Mosquito Taxonomic Inventory

The vestiture (general surface covering) of mosquitoes is comprised of two types of cuticular projections: setae (sing. seta), which are articulated processes arising from a basal alveolus, and spicules, which are non-articulated continuous outgrowths of the cuticle. Flattened setae with longitudinal ridges that arise from minute alveoli are known as scales (see scale). Ordinary setae are innervated sensory organs (mechanical receptors) borne in various locations on all body areas of adults, larvae and pupae. Scales form the principal body covering (ornamentation and coloration) of adult mosquitoes.

The terminology applicable to the vestiture of mosquitoes consists of names applied to the fundamental types of cuticular projections and descriptors (adjectival names) that characterise their common structural forms.