Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears: A West African Tale is a 1975 children's picture book by Verna Aardema and illustrated by Leo and Diane Dillon. Published in hardcover by Dial Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Penguin Random House, it is told in the form of a cumulative tale written for young children, which tells an African legend. In this origin story, the mosquito lies to an iguana, who puts sticks in his ears and ends up frightening a snake, which down a long line causes a panic. In the end, an owlet is inadvertently killed and the owl is too sad to wake the sun until the animals hold court and find out who is responsible. The mosquito is eventually found out, but she hides in order to escape punishment. So now she constantly buzzes in the human ears to find out if everyone i