Each year a new wave of bugs emerge and find their way to your yard. Though they look like the bugs from previous years, they are a new generation. Insects have varying lifespans and life cycles that are much shorter than other creatures. We’ve gathered information about the average lifespan of common yard bugs.
Mosquitoes
Mosquitoes aren’t usually noticed until you find an itchy, red bump on your skin. Mosquitoes complete four stages throughout their life—egg, larval, pupal, and adult. Female mosquitoes lay eggs in water. These eggs hatch within2 days and enter the larval stage. This stage will last for about 7-10 days before larvae transition into the pupal stage. After a few days, adult mosquitoes emerge. Moisture levels and temperatures affect the lifespan of a mosquito. Some males can live for just a few days, but others can live for a few weeks. Females will usually live for about a month.
Ticks
These arachnids love to hitch a ride on you and your furry family members. A tick will transition between an egg, larva, nymph, and an adult before completing its life cycle. Tick eggs can hatch anywhere between 9 and 60 days. As larvae and nymphs, ticks will molt. The larval stage will last for about 4 days. The species of ticks and environmental conditions can affect how long it takes a tick to develop. Black legged ticks usually take 2 years to develop; however, under the right conditions, some can develop in less than a year. Brown dog ticks can typically complete their life cycle in 60 days. Hard ticks can live anywhere between 2 months and 3 years, while soft ticks can live up to 16 years.
Paper Wasps
Like mosquitoes, paper wasps will undergo several stages—egg, larval, pupal, adult—before completing their life cycle. Eggs will hatch in a few days before larvae emerge. It usually takes less than 50 days for eggs to transition into adults. The lifespan of a wasp depends on their caste. Workers can live for just a few days to a couple of months. However, they typically will live for1 season. Males and female worker wasps will die when temperatures begin to drop. Queen wasps live longer with a lifespan of about a year. They are able to survive the winter season and emerge in the spring ready to begin a new colony.
Yellow Jackets
You can’t miss these yellow and black stinging insects. Yellow jackets complete the same life stages as paper wasps. The transformation from egg to adult will usually take about 30 days. Larvae will transition into pupae after about 18-20 days. After a few days in the pupal stage, adult yellow jackets emerge. Yellow jacket colony members have varying life expectancies. Most adults will live for the entire season. However, some workers will only live between 12-22 days. Male yellow jackets will die after mating. Like most species, yellow jacket queens have the longest lifespan. They will usually live for about 1 year.
Hornets
It’s never a good idea to make these insects angry. A hornet’s life cycle is very similar to yellow jackets and other stinging insects. Their life stages include egg, larva, pupa, and adult. Hornets will fully develop from an egg to an adult in about 30 days. Eggs hatch within 5-8 days before larvae emerge. During the larval stage, hornets go through5 developmental phases. This process takes about 2 weeks to complete. They then transition into the pupal stage, which will last for roughly 2 weeks. Unlike worker and male hornets, queen hornets typically survive the winter season.
Though bugs have similar life cycles, the time it takes to complete them vary. One thing you can count on is that these bugs will return year after year. If bugs are taking over your yard, we have your back! Check out our Maggie’s Farm Simply Effective™ Pest Control products.
