An often-heard refrain is “I hope it gets cold enough to kill all the bugs.” While the thought is understandable from some perspectives, it is totally impractical.
Most bugs and other tiny critters, be they insects, arachnids or worms, are beneficial to human habitation of the planet. They provide a myriad of important, but often overlooked, services at no economic cost to humanity.
High on this list is pollination, especially of agronomic crops which feed people, pets and livestock. They also perform clean up services by speeding the decay and recycling of dead organic material.
Still, it is a bit of a mystery how tiny coldblooded creatures survive subfreezing weather events like the one of a few weeks ago. The techniques vary by species and their geographic environment.
While it may not appear as an ideal winter reprieve, swampy spots offer mosquitos and many other insects winter survival prospects. When the weather warms, they will come out for a visit.
Mosquitoes are likely the most reviled insects in panhandle Florida, if not the planet. Their ability to appear anywhere at a moment’s notice and inflict painful contact has garnered almost universal ill will.
These flying nuisances cease to function when the air temperature drops below 50 degrees Fahrenheit. Depending on the species of mosquito, and there are over 80 different ones in Florida, they initiate different survival tactics.
Some females will lay fertile eggs in available stagnant water and then die. Others will position themselves in a protected location and enter a state of suspended animation called diapause.
Even the eggs and larvae enter a state of halted development when the temperatures are too low. They rest in sheltered locations waiting for the return of warm weather.
The male mosquitos will die and be replaced at the next hatching. Their only function in their short lives is to service the females.
Human habitation has improved the prospect of mosquitos surviving cold temperatures. Standing water in and around the home will provide this insect a site to deposit eggs.
Catch dishes under potted plants are a common source of the needed liquid, but there are others. Refrigerator drip pans, vases and any other container holding water could be a site for mosquito eggs to mature in the heated home during winter.
Porches and outbuildings may provide just enough heat and a water basin for mosquitoes, too. Keeping water drained is the best method of mosquito prevention.
Other arthropods are also likely to use the comfortable environment of warm interiors occupied by people. Spiders will occupy niches that are only traversed by their prey.
Not generally considered as preferred house guests, these eight-legged creatures silently perform pest control duties. None have humans on their menu, and most are completely harmless (except to insects).
In the outdoors bugs must find the available resources to assure the continuation of their species. Many, like grasshoppers, just lay eggs in the best possible spot and succumb to the seasonal change.
If lucky, these orphaned insects will be within easy reach of emerging vegetation. It helps that they are not picky eaters.
Some butterflies, monarchs and sulfurs migrate south, and their progeny return the following spring. Others are residential, leaving their eggs and larvae which endure in protected spots and bouts of diapause.
If the weather did get cold enough to kill all the bugs, it is not likely humans would survive either. And if the cold did not kill, paying the power bill would.
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