Why Do Mosquitoes Turn Invisible?
WouterAmong the creatures that spread life-threatening diseases, mosquitoes are among the most common. The species Aedes aegypti uses visual cues that are dark in order to locate their host. They suck blood from their host to get a protein to make fertile eggs. They are also known to be attracted to dark clothing. This can lead to painful bites.
Researchers at the University of Washington have been studying the visual behavior of mosquitoes. Their work shows that common mosquito species are attracted to certain colors. This information could help scientists develop better mosquito traps.
Researchers also discovered that female mosquitoes were attracted to certain wavelengths of light. They would fly toward these colors, but would ignore the other wavelengths. In fact, they showed no preference between the colors of a white circle and a black circle. This could help researchers understand how impaired vision could affect mosquito feeding behavior.
Besides the visual cues that mosquitoes use to find their host, mosquitoes also detect chemical compounds on the skin. Scientists have found that certain compounds can block mosquitoes’ sense of smell. One of these compounds is 1-methylpiperazine. Another chemical, called naphthalene, is known to inhibit mosquitoes’ sense of direction.
In addition, a new gene-editing tool called Crispr-Cas9 can help make people invisible to mosquitoes. Scientists believe this could help prevent the spread of deadly diseases. By removing light-sensing receptors in the mosquito’s eye, Crispr-Cas9 would make humans invisibly oblivious to the insect.
