Mosquitos are little bastards that do more killing, spread more disease, and cause more annoyance than any other creature on Earth. That’s because they have a really sophisticated system for biting us to suck our blood. But exactly how they bite might surprise you.
It’s a gnarly process. Mosquitos use two needles with tiny teeth to saw through our skin; another two needles to hold the tissue apart; a sharp labrum needle to probe for a blood vessel to suck blood from it; and a final needle to drool saliva into us to keep our blood flowing. That’s six needles to do the damn job.
That last needle, the hypopharynx, with the saliva is the one that causes the itchiness and is the one that delivers deadly viruses and parasites like Zika and Malaria.
source: gizmodo.com by Casey Chan
The Fat Cat Collective 