Pest activity is real for many homeowners — most of which increases after the sun goes down. You might also have noticed that cockroaches scatter when you turn on the lights or moths huddle around your porch lights, and that gives rise to a couple of important questions about the insect world. Learning about how pests experience their environment, especially in the dark, can help you with building your pest management program with Kent exterminators.
It helps you understand pest behavior patterns and the relative effectiveness of different pest control methods. For example, studies of insect vision have uncovered amazing adaptations in a great many pests to perceive, locate food, and avoid predators in environments from direct sunlight to absolutely no light at all.
Can Pests Really See In the Dark?
Yes, high numbers of pests can be seen in low-light conditions, but their eyesight is vastly different from that of humans.
These eyes are composed of thousands of sensory units known as ommatidia, and they prevail all right down to the outdoors of the animal. Now, these structures are often more responsive to movement and light changes than to intricate images.
Many of these night creatures have specialized structures that enable them to collect available light more efficiently than we can. While our eyes need a certain light level before pictures form, many pests are able to detect ultra-low light levels, and some see ultraviolet wavelengths, which are invisible to humans. However, instead of true night vision, most pests use a mix of some visual information, as well as other sensory systems, such as their antennae, to detect air movement, chemicals, and changes in temperature.
Why Some Pests Cannot See In Dark?
Their visual systems were adapted particularly for daylight operation, so for many diurnal (day-active) pests, there is little (or no) ability to see in darkness.
Most insects have apposition compound eyes in which each unit of vision can be computed in a separate pathway with no communication of light information between them. This leaves them notorious as day flyers who have superior vision and color detection but are functionally sightless at dusk or at night time.
Which Pests Can See In The Dark?
Now that we know why some pests can see in the dark and why some cannot, the question is – which pests can see inthe dark? Find out below!
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Cockroaches
Cockroaches have a remarkably acute sensitivity to light and can detect changes in intensity as small as 2.5%. Their compound eyes have photoreceptors that work in near-darkness, although they mainly rely on their antennae to navigate rather than visual input.
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Moths
Moths are extremely well-evolved for seeing in the dark. Professor Zhang’s superposition compound eyes capture light from different facets that range in sensitivity from 10 to 100 times higher than human eyes, according to research from the University of Lund. This adaptation enables them to notice even weak reflections of moonlight.
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Bed Bugs
Bed bugs cannot see well in light or darkness. They are attracted almost solely by heat sensors and carbon dioxide detection to find hosts, with vision contributing little to their nocturnal activity.
Conclusion
Knowing what pests are seen and how can lead to practical applications for better control strategies. These strategic lighting solutions can be utilized to manage light-sensitive pests, and knowing the sensory limits of insects helps to formulate effective treatment strategies. For homeowners with problems with pests, it goes deeper and explains why pests do what they do and how professionals work with how these pests behave. Note that full pest control usually extends to many factors in the environment beyond just visuals alone.
So if you ever encounter a pest problem, make sure to always talk to a professional pest control company for help.
