The tiger mosquito is the small, striped biter San Diegans know as the ankle biter, and it feeds in broad daylight.
Mosquito window screens keep tiger mosquitoes out of your home, so click here to contact Total Screen, today.
In this guide, we will explain what a tiger mosquito looks like, why it bites in daylight, and where the breeding happens in a San Diego yard.
An intact window screen stops an ankle biter at the sill, so get mosquito screens installed before the next warm spell.
What Does A Tiger Mosquito Look Like?
A tiger mosquito is small and black, with white stripes down its back and legs.[3]
California's public-health agency calls the same insect Aedes albopictus, the Asian tiger mosquito.[3]
The County of San Diego describes the invasive Aedes mosquitoes as smaller than San Diego's native mosquitoes.[2]
One white stripe down the back and banded legs are what separate a tiger mosquito from San Diego's native mosquitoes.
Two more ankle biters live here as well: Aedes aegypti and Aedes notoscriptus.[1]
The County groups all three together as invasive Aedes mosquitoes, the ankle biters.[1]
Invasive Aedes mosquitoes were first found in San Diego County in 2014.[1]
Why Does A Tiger Mosquito Bite During The Day?
A tiger mosquito bites during the day, especially around the legs and ankles.[1]
The County also notes that ankle biters can bite aggressively and multiple times.[1]
California's public-health agency notes that even a small number of Aedes mosquitoes can become an extreme nuisance.[3]
Ankle biters work close to the ground in full daylight, which is when most people assume mosquitoes are asleep.
Most of San Diego's native mosquitoes feed between dusk and dawn instead, and the County says the native ones do not bite during daylight hours.[2]
Ankle biters will feed around dusk and dawn as well, but rarely after dark.[2]
If you have wondered when do mosquitoes come out in San Diego, the honest answer is that it depends on the species.
A daytime biter means an evening-only defense leaves the whole afternoon open.
Where Tiger Mosquitoes Breed In A San Diego Yard
A tiger mosquito lays its eggs in small containers of water, in backyards and even inside homes.[1]
The County says a quarter inch of water is enough.[1]
Tree holes and the saucers under flower pots are typical ankle-biter nurseries.[2]
A plant saucer refills itself every time you water, which is all the depth an ankle biter needs.
Ankle-biter eggs can survive six months without water, then hatch once rain or a sprinkler finally covers them.[2]
During a dengue response, the County asked residents to dump out, drain, or remove anything that holds water, indoors and out.[4]
Ankle biters already breeding indoors are a different problem, covered in our guide to how to get rid of mosquitoes in your house.
How Far Does A Tiger Mosquito Travel?
A tiger mosquito has a flight range of about 150 yards.[2]
By comparison, one of San Diego's native mosquitoes can fly up to five miles.[2]
The ankle biter biting you in your own backyard almost certainly hatched within a couple of blocks of where you are standing.
An ankle biter's whole world is about a block and a half wide, which puts the source inside your neighborhood.
A short flight range makes the tiger mosquito a property-level problem, not a regional one.
Emptying the containers on your own property removes the ankle biters that hatch there.
Screening the openings on your house stops the ones that hatched in a neighbor's yard.
Are Tiger Mosquitoes Dangerous?
The County lists dengue, Zika, yellow fever and chikungunya among the illnesses invasive Aedes mosquitoes can carry.[1]
Ankle biters can also spread dog heartworm.[1]
San Diego County has recorded a locally acquired dengue case.[4]
Ankle biters can carry dog heartworm, so a screened door protects the household that cannot swat.
The County's interim public health officer said that the risk of widespread transmission of dengue remains low in San Diego County.[4]
For most San Diego households, the tiger mosquito is a daily nuisance rather than a health emergency.
Our guide to mosquito illness covers what the local risk actually looks like.
How To Keep Tiger Mosquitoes Out Of Your Home
The County of San Diego advises homeowners to use a fine mesh to prevent the small Aedes mosquitoes from getting in.[1]
Size is the whole reason the County's advice names a fine mesh rather than any screen at all.
Total Screen installs a standard 18×16 mesh, and a finer 20×20 no-see-um mesh where a tighter weave is wanted.
Total Screen builds the screen to the opening, so the frame seats flush and leaves no gap at the edge.
Phifer, the manufacturer, calls 20×20 a 15-to-20 percent tighter weave that keeps out most smaller flying insects, like no-see-ums, gnats & sand flies.[5]
The fit matters as much as the weave, because a 150-yard flight range puts the source inside your own block.
An intact screen leaves no opening an ankle biter can use, so can mosquitoes get through window screens comes down to holes, tears and gaps at the frame.
Get Ahead Of The Ankle Biters
Now that you can spot a tiger mosquito, the best time to check your screens is before the next warm stretch.
The second-best time to check your screens is today.
Total Screen repairs, rescreens & replaces window and door screens across San Diego, often with a same day or next day appointment.
Screens that sit flush in every opening are the difference between a yard problem and a house problem.
Call Total Screen at (619) 871-7610 for a free on-site estimate.
Or click here to fill out our 2-question contact-form, and we'll get in touch right away.
Let's make your home the one the ankle biters cannot get into.
Disclaimer: Total Screen is not a mosquito-control or public-health authority. This article is provided for informational purposes only, and is based on our online research of publicly available documents from the County of San Diego, the California Department of Public Health and the other sources listed below. To report a mosquito problem, or to ask about treatment on your property, contact the County of San Diego's Vector Control Program.
Sources
- County of San Diego, DEH — Invasive Aedes Mosquitoes (“ankle biter”; first found in the county in 2014; “Bite during the day, especially around the legs and ankles”; “Can bite aggressively and multiple times”; “lay eggs in small containers of water”; “Even 1/4″ of water is enough”; “Use a fine mesh to prevent the small Aedes mosquitoes from getting in”). sandiegocounty.gov
- San Diego County News Center — “Know Your Mosquitoes? Read the Tale of the Tape!” (Aedes smaller than native mosquitoes, distinctive black and white markings, flight range about 150 yards, tree holes and flower-pot saucers, eggs survive six months dry). countynewscenter.com
- California Department of Public Health — Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus Mosquitoes (Asian tiger mosquito; “small, black mosquitoes with white stripes on their back and legs”; “bite during the day, and even a small number of mosquitoes can become an extreme nuisance”). cdph.ca.gov
- San Diego County News Center — County Reports First Locally Acquired Dengue Case, October 2024 (“the risk of widespread transmission of dengue remains low in San Diego County”; “Dump out, drain, or remove any items inside and outside of homes that can hold water”). countynewscenter.com
- Phifer — Bug Protection (“15 to 20 percent tighter weave than standard insect screening”; keeps out most smaller flying insects like no-see-ums, gnats and sand flies). phifer.com