Malaria story: Activity 4 - Different types of mosquitoes

Work in groups to collect some mosquitoes from your school or home.

You can kill them if you are not able to collect live mosquitoes.

Keep the mosquitoes on a white background and look at them carefully

Observe the mosquitoes and complete the following table using as many mosquitoes as you can catch.

Serial number	Time (Night or Day)	Black completely (yes/no)	Stripes on wings (yes/no)	Spots on legs	Location
1.
2.
3.

Compare your tables with other groups.

There are 3 main types of mosquitoes that you will find in your neighbourhood. The ones that appear completely black are called Culex. The ones that have stripes on wings are called Anopheles. A major identity feature of Anopheles mosquitoes is their posture while resting on a flat surface. If you look closely, you will see that the mosquitoes sit at an angle to the surface. Unlike Aedes and Culex, their body will not be parallel to the surface. Anopheles is the ones that can carry malaria. The ones that have black and white spots are called Aedes. Aedes mosquitoes can carry the dengue just like Anopheles can carry malaria.