Dengue season plagues Peninsular Malaysia all year round. In East Malaysia, this illness is most common from October to February. As for West Malaysia, locals are most at risk of suffering from this disease from July to August.
So it’s time to get schooled on some mosquito facts to better prep yourself before the dengue season hits.
1. Mosquitoes can drink up to three times their weight in blood
Don’t worry, though. It would take about 1.2 million bites to drain all the blood from your body.
2. Mosquitoes have terrible eyesight
They can’t rely on their eyesight for their lives but you bet their antennas are super sensitive.
3. Mosquitoes track humans using our breaths
They have receptors on their antennae that detect the carbon dioxide released when we exhale. Those plumes of CO2 rise into the air, acting as trails that the mosquitoes follow to find the source.
If you wonder why mosquitoes can find you, it’s because of your breath! But don’t purposely hold your breath ok?
4. Mosquitoes choose their meals based on our scent
Our skin produces more than 340 chemical odours, and some of them smell like dinner to mosquitoes. They are fond of sweat, as well as cholesterol, folic acid, certain bacteria, skin lotions and perfume.
5. Mosquitoes love HOT stuff
No, we don’t mean you per se. These little creatures are attracted to heat and also darker clothes as they retain more heat. So wear bright-coloured clothing if you wanna avoid mosquitoes!
6. If you want to get rid of mosquitoes naturally, don’t kill those dragonflies!
The two main mosquito predators are fish and dragonflies. Gambusia, or mosquitofish, feed on mosquito larvae and are used all over the world to help control the population of mosquitoes.
Dragonfly larvae eat mosquito larvae, and adult dragonflies prey on adult mosquitoes. Trust me, Discovery Channel taught me all these info!
7. The mosquitoes that bite us all the time are females
Females, who need blood to produce eggs, are the ones doing ALL the biting. Where are all the men at, tho?
8. There are more than 3,500 species!
Yep, the world is INFESTED with them.
9. It’s the mosquitoes’ saliva that makes the bite so itchy
Not the bite itself, ok. In fact, the ‘bite’ is actually the mosquito injecting its saliva into your skin.
10. Mosquitoes don’t only go after humans
Not all species bite humans; some prefer birds, others prefer horses, and some will even bite frogs and turtles.
11. Mosquitoes are attracted to bacteria found on sweaty, smelly feet
Please clean your feet often. Not only do they attract mosquitoes, they would probably ward off friends too.
12. Like vampires, mosquitoes also hate garlic
They dislike the natural skin secretion caused by garlic. So, eat more garlic, avoid those bloodsuckers!
It’s good to know a little bit more about these foes that tend to pester us on a daily basis. The more we know, the better we are at preventing those annoying mozzie bites!
Also read: 9 Things Every Malaysian Can Absolutely Relate to While Growing Up
