GAACK! Black flies are out Wicked!

[LHF2019]

They are slowly coming out here, but so far it's been too cool for them to bother much. I have a worse reaction to their bites than to bee stings; they last 4-5 weeks whereas most stings abate in an hour or so.
When they are really bad I wear a headnet.

Just last week I was fixing fence. They do seem bad this year. I don't remember having an issue with them but this year my arm swelled up and itched for almost a week. The scabs are just healing now. Wife asked what happened. about 10 bites on one arm and unlike mosquitos you don't feel them until to late.

 

[thclimer]

Black Flies (aka Air Sharks) bread in cold oxygenated water, think of the perfect habitat for Brook Trout. A warm dry spring is key to lower black fly populations. Around here you will not see them if the air temperature is below 50 deg. If the humidity is low their numbers will also be limited. A day that they will be out full force is a humid day (dewpoints above 60) with little to no wind.

Deet is the only thing that works for me. On minimal days, just spraying some Deet on an old baseball hat is enough to keep them away. When its a full force day a 25% Deet sprays on exposed skin work well for me. Here their season lasts for 2-4 weeks depending on how quickly the water they bread in warms up.

 

[Like Tractors]

Do you have a favorite repellent?

All the best, Peter

Diesel fuel is a great repellent, keeps the gnats away and it smells good on me. I have used that for years, all the commercial products are crap by comparison, go to the fuel barrel put a little off highway diesel fuel in my had and splash it on. It might make it hard to pick up chics, but my wife is ok with that.

 

[Jstpssng]

It might make it hard to pick up chics, but my wife is ok with that

They finally came out in full force tonight, while I'm trying to get the BH on. I had to get in the truck for a minute to get away from the little turds.

Oldtimers used to spread B&C oil on their hardhats. When blackflies landed they would stick. I was never sure if it actually helped, or just made us feel better seeing all of the stuck blackflies.

 

[sixdogs]

When I lived where bugs were heavy, I sprayed orange can Cutters around my cuffs, wrist cuffs and collar. I kept my shirt buttoned, sprayed my clothes and hat and wore nothing that smelled. Worked for me and I hate black flies.

To eat outside, get a 60" barn fan and put the table 10 ft in front of the fan. The little darlins can't fly in the breeze. Use heavy plates and put a rock on the napkins.

EDIT--When I mentioned where to spray orange can Cutters in the first paragraph, I forgot to mention to spray around your waist as well.

 

[Jstpssng]

To eat outside, get a 60" barn fan and put the table 10 ft in front of the fan. The little darlins can't fly in the breeze. Use heavy plates and put a rock on the napkins

This deserves better than a FB thumbsup.

 

[thclimer]

They finally came out in full force tonight, while I'm trying to get the BH on. I had to get in the truck for a minute to get away from the little turds.

Oldtimers used to spread B&C oil on their hardhats. When blackflies landed they would stick. I was never sure if it actually helped, or just made us feel better seeing all of the stuck blackflies.

I know how you feel. I've been in Canada when there were so many if it was sunny you could see the haze of then flying around you head in your shadow on the ground. You would have to breath through your teeth to keep from sucking one or two into you lungs. They have never been anywhere near that bad in NY even in the Adirondacks. Canada is where the 100% Deet comes out for sure. As my grandfather used to say "if the bugs are bad, the fishing is going to be good, cause the fish eat bugs."

Hope your Black Fly season doesn't last too long. You need some dry warm weather to burn them out.

 

[sixdogs]

Another thing you can do about black flies in Maine is put up a LOT of birdhouses for the tree swallows** that love them. They are voracious blackfly bug eaters.

It didn't start out that way but I wound up with maybe 35 birdhouses when I lived there. I got some black iron pipe and some of the end plates that the pipe can screw into. I then screwed that into the bottom of the birdhouse and I could take them down every fall so they lasted longer.

Unintended, but we saw a dramatic decrease in blackfly and flying bug issues and credit it to our dumb luck with the birdhouses. We had waves of tree swallows flying in the yard and giving babies flying lessons. It was great and dramatic decrease in bugs.


**Note here is the birds are tree swallows but almost everyone calls them barn swallows. They are the little flying blue sharp-winged birds.

 

[LHF2019]

Another thing you can do about black flies in Maine is put up a LOT of birdhouses for the tree swallows** that love them. They are voracious blackfly bug eaters.

It didn't start out that way but I wound up with maybe 35 birdhouses when I lived there. I got some black iron pipe and some of the end plates that the pipe can screw into. I then screwed that into the bottom of the birdhouse and I could take them down every fall so they lasted longer.

Unintended, but we saw a dramatic decrease in blackfly and flying bug issues and credit it to our dumb luck with the birdhouses. We had waves of tree swallows flying in the yard and giving babies flying lessons. It was great and dramatic decrease in bugs.


**Note here is the birds are tree swallows but almost everyone calls them barn swallows. They are the little flying blue sharp-winged birds.

Ohio you have both. Our barn is full of barn swallows. We get to sit outside in the summer and enjoy it bug and mosquito free. Some people don't like the mess they make but having no bugs is priceless.

Tree Swallow Overview, All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Handsome aerialists with deep-blue iridescent backs and clean white fronts, Tree Swallows are a familiar sight in summer fields and wetlands across northern North America. They chase after flying insects with acrobatic twists and turns, their steely blue-green feathers flashing in the sunlight...

www.allaboutbirds.org

Barn Swallow Identification, All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Glistening cobalt blue above and tawny below, Barn Swallows dart gracefully over fields, barnyards, and open water in search of flying insect prey. Look for the long, deeply forked tail that streams out behind this agile flyer and sets it apart from all other North American swallows. Barn...

www.allaboutbirds.org

 

[HawkinsHollow]

Deer ticks aren't bad up here. However, I was 60 miles south of here last month and got one in a very personal spot, which I had to use a mirror to see. I am 2/3 of the way through a round of antibiotics which is causing problems of it's own... but still better than Lymes.

Is that what they are doing now? Every time you get a tick bite you have to take antibiotics as a prophylactic to lyme disease? That seems a little extreme.

We have a lot of nasty bugs here in the south, but black flies are not one of them. After reading this post I am VERY glad about that. They sound like dreadful creatures.

 

[DarkBlack]

You haven’t experienced fun till you hit the perfect black fly trifecta.. one goes in your ear, another into the corner of your eye, and before you can deal with them, a third one gets inhaled and stuck in your throat and you bend over and start dry heaving.
Good times. Usually is mercifully over in two weeks

 

[sixdogs]

You haven’t experienced fun till you hit the perfect black fly trifecta.. one goes in your ear, another into the corner of your eye, and before you can deal with them, a third one gets inhaled and stuck in your throat and you bend over and start dry heaving.
Good times. Usually is mercifully over in two weeks

Probably not a good time to mention that right after backflies are said to be over in northern New England, because they are only partly over, mosquitos start to bite at dusk and also early dawn. Annoying little b@#*&%s that make life outside in the north a dawn to dusk experience.

 

[dodge man]

I helped a friend put in field tile yesterday and after lunch they got bad. I must have had 50 of them around my face. After an hour of that I had to get away from them and got in the truck for about 3 minutes. I got back out and they weren’t near as bad rest of the day. I don’t know what changed?

 

[Mtsoxfan]

Rule of thumb around here for black fly season, Memorial Day to July 4th, sometimes starts earlier depending on weather. Sometimes gone before July 4th.
I'm trying to attract bats, put up a duplex for them. We have a stream running right behind that, not sure if there is enough space to fly by drink the water.

 

[ponytug]

Is that what they are doing now? Every time you get a tick bite you have to take antibiotics as a prophylactic to lyme disease? That seems a little extreme.

We have a lot of nasty bugs here in the south, but black flies are not one of them. After reading this post I am VERY glad about that. They sound like dreadful creatures.

It depends a great deal on where you live. Some areas of the US have so much Lyme disease in the ticks, that the recommendation is now "treat first, ask questions later". Maine is definitely one of those areas, and I think that I would not wish chronic Lyme disease on anyone.

All the best,

Peter

 

[ponytug]

I helped a friend put in field tile yesterday and after lunch they got bad. I must have had 50 of them around my face. After an hour of that I had to get away from them and got in the truck for about 3 minutes. I got back out and they weren’t near as bad rest of the day. I don’t know what changed?

In my experience, some times all it takes is a tiny increase in wind speed to make all the difference for black flies.

All the best,

Peter

 

[HawkinsHollow]

It depends a great deal on where you live. Some areas of the US have so much Lyme disease in the ticks, that the recommendation is now "treat first, ask questions later". Maine is definitely one of those areas, and I think that I would not wish chronic Lyme disease on anyone.

All the best,

Peter

Hmmm, interesting! I did not know that. I just looked at a Lyme disease prevalence map. WAY more Lyme disease in the NE. Next to nothing down here in the SE. Another check mark on the bug comparison chart for the SE. Ok, back to black flies

 

[Oaktree]

We have a lot of nasty bugs here in the south, but black flies are not one of them. After reading this post I am VERY glad about that. They sound like dreadful creatures.

I dunno, at least we don't have chiggers. From what I hear they're way worse than blackflies. At least blackflies are only around for 3-4 weeks, pretty much gone by first week in June. Of course, their lifespan corresponds with the first "nice" weather of the year too, just when you want to be outside.

Probably not a good time to mention that right after backflies are said to be over in northern New England, because they are only partly over, mosquitos start to bite at dusk and also early dawn. Annoying little b@#*&%s that make life outside in the north a dawn to dusk experience.

And don't even think about going into the woods much before mid-August (or later if it's been a rainy summer).

 

[HawkinsHollow]

I dunno, at least we don't have chiggers. From what I hear they're way worse than blackflies. At least blackflies are only around for 3-4 weeks, pretty much gone by first week in June. Of course, their lifespan corresponds with the first "nice" weather of the year too, just when you want to be outside.

And don't even think about going into the woods much before mid-August (or later if it's been a rainy summer).

Yes, Chiggers SUCK!! But they are pretty easy to avoid. Stay out of the long grass and maybe take a shower really quick after you get done if you can. I haven't gotten chiggers in years.

 

[ning]

Is that what they are doing now? Every time you get a tick bite you have to take antibiotics as a prophylactic to lyme disease? That seems a little extreme.

We have a lot of nasty bugs here in the south, but black flies are not one of them. After reading this post I am VERY glad about that. They sound like dreadful creatures.

Thing is, tests for Lyme aren't accurate for at least a four weeks, if not longer.
However, once it's embedded, it takes ridiculous amounts of antibiotics to treat... but a quick run of antibiotics taken within 72h of the bite seem to keep it from sticking.

I got a tick in March, near the top of my thigh - surprised the heck out of me because work pants etc but I realized I'd had a cat on my lap when I was sitting just in boxers...
anyways the next day I had swollen lymph nodes right in the region of the bite so I got on antibiotics, something obviously was bothering the immune system.

Strange thing, a month later I got another tick, up on my shoulder, and while I didn't get any obvious lymph reaction from that I developed a hair-trigger motion sickness within a few hours. I couldn't walk around the house without feeling nauseous and I suddenly had a terrible sense of balance, but felt fine if I was lying down. More antibiotics and slept for most of four days, what else are you going to do when everything triggers it. Took two weeks to get mostly back to normal; not sure what happened (it wasn't BPPV, I have that and know how to "fix" it and this was completely different and didn't respond at all to the epley).