Do you feel like mosquitoes only seem to bite you and no-one else?
While we love the great outdoors, whether it's the bush, your favourite swimming spot or a backyard barbecue, there's always somebody who seems to get bitten by mosquitoes more than everyone else.
So what makes you a target?
University of Queensland associate professor Nigel Beebe, who has been studying mosquitoes for a number of years, says it's all about how you smell.
"We all have fatty acids and oils that we secrete through our skin, that keep our skin nice and moist," he said.
"You can't really smell them but we have bacteria on our body. It breaks down those long-chain fatty acids to short-chain fatty acids that become quite volatile.
"That smell under your arm is not generated by you. It's generated by bacteria breaking down triglycerides and fats and everybody has a different combination of bacteria."
Dr Beebe said this skin bacteria, or microbiome, was like a fingerprint and gave everyone a slightly different smell, which could be attractive to some mosquitoes.
"They make choices potentially based on these fingerprints and there are people that are incredibly attractive to some mosquitoes and others who might have a kind of repellent effect," he said.
He said there were about 300 different types of mosquitoes in Australia.
"They all may do this slightly differently so depending on where you are, what landscape and what species of mosquito is biting you, some may get bitten more than others," Dr Beebe said.
Are colours important?
Dr Beebe said mosquitoes were also drawn visually to dark-coloured clothing.
"Wear light, long-sleeved clothing because it's both visually not so attractive to the mosquito and the mosquito has trouble getting through that clothing," he said.
Large mosquitoes like the scotch grey (Aedes alternans) can bite you through your shirt, so the experts' advice is to spray clothes with repellent, and reapply every few hours.
Dr Beebe said repellents containing diethyltoluamide could help.
"Not that it actually repels them but there's a decision-making process in their little brain that says, 'I don't like this', and they will fly away," he said.
"Repellents work really well, but there are some species that are more tolerant that we're finding."
How successful is fogging?
Many local councils have been undertaking fogging (spraying) programs to combat mosquito numbers.
Dr Beebe said fogging was only a temporary solution given the insects' prolific breeding cycle, and was not as effective for the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which transmits the Dengue virus.
"Fogging is for adults in that immediate landscape, but they would need to do fogging potentially every couple of cycles to keep that population at bay," he said.
"It [the Dengue mozzie] actually goes into your house and hangs around so the fogging doesn't get to it, but for more open-landscape mosquitoes, they've found fogging helps to keep the population down."
How to avoid being bitten
Health officials agree the best advice is to wear light-coloured, long-sleeved, loose-fitting clothing and use an effective insect repellent on any exposed skin.
Darling Downs Health Public Health and Community Medicine director Dr Liam Flynn said scratching bites could cause infection.
"Treating bites with ice is a great first step to minimise swelling and itch and, if there are extensive bites, an antihistamine could be considered," he said.
"Excessive scratching may break the skin and open it to an infection, so preventing a bite is always best."
