Bug FAQPlains Floodwater Mosquito
Aedes trivittatus · Order: Diptera · Family: Culicidae
Source: Wikipedia
Aedes trivittatus is a medium-sized mosquito; its larvae grow from about 2.4 mm to 6.6 mm through four instars. Adults have a dark, unbanded abdomen, clear wings with dark-scaled veins, and two broad yellow-white stripes on the mesonotum separated by a bronzy-brown strip.
Source: Wikipedia
How to recognize it
Two wide yellow-white stripes run along the top of the mesonotum, divided by a bronzy-brown strip of similar width.
Source: Wikipedia
Size
Adults are medium sized. Larvae range from roughly 2.4 mm to 6.6 mm as they pass through four instars.
Source: Wikipedia
Does it bite or sting?
Female bites can transmit blood to the mosquito but any effect on people is currently unknown. The related trivittatus virus can infect several mammals, though its impact on humans has not been documented.
Source: Wikipedia
What it eats
Both sexes feed on nectar and other sugars. Females bite mammals to obtain blood needed for egg development.
Source: Wikipedia
Life cycle
Its life cycle is similar to other Aedes mosquitoes.
Source: Wikipedia
When you see it
Development time varies widely with environmental conditions, and ideal conditions are unclear.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it comes from
Sightings also include Mexico, Central America, and occasional records in South America.
Source: Wikipedia
Where it is found in the US
Recorded in 37 of 51 states and DC. Most records: Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Montana, Maryland, Texas, Wisconsin.
Darker = more records. Counts are museum and citizen-science records, not population size.
Source: GBIF
Status: native in North America; native in Canada. Source: iNaturalist
Months it is reported in the US
Source: GBIF
More photos
Questions people ask
Do they bite people or pets?
Female plains floodwater mosquitoes bite mammals to get blood for egg production.
Source: Wikipedia
What do the adults look like?
Adults have a dark, unbanded abdomen, clear wings with dark-scaled veins, and two broad yellow-white stripes on the mesonotum separated by a bronzy-brown strip.
Source: Wikipedia
Same family (Culicidae)
Asian Tiger MosquitoAedes albopictusCan spread germs or disease
House Mosquito ComplexCulex pipiensCan spread germs or disease
Yellow Fever MosquitoAedes aegyptiCan spread germs or disease
Inland Floodwater MosquitoAedes vexansCan spread germs or disease
Asian Bush MosquitoAedes japonicusCan bite
Southern House MosquitoCulex quinquefasciatusCan spread germs or diseaseSources
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aedes_trivittatus
Look it up elsewhere: GBIF · iNaturalist · BugGuide · ITIS · Wikipedia
Text written 2026-10-23 from the sources above and checked sentence by sentence against them. Data fetched 2026-10-23.