We here at LEDified are lovers of lights. We are proud to serve our customers so that their evenings can be illuminated with our LED lights. There’s been a question that’s been burning most people for years. And the quest for the answer always seems to be ongoing.

When lights are turned on in the evening, there always seems to be some bugs appearing out of nowhere. The insects are attracted to the light in swarms and surprisingly end up in lighting shades, trays and bulbs at times.

There’s been some speculation as to whether or not LED lights attract insects. There’s been a few scientific studies to address the issue.

Bugs are attracted to a colour spectrum, rather than a specific type of light bulb.

A study conducted by the Department of Entomology in Pakistan concluded that bugs were attracted to the different colour spectrums in light rather than a specific light bulb. The study showed that 22% of bugs were attracted to the blue spectrum, while 18% were attracted to white, 10% to yellow, 2% to red and 4.7% to green. The study was conducted to help develop light insect traps (rather than pesticides) for the agricultural industry.

The findings are interesting because they also show that light bulb manufacturers cannot claim that their light bulb won’t attract insects.

Sage publishing offers another research paper titled, “Lighting Research & Technology”, which is a more up-to-date study that covers the effects of residential energy-saving lamps on the attraction of nocturnal insects.

LED lights can be more favourable for insects.

LED lights are much cooler than their incandescent or ultraviolet counterparts. So bugs that decide to hang around the light aren’t likely to get burned up. It is possible that the light could attract alot more bugs over time. However, this would only occur if you left the LED light exposed to the outdoor elements.

Is it true?

It is true that the light emitted by LED lights can attract bugs, but it is unfair to make the claim that LED light bulbs attract more bugs than other lightbulbs. It’s more likely that it will affect external lighting such as floodlights or downlights that are exposed to outdoor elements.

You can see the original discussion on the article on Lux Review.

Do you have any thoughts? Let us know in the comments below.