It’s rare to attend an outdoor party in the warmer months without hearing people complain about mosquitoes. Go indoors. At the other end of the spectrum, there are plenty of people who don’t seem to be bothered in the least by mosquitoes.
As a medical entomologist who has worked with mosquitoes for over 40 years, I am often asked why some people seem to attract mosquitoes, but others fail to notice the blood-sucking pests flapping around them.
Most mosquito species, along with many other arthropods such as ticks, fleas, bed bugs, blackflies, horse flies and wasps requires protein in the blood Develop a batch of eggs. Only female mosquitoes feed on blood.male eat plant nectarinto energy for flight.
Blood feeding is a very important part of the mosquito’s reproductive cycle. This puts a tremendous amount of evolutionary pressure on female mosquitoes. identify potential blood sources, quickly and efficiently take a complete blood meal and secretly leave their hapless victims. Checking some or all of the mosquito search boxes may reveal that you are a mosquito coil.
This video by Deep Look explains some of the ways mosquitoes suck blood.
Sensing CO2 and scent signals
Depending on how long they are active during the day, mosquitoes use visual, acoustic and olfactory cues to identify potential blood sources. Most nocturnal species are Olfactory or Receptor CuesThe most important chemical cue is carbon dioxide, which all vertebrates, including humans, release through their skin with each breath.
mosquitoes very sensitive to CO2 It can sense CO2 sources many meters away. Receptor cells in the mosquito’s antennae and legs bind CO2 molecules and send electrical signals to the brain. As more molecules collide with the receptor, the CO2 concentration increases and moves closer to the host.
However, there are many sources of non-living carbon dioxide, such as cars, boats, planes and trains. To distinguish between living and non-living sources of CO2, mosquitoes rely on secondary olfactory cues produced by living animals.metabolic processes such as breathing and exercise Generate these scent cuesContains lactic acid, ammonia, and fatty acids. These serve as additional olfactory cues to help female mosquitoes focus on their next blood meal.
Therefore, the production of carbon dioxide is the first mark of mosquito magnets. Since CO2 and secondary attractant production are related to metabolic rate, the higher the metabolic rate, the more attractants are produced. Metabolic rate is genetically determined, increase as a result of physical activity.
Human mosquito coils found at summer parties may genetically have higher metabolic rates or may be more physically active than other participants. You may also be doing other activities that increase it. The reason runners attract more mosquitoes during cool-down stretching exercises is their increased metabolic rate. pregnant women, possibly due to increased metabolic rate, Abnormally high numbers of mosquitoes likewise.
This video by Business Insider explains some of the factors that make mosquito coils.
Natural body odors are also important cues that mosquitoes use to select hosts.For example, some species Anopheles mosquito attracts mosquitoes Specific components of foot odorThese mosquitoes transmit human malaria and feed indoors in the middle of the night. By eating a sleeping person’s legs, the mosquito avoids most of her CO2-produced head, reducing the chances of waking the victim.
visual cue
Mosquitoes, active during the day and at dawn and dusk, also use visual signals to identify hosts. Mosquitoes usually fly close to the ground.From this perspective they display potential hosts against the horizonDark colors stand out and light colors blend in, so your clothing determines the number of mosquitoes. Wearing light-colored clothing will not only help you stay cool, but it will also keep mosquitoes out.
Mosquitoes can visually detect movement by contrasting their silhouettes against the horizon. This is why after a Saltmarsh mosquito outbreak, people walking near Saltmarsh during the day are inundated with it. visually detect their presence.
psychological factors
again, psychological element for mosquito activity. Some people do not notice mosquitoes around them. A single mosquito flying around some people causes a strong reaction. You’ve probably seen someone go insane trying to track down a single mosquito to get rid of a tiny vampire.
Others don’t care and are unaware of mosquitoes being attracted to them, even when they are feeding on their own blood. I specialize in eating. for example, Aedes aegypti A type of mosquito that prefers to eat humans. mainly around the ankle.
Whether you’re a mosquito magnet or not, their bites are just as itchy!
Jonathan DayProfessor Emeritus of Medical Entomology, University of Florida
This article is reprinted from conversation Under Creative Commons License.read Original work.
