This summer and last I started feeling the bite of mosquitoes, like, not the itch, but the moment they “bite”. Like a thin shot or a thin plant spike but more than fiberglass. Is there an evolutionary or environmental change to mosquitoes happening, or am I becoming immune to their numbing agent? What’s happening?

    • P00ptart@lemmy.worldOP
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      13 hours ago

      Right? It’s weird cause you’re like WTF?!? What is that?!? And you look and it’s a mosquito. 🙄

  • Ushmel@lemmy.world
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    16 hours ago

    Probably a different species set up near you recently. We have dozens of species near me and some are as big as flies and some are more like gnats.

  • sam@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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    20 hours ago

    Have you heard of heat rash (miliara rubra)?

    It’s not mosquitos, but your description of fiberglass and needles reminds me of this. It feels like each of my pores on my back has a needle in it when it happens.

  • Carrolade@lemmy.world
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    2 days ago

    The numbing agent they apply has a very short duration. So usually in my experience when you’re feeling the bite, it’s not the moment of bite you’re feeling, but the moment that anesthetic wears off. They’ve hung on too long, basically.

    So, it could be a difference in the mosquito population, but it could also be a difference in you, either in how quickly your blood can be sucked up by the mosquito, or how quickly the numbing agent gets processed.

    You can explore this yourself pretty easily if you ever visually spot one before it bites. You can just let it bite, and then count how long it takes before you feel it. It’s not long at all.

      • Carrolade@lemmy.world
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        18 hours ago

        No clue, I don’t know what its mechanism of action is. Probably one of the less-likely possibilities though.

  • TriflingToad@sh.itjust.works
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    1 day ago

    now that you mention it you got me thinking about the logistics of mosquito bites lol

    If I see a mosquito I feel it 100% of the time, however sometimes mosquito bites just appear where I never noticed the bite itself until it starts to itch later.

    perhaps a placebo of my brain paying special attention to the area or something? idk

  • SGforce@lemmy.ca
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    2 days ago

    There are many species with slightly different anatomy. Some with larger or smaller “beaks”. Some so delicate you would never feel it.

    • P00ptart@lemmy.worldOP
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      2 days ago

      Well they always die cause I notice it immediately. Honestly I’m not entirely mad about it as I haven’t been itchy all summer.

      • BreadOven@lemmy.world
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        2 days ago

        Nice. That’s always good. Other than my joke comment up there, I have also been feeling the bite more commonly, lately. No clue why. It is strange though.

  • LibertyLizard@slrpnk.net
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    2 days ago

    Not sure. I’ve always been able to feel them.

    There are many species of mosquito, maybe a new one has invaded your area recently?