Are insects attracted

to heat or light?!
Mun 54

Animal Studies

Question

How does heat or light affect the behavior of insects?

Hypothesis

If a heat and light source are placed on either side of the

insect(s), then the insect(s) will move towards the heat source,
because insects are attracted to heat.

Rationale

The results of this experiment will benefit the society by

decreasing the amount of insects in your living quarters or city.

Abstract

Testable question:

How does heat or light affect the behavior of insects?

Rational:

The results of this experiment will benefit the society by decreasing the amount of insects in your living quarters
or city.

Hypothesis:

If a heat and light source are placed on either side of the insects, then the insects will move towards the heat
source, because insects are attracted to heat.

Gather all materials

Go into a dark room or wait until night

Place the heat and light sources apart from each other and turn them on

Open the jar and observe which way the majority of the insects go

Conclusion:

My science experiment was to see whether insects go towards a heat source or a light source. My hypothesis was
not supported when I did my experiment because the chart that I did concluded that more insects went to the light
source. In the experiment everything turned out ok and nothing went wrong with the sources. I would not change
anything in this experiment because it showed results that I did not expect. I also have no curiosity about any
topics in this experiment. In this experiment I have learned that I can have different results than other
experiments. Also Ive learned that time management is key in making a science experiment.

Materials

Electric lantern(Coleman)

Gas lantern(Ozark trail)

Propane gas(Coleman)

4 D Batteries(Rayovak)

Procedure (SIMPLIFIED)

Gather all materials

Go into a dark room or wait until night time

Place the heat and light sources apart from each other
and turn them on

Open the jar and observe which way the majority of the
insects go

When the jar is empty close the jar while not disturbing
the insects, and turn off the source

Data Chart

Tests

Crickets heat

Crickets light

Test 1

Test 2

14

Test 3

10

Test 4

Test 5

10

Graph
16
14
12

10
crickets heat
crickets light

8
6
4

2
0
trial 1 trial 2 trial 3 trial 4 trial 5

Data Analysis

In my data I saw that the crickets would often

go to the light source instead of the heat source.
For example, in trial or test 2 the number of
crickets near the heat source was 2 and the
number of crickets near the light source was
14. The average amount of crickets near the
heat source is 6. The average amount of
crickets near the light source is 10. At the
beginning of the experiment the data was the
same and then it changed drastically.

Conclusion

My science experiment was to see whether insects go towards

a heat source or a light source. My hypothesis was not
supported when I did my experiment because the chart that I
did concluded that more insects went to the light source. In the
experiment everything turned out ok and nothing went wrong
with the sources. I would not change anything in this
experiment because it showed results that I did not expect. I
also have no curiosity about any topics in this experiment.

References

Delving into the History of Insects." - The Panda's Thumb. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Oct. 2015.

"The Temperature Tastes Just Right to Insects | BrandeisNOW."BrandeisNOW. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Oct.
2015.

"Pest World For Kids." Flies. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Oct. 2015.

Result Filters." National Center for Biotechnology Information. U.S. National Library of Medicine, n.d.
Web. 28 Oct. 2015.

MIT School of Engineering." Is Fire a Solid, a Liquid, or a Gas? N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Oct. 2015.

"How Does Temperature Differ from Heat?" How Does Temperature Differ from Heat? N.p., n.d. Web.
28 Oct. 2015.

"Chemical Reactions." - Chemwiki. N.p., 01 Oct. 2013. Web. 28 Oct. 2015.

"Potential Energy." Hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu. Web. 28 Oct. 2015.

"Why Are Insects Attracted to Light?" WiseGEEK. Web. 28 Oct. 2015.

"The Temperature Tastes Just Right to Insects | BrandeisNOW." BrandeisNOW. Web. 28 Oct. 2015.

"A Moment of Science - Indiana Public Media | How High Do Flies Fly?" A Moment of Science RSS.
Web. 28 Oct. 2015.

"Do Bugs Feel Pain? | Essays on Reducing Suffering." Essays on Reducing Suffering. Web. 28 Oct.
2015.