The massive presence of mosquitoes around a person does not respond to coordinated collective behavior, but to the individual reaction of each insect to specific stimuli in the environment, according to recent research.
The finding explains that mosquitoes do not move in groups following other individuals, but rather they coincide in the same place because respond independently to signals such as carbon dioxide (CO2) that people or their silhouette exhale.
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Although it may seem like a minor issue, understanding this behavior is key to public health.
Mosquitoes are considered by science to be one of the animals more dangerous for humans due to their ability to transmit diseases such as dengue or malariaresponsible for more than 770,000 deaths a year.
dengue Photo:iStock.
Of the approximately 3,500 known species, nearly a hundred have specialized in feeding on humans, according to ‘EFEverde’,
Among them stands out the Aedes aegypti, known as the yellow fever mosquitowidely distributed in regions such as the southeastern United States and other areas of the world.
This insect was the focus of a study carried out by scientists from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech), whose results were published in the journal Science Advances.
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The researchers managed to reconstruct the flight pattern of mosquitoes in three dimensionswhich allows us to better understand how they locate their victims and opens the door to new strategies for their control.
To do this, three experiments were carried out with groups of between 50 and 100 mosquitoes, collecting more than 53 million data points and more than 477,000 flight trajectories.
With this information, a mathematical model was developed capable of predict where females will fly in search of food.
How they detect their victims
As explained David Hu, professor of mechanical engineering at Georgia Tech and one of the authors of the study, “Mosquitoes group together not because they follow the group, but because each one picks up signals independently and ends up finding themselves in the same place at the same time.”.
Insects make quick approaches and move away if they do not detect other signals. Photo:iStock
The behavior is similar to that of a busy bar: people do not arrive following other customers, but rather attracted by the same stimuli. In the case of mosquitoes, these signals are mainly visual and chemical.
When they only perceive the silhouette of a person, Insects make quick approaches and move away if they do not detect other signals. If they only capture CO2, they reduce speed and carry out reconnaissance flights around the source.
However, when they combine both signals—visual and chemical—they adopt a more persistent behavior: they circle the person at a constant speed before attempting to land, in a pattern comparable to that of a predator stalking its prey.
*This content was written with the assistance of artificial intelligence, based on publicly known information disclosed to the media. In addition, it was reviewed by the journalist and an editor.
JOS GUERRERO
DIGITAL SCOPE EDITORIAL
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