THUNDER BAY -- Biting insects that were largely absent until the last few days made life difficult for campers and anglers in the Thunder Bay area on the weekend.
The mass emergence of blackflies left people swatting vainly at hordes of biting insects against which even bonfire smoke proved to be an ineffective defense.
Ken Deacon, the vector-borne disease coordinator for the Thunder Bay District Health Unit, became a casualty of the invasion when he neglected to bring protective clothing on a visit to his own summer cottage north of the city. "I got lulled into complacency and didn't bring my bug shirt. So I got bitten to pieces," he told Tbnewswatch.
Deacon said toward the latter part of May is the usual time for blackflies to start a mass emergence that continues to the beginning of July.
If there is any silver living to the misery they bring to outdoor enthusiasts, it's that the larva develops in clean, running streamwater, and "at least that's an indication that our aquatic habitat is okay in northwestern Ontario," he noted.
But the next cohort of biting insects is following closely behind.
"The mosquitos have only just started to emerge, but we're going to be walloped, probably by next weekend," Deacon warned.
During a weekend trip to the Mills Block forest off John Street Road, he said he spotted several pupated mosquitoes, "and that means in a couple of days, they would be out flying."
A third bug—but not a biting variety—is also taking wing in the Thunder Bay area around this time.
Reproductive members of carpenter ant colonies come equipped with wings. "Depending on day-length, temperature and humidity, all the colonies go into the air at the same time, finish mating, and the females land on the ground where they rip off their wings. You've got these great big, black, fat ants running around now looking for a place to start a new colony."
Deacon said that although they don't bite humans, carpenter ants live in rotting or moistened wood, where they can cause damage.
As for campers counting on a smokey shield against biting bugs, he cautioned that the smoke probably needs to be thick enough to cause your eyes to water or make you cough before it will deter blackflies and mosquitoes.
Blackflies are more active during daylight hours, whereas mosquitoes can bite at any time of the day but are more active at dawn and dusk.
The Weather Network forecasts a "medium" level of bug activity in the Thunder Bay area for Monday and Tuesday, with reduced activity through the rest of the week.
