A mosquito’s life cycle begins with an adult female laying eggs, which then need a body of water to hatch into (usually stagnant fresh water). Some species lay eggs directly onto the water’s surface, sticking them together as a raft; others drop theirs in one by one (like those pictured, which belong to an Anopheles mosquito). Some instead prefer to lay their eggs near to water, leaving them to be flooded.
Credit: Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, courtesy of A Stich/Wellcome Images
