When is a mosquito not?

Medical Laboratory Observer, June, 2005

Your May 2005 issue of MLO features the picture of a nonmosquito behind the headline for "mosquito-borne flaviviruses." The dipteran depicted is a tipulid or crane fly and is easily distinguished from a mosquito by the shape of wings, head, and abdomen, and lack of piercing-sucking mouthparts.

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My wife showed me the magazine, knowing I work with mosquitoes and West Nile virus, and it immediately struck me as humorous. The article stresses the need to correctly identify the arbovirus, but the authors may not realize that most flavivirus management actually relies on mosquito abatement, which requires proper identification of both the vector and the pathogen. Proper identification is critical in every step. Thank you.

--Richard Lampman, PhD

Research Scientist

Illinois Natural History Survey

Medical Entomology Program

Champaign, IL

While the article on mosquito-borne diseases was timely and well written, the insect pictured on the cover and in the article was not a mosquito. It was a crane fly, or "mosquito hawk." These members of the family Tipulidae do not suck blood or carry human disease: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crane_fly. I spent many days dissecting mosquitoes for my master's thesis and recognized these differences immediately.

--Mara Williams, MS, MT(ASCP)

Director, CLS Training Program

San Jose State University

San Jose, CA

Editor's Note: Yes, proper ID is absolutely crucial ... and we would like to make clear the fact that the authors of the article provided the map but did not select the so-called "mosquito" for the cover story. Thanks to our attentive and helpful readers for enlightening editorial and graphic arts staff members!