Jimmy Bray, age 10, of Beaumont, Texas, for his question:

HOW MANY KINDS OF MOSQUITOS ARE THERE?

Mosquito is a common name for any of about 2,000 species of two winged insects of the family Culicidae. The mouthparts of the female are long and are adapted for piercing and for sucking blood. She prefers the blood of warm blooded animals and when she bites, she injects some of her salivary fluid into the wound, causing swelling and irritation.

Mosquitoes can be found from the tropics to the Arctic Circle and from lowlands to high mountains.

The male, which feeds on nectar and water, has rudimentary mouthparts and cannot pierce an animal's skin.

Female mosquitoes lay their eggs only in water. Some species lay their eggs in running water, others in woodland pools, marshes, swamps, estuaries, artificial containers such as rain barrels and wherever else satisfactory conditions are present. The larvas are known as wrigglers because of their wriggling motion in the water.

Mosquitoes may be controlled by spraying with insecticides or by eliminating their breeding places.