Does anybody know why bugs are attracted to light?

Question

Its for an oral report!

Answer 1

Moths are a common insect you may see hovering around lights. Moths are nocturnal, which means they are active at night. This attraction to light is a response called phototaxis.

When insects fly at night they use light sources such as the moon for navigation. Light from a distant source reaches both eyes with the same intensity. This enables the insect to fly in a straight line with both wings beating at the same rate.

If the light is from a closer source such as a candle or lantern, it changes the insect's perception. The light is perceived stronger in one eye than in the other eye. This causes the wing on one side to move faster. The insect then begins to approach the light in a spiral path, eventually drawing them into the light itself.

One good way to know if an insect is nocturnal is to look at their antennae. Insects with poor eyesight have longer antennae. At night they use these sensory organs to probe their surroundings. Many varieties of beetles have poor eyesight. They use their antennae to move around safely at night.

Fireflies are actually beetles that use light to attract others in its own species. They recognize and respond to each other by the type of flash patterns they make. The light comes from a large transparent cell on their tails. When the chemicals luciferan and luciferase come in contact with oxygen it produces the light you see.

Answer 2

i would definetly double check this, but it think it has something to do with them seeing it and being attracted to it, so even if they don't mean to, the wing on the side of the light moves faster or somethign so they move toward it??? eh, looking at that now i'm not sure it makes sense but hopefully it could be the start of something. lol.

Answer 3

do an internet search