|  Mosquito larvae, commonly
called "wigglers," live in water from 4 to 14 days
depending on water temperature.
Larvae must come to the surface at frequent intervals to
obtain oxygen through a breathing tube called a siphon. They
are constantly
feeding since maturation requires a huge amount of energy and
food. They hang with their heads down and the brushes by their
mouths filtering anything small enough to be eaten toward their
mouths to nourish the growing larvae. They feed on algae, plankton,
fungi and bacteria and other microorganisms. They
breath at
the water surface with the breathing tube up breaking the
water surface
tension. One mosquito species larva feeds on larvae of other
mosquitoes: Toxorhynchites, the largest mosquito known, are
predators of other mosquito larvae sharing their habitat.
Their larvae
are much larger than other mosquito larvae.
During growth, the larva molts (sheds its skin) four times.
The stages between molts are called instars. At the 4th instar,
the
usual larva reaches a length of almost 1/2 inch and toward
the end of this instar ceases feeding. When the 4th instar
larva
molts, it becomes a pupa.
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