Most of us don’t have all that much sympathy when it comes to bugs.
I mean sure, we don’t want things to suffer, but they’re bugs, you know?
Still, it can be hard not to wonder why they flit to lights, often to the point of their own demise.
An organism’s response to light with motion is known as phototaxis – this means that organisms that are positively phototactic, like moths, are pulled toward sources of light.
Bugs like cockroaches are negatively phototactic organisms, and scuttle away from it when given the chance.
One popular theory for the existence of positive phototaxis in insects is that our unnatural sources of light interfere with their internal navigation system.
Nocturnal insects like moths evolved to use light sources like the moon and stars to find their way; they navigate by keeping themselves aligned at a certain angle.
The angle of the light from lamps and lights changes as the moths flutter past, so they end up flying around in circles trying to align correctly.
The moon, of course, is so far away this is a non-issue.
Others argue against this theory, though, citing the fact that man-made fire has ben around for thousands of years and insects should have evolved to deal with the issue by now.
They suggest that insects that see an unobstructed light source believe the path is clear, which is why they fly directly toward it.
Or, since some flowers reflect UV light, bugs may mistake these lights – which also emit small amounts of UV – for a food source.
A researcher in the 1970s posited that the behavior could also have to do with mating, as female moths give off light frequencies with their pheromones.
Male moths might flight into the light thinking they’re headed for a female looking to mate.
Which is all to say that while experts have many theories, no one can be sure.
We can’t ask the moths, sadly, who might be able to let us know how we can help.
If you enjoyed that story, check out what happened when a guy gave ChatGPT $100 to make as money as possible, and it turned out exactly how you would expect.