Micro Wave: Why Mosquitoes Bite You More Than Your Friends
There are over 3000 species of mosquitoes globally, over 200 of which live in the United States and its territories. Don't worry though — most of those 200 species are just annoying and don't carry harmful diseases. But regardless of whether they transmit germs, that doesn't change the fact that some mosquitoes are still so ... bite-y.
We talked to two medical entomologists, Eva Buckner at the University of Florida and Laura Harrington at Cornell University, to figure out why some mosquitoes bite certain people more than others. It turns out, mosquitoes might be picking up on a wide range of cues to home in on their human prey.
Do you have scientific queries for us? Email us at shortwave@npr.org and it just might end up on an episode!
This episode was produced by Brit Hanson, edited by Viet Le and fact-checked by Maddie Sofia.