Tuesday 21 June 2011

All you wanted to know, and more, about Ceratopogonidae, and when they go away

SPAIN You don't know their name but you know them well. They bite, leave a welt, often at the back of the neck, just above the hairline. They attack day and night, They're a right pain. According to Wikipedia. Ceratopogonidae, or biting midges (including what are called, in the United States and Canada, no-see-ums, midgies, sand flies, punkies, and others), are a family of small flies (1–4 mm long) in the order Diptera. They are closely related to the Chironomidae, Simuliidae (or black flies), and Thaumaleidae. They are found in almost any aquatic or semiaquatic habitat throughout the world. Females of most species are adapted to suck blood from some kind of host animal. Culicoides, Forcipomyia (Lasiohelea), and Leptoconops suck vertebrate blood. Some Atrichopogon and Forcipomyia are ectoparasites on larger insects. Dasyhelea feed exclusively on nectar. Species in other genera are predatory on other small insects. Larvae are always found in some damp location, such as under bark, in rotten wood, compost, mud, stream margins, tree holes, or water-holding plants (i.e., phytotelmata). (FIND OUT WHEN THEY DISAPPEAR>>>)
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Many of the hematophagic (blood-eating) species are pests in beach or mountain habitats. Some other species are important pollinators of tropical crops such as cacao. The blood-sucking species may be vectors of disease-causing viruses, protozoa, and filarial worms. The bite of midges in the genus Culicoides causes an allergic response in equines known as sweet itch. In humans, their bite can cause intensely itchy, red welts that can persist for more than a week. The discomfort arises from a localized allergic reaction to the proteins in their saliva, which can be somewhat alleviated by topical antihistamines.

Fine, great, now you know all there is to know about them, only you can't immediately identify the species and sub species, but who cares? What you really want to know is: WHEN WILL THEY LEAVE ME ALONE???

According to local lore, they disappear near St. John's Day (San Juan), which is on June 24 (that's next Friday!!). There is no guarantee that the blasted insects can read a calendar but you will notice at some point, maybe a day or two after San Juan, that you don't notice them any more.

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