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Talking to mosquitoes

Subject: Talking to mosquitoes
From: "Hans Christian" hanskock
Date: Fri Aug 3, 2012 6:49 am ((PDT))
Hi all

Recently I was out in the Nationalpark Thy in Northern Denmark, to record a=
mbiences just after sunset, when I came across an extremely weak humming-so=
und. Barely audible without the recorder gain at max. It turned out to be h=
undreds of mosquitoes inside a small forest. I started recording, and then =
when I made the announcement into the mic, I noticed the mosquito-hum raisi=
ng in pitch for a short moment. I made different experiments, and it seemed=
 they only reacted to my voice each time, and not any other sounds I made.

Has anyone come across that phenomenon? Is it a known fact that mosquitos c=
an "hear" humans, and distinguish them from other sounds? I've never heard =
of that.

I put up the recording on SoundCloud, but it probably requires some good he=
adphones to hear the phenomenon:

http://snd.sc/NqgQhY

(I speak to the mosquitoes in danish, but don't bother. I'm not saying anyt=
hing very intelligent anyway. After all, they are only mosquitoes...)


Hans Kock







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