Mosquitoes at dusk? After treatment?

Though we’d like to claim we can control all 2500 species of mosquitoes (or we’d even settle with the 80-ish species found in Canada!) there is one mosquito that is difficult to control. This species is named “Coquillettidia perturbans“, or nicknamed “cattail” mosquito.


The lifespan of this mosquito is generally short – 3 to 4 weeks and tends to occur mid June to mid July. These mosquitoes are very aggressive and come out for about 30-45 minutes at dusk. They also travel long distances without touching plants. This is different behaviour than all other types of mosquitoes. Though we try our best, mosquito treatments are at time ineffective against this species as they do not hide in the shade of trees / bushes that we treat (otherwise our pesticide would knock them down). To stay cool, this mosquito uses freshwater even in adult form rather than the shade from the trees.


For those interested in reading more, the University of Florida has a great article.