Where do Mosquitoes Go During the Winter?

Why Don’t Mosquitoes Become Extinct in Freezing Temperatures?

We know mosquitoes come back year-after-year-after-year-after year. This leaves many people wondering how they do that if they can’t handle the cold weather. Some might think…

Do mosquitoes migrate south and fly back to Central Mass in summer? No.

Do mosquitoes hibernate like bears? Some. Not quite the same as bears though.

Do mosquitoes all die off in the winter? No. But many do.

A curious thing about mosquitoes, they cannot survive in winter, and yet, every spring, there they are again.

There is a general misconception that bugs die off during the harsh Massachusetts winter, and that includes mosquitoes. Turns out they don’t all die off, neither do their eggs. Here is where mosquitoes actually go in the winter, which accounts for why they return in large quantities when the weather is just right.

Adults:

Many adult mosquitoes actually become dormant during the winter. How do they do this? They hang out in hollow logs, basements, or animal burrows and wait out the arrival of spring and summer weather.

In fact, some can even hibernate during the larval stage in the mud of ponds and swamps.

Eggs:

Some types of mosquitoes that cannot survive winter with hibernation will actually lay “winter-hardy” eggs. Once the temperature and humidity hit the right mark (usually the 60s – but they become most active in the 80s) for a long enough period, eggs begin to hatch, and the adults soon become active again.

It only takes a few to survive winter to spawn an entire generation of millions of offspring who will continuously multiply too. (But in reality, many make it through the winter months.) Remember, a mosquito lays about 300 eggs at a time, that can all hatch about a week later during the warmest months. That leaves a lot of time for each new batch of mosquitoes to lay more eggs of their own and so on and so forth. Mosquitoes multiply like bunnies. Or maybe, bunnies multiply like mosquitoes.

With the combination of being able to go dormant or lay eggs that survive winter and their ability to multiply quickly, mosquitoes are one of the most enduring creatures on Earth.

Also read: When should I start my Ashland mosquito control?