google Translate.)}

Camera Used	Samsung SM-G973F
F-Stop	F2.4
ISO speed	ISO
Focal length	26mm
Flash	No
Editing app	Lightroom
Photography	(Culex pipiens)
Photographer	@mshbd
Location	Natore, Bangladesh