Mosquitoes and frog-biting midges (Diptera: Culicidae and Corethrellidae) attracted to traps with natural frog calls and synthesized sounds at Iriomote Island, Ryukyu Archipelago, Japan

Research on Iriomote Island, Japan, reveals that frog calls, particularly those with dominant frequencies around 1,000 Hz, are highly attractive to Uranotaenia macfarlanei mosquitoes and Corethrella nippon midges. The study found that synthesized sounds mimicking natural frog calls—especially burst and sinusoidal types—were more effective in attracting these insects compared to noise sounds. Loudness also played a crucial role, with higher levels (above 75 dB SPL) significantly increasing attractiveness. This discovery suggests that specific acoustic properties of frog calls can be leveraged for targeted mosquito and midge control, offering potential applications in medical entomology.

Toma, T., Takara, T., Miyagi, I., Futami, K., & Higa, Y. (2019). Mosquitoes and frog-biting midges (Diptera: Culicidae and Corethrellidae) attracted to traps with natural frog calls and synthesized sounds at Iriomote Island, Ryukyu Archipelago, Japan. Medical Entomology and Zoology, 70(4), 221–234. https://doi.org/10.7601/mez.70.221