Mosquitoes belong to the class Insecta. Aedes, anopheles and culex are the main species of mosquitoes. They tend to be vectored to various diseases.
So, what is the main difference between the Aedes and Anopheles mosquitoes? The former refers to a species of mosquito that serves as an intermediate host of yellow fever, chikungunya, and dengue while the latter refers to a species that serves as an intermediate host of malaria.
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Comparison Table (Aedes vs Anopheles)
| Basic Terms | Aedes | Anopheles |
| Meaning | Refers to a species of mosquito that serves as an intermediate host of yellow fever. | Refers to a species that serves as an intermediate host of malaria. |
| Number of Species | They are about 950 species | They are about 3500species. |
| Habitat | They can live in polluted water bodies. | They live in clean, unpolluted water. |
| Intermediate Host | They are intermediate hosts of yellow fever and chikungunya. | The intermediate host of malaria. |
| Location for Laying Eggs | They lay their eggs in the inner walls of artificial containers. | Lay eggs their eggs on the water surface. |
| Behavior of Larvae | They stay inside water as they have breathing tubes that enable them to breathe while inside the water. | They lay parallel to the surface of the water in order to get oxygen. |
| Color of Adults | They have black bodies and light and dark bands on their legs. | They are dark brown in color. |
| Resting Position | They lie parallel to their surface. | They rest at a 45 degrees angle. |
| Active During the Day | They are active and only bite during the day. | They are active at dusk or dawn or at night. |
| General Behavior | They are active during the day and they mostly bite people very early in the morning and evening before dusk. | Some feed and rest indoors but some do it outdoors. They mostly bite people during the night. |
| Indoors or Outdoors | They mostly rest indoors. | Most of them prefer to rest indoors after feeding but also some rest outdoors. |
What Are Aedes Mosquitoes?
Aedes mosquito is a species that is highly recognized due to its color: that is, it has a black body and black and white striped legs. They live in tree holes, overflow ditches, and old tires.
The species is an intermediate host of various diseases such as yellow fever, chikungunya, and dengue fever.
The mosquito is majorly active during the day and bites people either very early in the morning or in the evening before dusk.
What Are Anopheles Mosquitoes?
Anopheles mosquito is a species that is dark brown in color. They live in clean water habitats such as marshes, swamps, and rice fields.
The species is an intermediate host of malaria. Not all Anopheles mosquitoes transmit malaria, it is only the female anopheles mosquitoes that transmit malaria.
Unlike other mosquito larvae, Anopheles larvae do not have breathing tubes and this makes them lie parallel to the surface of the water and this makes them able to breathe.
The species tend to feed on people and cattle rather than other warm-blooded creatures. They mostly bite people at night.
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Main Difference between Aedes and Anopheles Mosquitoes
- Aedes is an intermediate host for yellow fever and dengue while anopheles is an intermediate host for malaria
- Adult Aedes has a black body and white and black striped legs while the anopheles has a dark and brown color.
- Aedes are active during the day and they mostly bite during the day while the anopheles are active at night or at dusk or dawn and they bite people during the night.
- Aedes lay parallel to the surface during resting while the anopheles rest at a 45 degrees angle.
- Aedes larvae stay in the water as they have the breathing tubes that enable them to breathe while the anopheles stays on the surface of the water as they do not have the breathing tubes and this makes them only use the spiracles on their sides of the bodies to breathe.
- Female Aedes lay their eggs in the inner walls of artificial containers while female anopheles lay their eggs on the surface of clean water bodies.
- Aedes mosquitos can live in polluted water bodies while Anopheles mosquitoes only live in clean, unpolluted water bodies.
Similarities between Aedes and Anopheles Mosquitoes
- Both the Aedes and Anopheles mosquitoes breed in water bodies.
- Both Aedes and anopheles transmit diseases to human beings.
- They both go through the four stages of development; that is egg, larvae, pupa, and lastly adults.
- They both feed on blood from other warm-blooded animals.
- They both live in water.
- They both bite human beings.
- They both lay eggs in water bodies.
FAQs about Aedes and Anopheles Mosquitoes
How to Identify Aedes Mosquito?
Aedes mosquitoes are mostly identified by their color which is black bodies and white and black striped legs. They rest parallel to the surface hence that makes it easier to be identified from anopheles mosquito.
How Do You Identify an Anopheles Mosquito?
Anopheles mosquitoes are dark brown in color and they rest at an angle of 45 degrees. Mostly they are seen at night as they are nocturnal.
Where do Anopheles Mosquitoes Live?
Anopheles mosquitoes live in clean, unpolluted water. The water bodies preferred are marshes, swamps, and rice fields.
How Do You Tell If It’s A Mosquito Bite?
There are various signs that can make you tell if it is a mosquito bite. They include a puffy, red, and white bump that appears a few minutes after the bite, a small blister instead of a hard bump, dark spots that look like bruises, hard, itchy, reddish-brown bump. Any of these signs will tell that you have been bitten by a mosquito.
How Many Times Will A Mosquito Bite You?
There is no limit to the number of times a mosquito can bite you. It can bite you several times up to the time it will be full.
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Summary
There are various mosquito species of mosquito but they all belong to the class Insecta. The main species tend to be culex, Aedes, and anopheles. They all transmit diseases and all go through the same stages of growth and development.
Although they are somehow different in the way they behave, they all feed on blood and bite human beings at different times of the day or night.
More Sources and References
- Mosquito Information. National Institute of Health
- Anopheles Mosquito. Wikipedia
- Mosquito Species. Mosquito World