Elephant mosquito
The elephant mosquito is one of the biggest mosquitoes there is. It shines with purple and golden scales and has a long, curved nose like a little elephant trunk. And here is the best part: it never bites people.
How big is it?
How long is it?
How wide are its wings?
How big is Elephant mosquito compared to YOU?
Just maths in your browser. Nothing is saved or sent anywhere.
How fast is it?
Fun facts
Its babies hunt the babies of other mosquitoes, even kinds that spread sickness.
Mother mosquitoes lay eggs while flying. They fly in smaller and smaller circles and then drop each egg into the water.
Its baby can grow to 2 centimetres long, much longer than the grown-up mosquito.
It likes to lay eggs in water that collects in holes in trees, or even in old tyres.
Scientists have tried to use it to fight biting mosquitoes in places like Hawaii, Florida and Japan.
Most asked questions about Elephant mosquito
?Does the elephant mosquito bite?
No. Both boys and girls drink only nectar, so they never bite people.
?How big is the elephant mosquito?
It grows up to about 7 millimetres long, with wings about 12 millimetres across.
?Why is the elephant mosquito helpful?
Its babies eat the babies of mosquitoes that bite and spread disease.
For bug experts
- Scientific name
- Toxorhynchites rutilus
- Group
- Flies and mosquitoes
- Family
- Culicidae
- Classification
- Insecta > Diptera > Culicidae
- Lives on
- North America
- Also known as
- Treehole predatory mosquito
Where the facts come from
- Toxorhynchites rutilus (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0): what it looks like, where it lives, what it eats, sizes and fun facts, retold in simple words.
- Picture by Insects Unlocked. CC0, Wikimedia Commons. The round sticker of this bug is cut from the same picture.
If we got something wrong, sorry, we are bug fans, not a science journal. Tell us at hello@bugwiki.app and we will fix it.
Housefly
New World screwworm fly
Lovebug
Tsetse fly
Common fruit fly
Asian tiger mosquito
Peacock tarantula
American dagger moth
Hickory tussock moth
Io moth
Long-tailed giant ichneumon wasp
Imperial moth_(22098891905).jpg){kind=link}