Are All Bugs Attracted To Light Sources?

In case you have not noticed, many insects seem to be attracted to light sources. Moths demonstrate the most obvious example of this particular, and in their case, dangerous attraction. You have probably noticed other insects gravitating toward light bulbs, and it is not unusual to find a variety of different insect corpses lying beneath lamps and other light fixtures, clearly indicating that their death resulted from contact with a hot bulb. Moths are often mocked for their seemingly stupid habit of darting head first into searing hot light sources. This behavior raises the obvious question as to whether or not moths and other insects can sense the heat that emanates from light bulbs. It is important to remember that light bulbs did not exist during the greater course of moth evolution, which is why they have never adapted an ability to sense the heat from light bulbs. If light bulbs did exist, say, thousands of years ago, then moths would likely have become extinct by now. While it is clear that moths are attracted to light, there are numerous other insect species that flock toward light sources as well, but not as many as you may think.

Many insect species are not attracted to light sources of any kind, while other species are attracted to both artificial and natural light sources. There are also many insect species that are only attracted to artificial light sources, and there are yet others that only gravitate toward light bulbs and not other artificial light sources. Moths rely on lights to navigate during the nighttime hours, and they quickly fly toward the brightest light sources available, which are almost always light bulbs. Moths and butterflies are two closely related insect groups, both of which belong to the Lepidoptera order. Despite their close relation to moths, butterflies are not attracted to light bulbs. Cockroaches and some ant species will go out of their way in order to avoid bright sources of artificial light. Many flying insects, like mosquitoes and true bugs, gravitate toward light bulbs in order to stay warm when outside temperatures drop. Some insects gather around light bulbs solely for the purpose of catching easy prey that can always be found hovering around light sources. Researchers are still unsure as to how moths were able to thrive despite being attracted to the light produced by campfires.

Have you ever witnessed an insect die an immediate death upon darting into a hot light bulb?