How do mosquitoes find their prey? They used their heads.
In attacks that are too swift to be seen with the naked eye, predatory aquatic larvae, which measure about 0.75 inch (2 centimeters) long, launch their heads towards their victims like tiny harpoons.
Scientists filmed mosquitoes as they devoured their prey. Two of the species, Toxorhynchites amboinensis and Psorophora ciliata, were found to be capable of snapping up a meal.
The researchers discovered that fast prey nabbing also happened in the mosquito species which is primarily passive filter feeders.
A professor at the Metropolitan State University of Denver is the lead study author. "That was one of these, 'I can't believe this,' kind of moments."
Similar to fireworks at taste of human blood, the mosquito's tongue neuron ignites like fireworks.
Woody Foster, who is now a professor in the Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Organism, was a graduate student in Hancock's medical entomology class.
Students in that class watched the T. amboinensis larvae under a microscope.
After we saw a blur, we saw a captured larva being shoveled into a predator's mouth. The only thing we saw was that.
It would take more than two decades to realize that the next step was to find out how the predator was doing it.
The experiments with T. amboinensis and P. ciliata were filmed using a 16-millimeter film camera that had been designed for the US military.
Once the study authors adapted the camera to film through a microscope, they held prey with jeweler's tweezers to temp the predator, and eventually captured footage of the larvae at a rate of 340 frames per second.
When the prey was introduced to their environment, the predator would make a small movement, which would signal to the researchers that it was time to hit the button on the film camera.
The scientists found that the insects used abdominal pressure to propel their heads, and that they spread brushlike bristles around their heads to help sweep prey toward the jaws of the predator.
According to the study, P. ciliata strikes in a straight-ahead fashion, while T. amboinensis strikes in a twisting fashion.
These visual discoveries are special and all scientists get excited about them.
The scientists wondered if similar hunting and feeding methods could be used by other species.
The project was put on hold until 2020 after funding dried up.
They used a high-definition video camera that could shoot up to 4,352 frames per second.
The predatory action they saw, in which the larvae used their tails to swiftly sweep prey into their waiting mouths, was previously unknown.
The study states that the larvae's teeth tore into the prey after it gripped it.
By getting my cameras on as many different kinds of mosquitoes as possible, future studies could explore how common harpoon-headed hunting and tail sweeping are. There's more to be said.
There are related content.
The original article was published by Live Science. The original article can be found here.
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