It doesn’t seem to be a real mosquito summer. But in some places it can still be teeming with bloodsuckers – especially in Norrland.
– There are very moist forests there that they like to develop in. There are a lot of the classic forest mosquitoes there, says mosquito researcher Anders Lindström.
In addition to the forest mosquitoes in Norrland, there are so-called flood mosquitoes at the lower Dalälven and Klarälven rivers. There, in May and the beginning of June, there have been so many of them that they have had to be fought from a helicopter.
At the beginning of the season it looked like it would be a summer with lots of mosquitoes, but then it slowed down. Anders Lindström, the mosquito researcher at the Norwegian Institute of Veterinary Medicine, believes that it is because it has been so dry.
– Then many mosquitoes died, he says.
Variable effect
Different mosquito repellants are available at pharmacies and some grocery stores. These often work quite well, according to Anders Lindström. But it all depends on how sensitive you are.
– If you think it’s very awkward, maybe it’s better to get dressed or even go inside. Unfortunately, there are no secret tricks to avoid mosquito bites.
Are you the only one in your group of friends who seems to get bitten? It can be due to several reasons. Researchers have been able to see that mosquitoes are attracted to people with blood type 0.
But at the individual level it becomes more complicated. There may be several different reasons which alone or in combination make the person attractive to the mosquito.
– Two such things are metabolism and how much carbon dioxide you excrete. They smell carbon dioxide and that’s how they find us, says Anders Lindström.
Like pregnant
Due to high metabolism, it is also common for pregnant women to be attractive prey. And if your skin is warm after a run or a round of pubs, it tastes extra good.
There are more potential causes. The skin secretes many oils that bacteria break down. One such breakdown product is lactic acid, to which mosquitoes are sensitive.
Floral soap products can also affect whether mosquitoes like you or not. But on some people the flower soap is attractive while on others it is considered repulsive by the mosquitoes.
– At the group level, we have a good idea of what the mosquitoes like, but when we get down to the individual level, it becomes difficult to say why I in particular get so attacked by the mosquitoes.