Is it fatal attraction or confusion? Scientists offer new ideas of why insects flutter near light

Many scientists have long assumed that moths and other flying insects were simply drawn to bright lights. But a new study suggests that's not exactly what's going on. Rather than being attracted to light, researchers believe that artificial lights at night may actually scramble flying insects’ innate navigational systems. This cause them to flutter in confusion around porch lamps, street lights and other artificial beacons. Researchers say insects don't fly directly toward a light source, but actually tilt their backs toward the light. Results were published Tuesday in the journal Nature Communications.