That’s 1 big mosquito but this one is harmless
A Chinese entomologist has found a giant mosquito with a wingspan of 11.15 centimeters.
Zhao Li, curator of the Insect Museum of West China, said the mosquito, which belongs to the world’s largest mosquito species Holorusia mikado, was found last August during a field trip to Mount Qingcheng in Chengdu, capital of southwest Sichuan Province.
First found in Japan and named by British entomologist John Obadiah Westwood in 1876, the Holorusia mikado species normally have a wing span of about 8 centimeters.
“These mosquitoes look horrendous, but do not feed on blood. The adults have a life span of only a few days and mainly feed on nectar,” Zhao said. “There are tens of thousands of types of mosquitoes in the world. Barely 100 species feed on blood and may be a problem for humans.”
In the western parts of Sichuan, Holorusia mikado, also known as the crane fly, are mainly found in the Chengdu Plain and in mountainous areas below 2,200 meters.
“They are weak fliers because of their big bodies. When they fly, it is more like hopping. More often than not, they are found in areas with dense vegetation,” Zhao said.
The museum houses over 700,000 specimens.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
- RSS
- |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证:沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证:31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证:0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证:沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证:沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.