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| How long do mosquito bites last? |
The female mosquito will start to feed after landing on a person’s skin. Her mouthparts are made up of sharp bristles and tubes. The bristles cut a hole in the skin, allowing the female mosquito to probe the tissue until it comes into contact with a small blood vessel, or capillary.
Then, two tubes are inserted into the blood vessel or capillary, one with saliva flowing through it and the other sucking up the person's blood. Saliva acts as an anticoagulant, allowing blood to flow more freely. The proteins in saliva cause the human immune system to react in the form of itching.
The itchy sensation you feel after being bitten by a mosquito is the body's natural reaction to mosquito saliva. As a result of the increased blood flow, the immune system produces histamines, which causes the nerves to itch. When there is an overabundance of histamine released, the area around the bite can swell and turn red, in addition to itching.