Well, you learn something new every day in Paraguay!
One thing I’ve noticed here in Filadelfia is the extraordinary number of mosquitoes. They seem to have appointed themselves as my personal welcoming committee. They swarm around my face, buzz around my ears and investigate my hands with great enthusiasm.
But here’s the strange part… they don’t bite!
Naturally, I started wondering whether Paraguay had somehow developed a particularly polite breed of mosquito. Perhaps they had been raised properly and taught that biting visitors was simply bad manners.Then came the revelation: male mosquitoes don’t bite!
Apparently, it’s the females who are responsible for the blood-sucking business. The males are much more civilised and survive on nectar and plant juices.
So all those little fellows buzzing around my face may simply be males coming over for a look, rather than plotting my demise.
It does make me wonder what they’re thinking.
“Look, Carlos, there’s that strange foreign woman again.”
“Yes, I know. Let’s go and fly around her face.”
“Do you think she knows we can’t bite her?”
“Probably not. Keep buzzing. It’s funny.”
So, after all this time travelling, I’ve discovered that even mosquitoes have a gender divide: the ladies are the bloodthirsty ones, while the gentlemen are apparently just here for the flowers and a bit of socialising.
Who knew?
And here I was blaming the whole mosquito population! 😂