Why Mosquitoes Buzz Around Our Ears

Why Mosquitoes Buzz Around Our Ears

Long ago, when the world in stories was younger and animals easily understood one another, a crab king named Mangla lived on the island of Bohol. Mangla had strong claws, a dignified sideways walk, and one habit he considered extremely important: after sunset, he liked to sleep. “A king who has not slept,” he often said, “is likely to give a very foolish order.” One evening Mangla was so tired that his eyes were already closing. He summoned an old crab named Kagang, who kept order around the royal burrow. “Kagang, set a guard. Let the little land crabs watch the entrance. But tell them one thing above all: no noise.” “It will be done,” Kagang promised. The little crabs took their positions and sat very quietly. Mangla fell asleep. Snore... Snore... Then rain began. First drip, drip. Then drip-drip-drip. Soon the sky seemed to be pouring out an entire bucket. Just then a snail named Hu-man crept along the road. Like any proper snail, he carried his house on his back. The little guards saw him and began to giggle. “Look! A house has gone for a walk!” “Quiet! The king is sleeping!” Too late. Mangla woke. “Who is laughing outside my door?” The little crabs fell silent. “Your Majesty, we did not mean to wake you. We saw a snail carrying his house through the rain.” “Why was he doing that?” Mangla asked. “We do not know.” “Kagang! Bring me the snail.” Soon Hu-man stood before the king. “Why were you carrying your house through the rain in the middle of the night?” Mangla asked. The snail calmly replied, “A firefly named Anipot was flying nearby with a light. I worried that my home might be harmed, so I decided to keep it with me.” Mangla tapped his shell thoughtfully. “That sounds reasonable. You may go. Kagang, bring Firefly.” Anipot flew in, his tiny light glowing and fading. “Why did you carry a light so close to Snail's house?” asked the king. “I did not mean to frighten anyone,” Firefly said. “Mosquito Lamok kept flying around me and trying to bother me. I thought that with my lantern I would see where he was coming from.” “That also makes sense,” said Mangla. “Kagang, bring Lamok.” The old crab went to fetch him. When Lamok heard that the crab king wanted to see him, he became nervous. “I am not going alone,” he told his friends. “Who knows what they will decide? Stay nearby.” So when Lamok arrived at the royal burrow, a whole cloud of mosquitoes waited behind bushes, over the grass, and beneath leaves. Mangla was sleepy and therefore a little grumpy. “Lamok,” he began, “because of you, Firefly carried his light. Because of Firefly, Snail carried his house. Because of Snail, my guards laughed. Because of the laughter, I woke up. What do you have to say?” Lamok buzzed anxiously. “Your Majesty, I was only flying around.” “And bothering Firefly?” “Well... only a little.” “Someone else's ‘little’ annoyance can begin a very long chain of trouble,” said Mangla. “You need to learn to leave others alone when they have done nothing to you.” Lamok looked embarrassed. Then Mangla clicked his claws sharply. Lamok imagined he was about to be locked in a storeroom for badly behaved insects. “Oh no!” he squeaked. In panic he landed directly on the king's nose. Mangla jumped. “Off my nose!” Lamok took off. “Sorry!” And landed on Mangla's forehead. “Not there!” Lamok darted toward an ear. “Not there either!” Kagang rushed to catch him. Lamok dodged left, right, up, and down. His mosquito friends heard the commotion and decided Lamok needed rescuing. “Forward!” they buzzed. The air above the burrow filled with such a loud hum that Mangla completely forgot about sleep. “Everyone out!” the king ordered. “No one is catching anyone. Go home and calm down!” Lamok seized the opportunity and flew away. Kagang also hurried home. His own burrow was deep, narrow, and cleverly hidden underground. The mosquitoes decided to find it. “We need to speak with Kagang! He must stop chasing Lamok!” They searched one hole after another. “Not this one.” “Not this one either.” “An ant lives here.” “And a beetle lives there.” Time passed, and they still could not find Kagang's home. Then a young mosquito saw a person asleep on a veranda. On either side of the person's head were two small openings: ears. “Look!” cried the mosquito. “There is the entrance to the burrow. Dark, round, and narrow. Kagang must be hiding in there!” He flew close to one ear. “Bzzzz! Kagang, are you in there?” The person waved a hand. “Go away, mosquito!” The mosquito jumped back. “No, that was not Kagang. Perhaps he is in the other entrance.” And off he flew to the other ear. Bzzzzzz! That, according to an old Filipino tale, is why mosquitoes still circle around human ears. They may be searching for old Kagang's hidden burrow and asking: “Bzzzz... are you in there?” We, of course, answer in our own way: “No. Go look somewhere else!” Perhaps one day mosquitoes will understand. Until then, on summer evenings, that familiar buzzing may return. And remembering the story can make it a little harder to stay angry, because the whole trouble began with one snail, one firefly, one over-curious mosquito, and a crab king who simply wanted a good night's sleep.

May this story leave a little light in your heart ✨