Watch how Mosquito uses 6 needles to bite and suck blood !
Ever wondered what really happens when a mosquito sits on your skin and sucks the blood out of you and occasionally leaves behind a gift for you, the virus it carries.
The proboscis present in the mosquito’s mouth is a complex system of thin needles, each of which instead consists of six needle-like parts (stylets). It pierces the skin, finds blood vessels and makes it easy for mosquitoes to suck the blood out of them.
During the biting, if the female mosquito, a flexible lip-like sheath called the labium scrolls up and stays outside as she pushes in the stylets.
The six needles present in each of the proboscis are as follows:
- Maxillae (present in pair) – It helps the mosquito cut through the skin with the tiny teeth like structure present in them.
- Mandibles (present in pair) – Works like clips and keeps the tissue separated till the blood is sucked.
- Labrum (sharp-tipped needle) – Searches for the blood vessel under the skin and sucks the blood
- Hypopharynx – It releases the mosquito that contains chemicals that keep the blood flowing and blood vessels dilated. It also serves as the delivery route for the dangerous virus.
Watch the mosquito sucking the blood in the following video.
