View Full Version : Blackflies
I keep hearing about the dreaded blackflies. Where and when will I encounter these? Are there areas to avoid at certain times of the year?
New England in June. New England in June.
Moon Monster
01-13-2004, 02:36
They tend to go to sleep at night (which is why I think mosquitos are worse). They also don't seem to keep up with you well while you are moving.
In my part of North Carolina, we call identical looking things "gnats," though our gnats don't bite near as often. I did encounter biting gnats/blackflies in central Virginia in May 2003. Vermont in June was way way worse, though. But, they didn't cause me enough grief to have wished I had a different itinerary for New England.
Blue Jay
01-13-2004, 09:16
New England in June. New England in June.
Often they start in Mid May and last until Mid July. They will tear you up in June.
I keep hearing about the dreaded blackflies. Where and when will I encounter these? Are there areas to avoid at certain times of the year?
Black flies generally last until the first hot spell.
One of the good reasons not to start a SOBO until July.
Cehoffpauir
01-14-2004, 19:29
What's the best blackfly repellant? DEET or something other?
Long sleeves and a headnet.
tlbj6142
01-14-2004, 19:56
I'm trying to figure out exactly what are blackflies. I read the word gnat and I picture flea sized flying insects that are after your sweat.
This past August I spent a week in the UP car camping. It rained quite a bit on Tuesday and Wednesday. The rest of the week we were bothered by what I think are blackflies (the locals called them biting flies). They look like normal house flies but only 2/3rds the size and quite a bit slower as it they were easy to kill.
Sound about right?
If so, this type seemed to focus almost entirely on our legs. Once I started wearing long pants, they were almost tolerable. Only occasionally bothering my face and arms. Though in the evening we had terrible mosquitos which forced us back into the lodge.
Hikerhead
01-14-2004, 20:11
If flies walked instead of flying, would we call them "walks"? :eek:
Sorry, I saw that somewhere and just had to throw it in... :datz
Continue discussion.....
Cehoffpauir
01-14-2004, 21:12
If flies walked instead of flying, would we call them "walks".
(whispering in his ear) You forgot the ? after "walks".
:cool:
Continue discussion.....
( :banana )
Hikerhead
01-14-2004, 21:21
<whispering> thanks.
Alligator
01-14-2004, 21:58
I'm trying to figure out exactly what are blackflies. I read the word gnat and I picture flea sized flying insects that are after your sweat.
This past August I spent a week in the UP car camping. It rained quite a bit on Tuesday and Wednesday. The rest of the week we were bothered by what I think are blackflies (the locals called them biting flies). They look like normal house flies but only 2/3rds the size and quite a bit slower as it they were easy to kill.
Sound about right?
If so, this type seemed to focus almost entirely on our legs. Once I started wearing long pants, they were almost tolerable. Only occasionally bothering my face and arms. Though in the evening we had terrible mosquitos which forced us back into the lodge.
1. They're bigger than fleas, they do look like what other folks call gnats. Maybe 1/5 size of a house fly?
2. They are slow but will find you and are always aggressive. They will bite you anywhere, I have found that they enjoy the head and neck. With no problem they will crawl through your hair.
3. They leave big welts, sort of a raised bump with a bite in the center.
4. Sometimes you will catch one leaving after it bites you, like in the car. Then they remind me of a gorged flying tick.
5. Make sure the headnet is no see-um size, because they can get through some of the cheap ones. I used to do field research in Maine, and I would wear two. When they got through the first one, I would kill them as they were trapped between layers.
6. They will crawl up your pant legs, so tuck them in.
7. Black flies breed in running water, like streams vs. mosquitoes which breed in standing water.
IMHO it's the black flies and skeeters that keep the population low in Maine not the cold!
In addition to the large welts which itch terribly, they have a most nasty habit of swarming around faces. This drives most people slowly insane, and explains the two-armed "black fly wave" commonly seen in the Maine Woods in June.
gravityman
01-15-2004, 11:27
I'm trying to figure out exactly what are blackflies. I read the word gnat and I picture flea sized flying insects that are after your sweat.
This past August I spent a week in the UP car camping. It rained quite a bit on Tuesday and Wednesday. The rest of the week we were bothered by what I think are blackflies (the locals called them biting flies). They look like normal house flies but only 2/3rds the size and quite a bit slower as it they were easy to kill.
Sound about right?
Nope, doesn't sound right. These sound like horseflies. Large, slow, very painful bite, usually on the legs or hands.
blackflies are small. They fly everywhere (including into your eyes) and like biting your face and neck.
Gravity Man
I don't know but maybe you are all confused or I am wrong in what I thought all my life growing up.
Black flies = Look almost like houseflies, bite like heel and leave a welt.
Horse flies = Look like black flies but are larger, believe they have a green head. May be called deer flies too.
No seums, nats or migits = very tiny and can fit through regular household screens.
Correct me if I am wrong?
TJ aka Teej
01-15-2004, 13:25
It's time to clear up a misconception about Maine. The State Bird of
Maine (I should know, being born and raised there) is the Chickadee [cuteius
birdius] and not the Black Fly [evilus biteums]. The confusion seems to
derive from the fact that the Black Fly's main food source is the Chickadee.
It's not uncommon to see Maine Black Flies flying back to thier dens with two
or three Chickadees in their claws to feed thier young. It is not true that
a Black Fly can snatch small hikers off the trail. It usually takes the
entire flock, unless the Hiker is one of them ultra-lighters, then it only
takes a few dozen. :D
I don't know but maybe you are all confused or I am wrong in what I thought all my life growing up.
Black flies = Look almost like houseflies, bite like heel and leave a welt.
Horse flies = Look like black flies but are larger, believe they have a green head. May be called deer flies too.
No seums, nats or migits = very tiny and can fit through regular household screens.
Correct me if I am wrong?
Black flies = Much smaller than houseflies. You usually don't feel them bite, but they'll leave a small dot of blood where they bit you. Any you'll get a welt about 3/4 inch across. Black fly welts, unlike mosquite welts, have no defined edge and have an obvious bite mark in the middle.
Horse flies = Look like house flies but are larger
gravityman
01-15-2004, 15:40
I don't know but maybe you are all confused or I am wrong in what I thought all my life growing up.
Black flies = Look almost like houseflies, bite like heel and leave a welt.
Horse flies = Look like black flies but are larger, believe they have a green head. May be called deer flies too.
No seums, nats or migits = very tiny and can fit through regular household screens.
Correct me if I am wrong?
Black flies are much smaller, as was mentioned.
Horses flies are the size of house flies, maybe a little bigger. All black. Deer flies have the green heads and are a little bit smaller. Deer flies have the most painful bite for me, but they are easy to kill. Blackflies are most annoying because of their numbers.
Gravity Man
tlbj6142
01-15-2004, 17:40
Horses flies are the size of house flies, maybe a little bigger. All black. Deer flies have the green heads and are a little bit smaller.Sort of funny how we all have different definitions for these terms. When I think of horseflies I think of something at least twice the size of a house fly. Some horseflies are almost an inch long. When found alone they usually don't bother people, when found in numbers (near horses!) their bite is quite painful and does typically draw blood. Most horse flies are black, but several are a silver-grey color. You typically can hear them before you can see them.
I would describe deer flies the same way gravityman does. Though I would include that their wings form a triangle, similar to those biting flies in the UP, while horse and house flies wings are more rounded forming a squished upside-down heart shape.
gravityman
01-15-2004, 17:50
Sort of funny how we all have different definitions for these terms. When I think of horseflies I think of something at least twice the size of a house fly. Some horseflies are almost an inch long. When found alone they usually don't bother people, when found in numbers (near horses!) their bite is quite painful and does typically draw blood. Most horse flies are black, but several are a silver-grey color. You typically can hear them before you can see them.
I would describe deer flies the same way gravityman does. Though I would include that their wings form a triangle, similar to those biting flies in the UP, while horse and house flies wings are more rounded forming a squished upside-down heart shape.
I agree with everything you said 100%. I was overestimating the size of an average house fly. Horse flies are big!
Alligator
01-15-2004, 17:58
I would describe deer flies the same way gravityman does. Though I would include that their wings form a triangle, similar to those biting flies in the UP, while horse and house flies wings are more rounded forming a squished upside-down heart shape.
The triangle to the wings is a good description.
Besides the skeeters and blackflies, Maine also has deer flies. Many the day I would work in my garden and those bas&*&^ds would zero in on me. Once attracted, they also would not relent. They could even bite through my shirt!The best way to kill them was to stay still and wait for them to land. As they tipped up to bite that's when I would kill them. Too soon, and they would fly away. As a joke, I started called some of the largest ones "Moose flies".
Darn skeeters could bite through denim jeans.
But I love Maine and would move back there if only I could.
Moon Monster
01-15-2004, 19:57
This site shows pics of blackflies and horse/deer flies, among others.
http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/insect/05582.pdf
This site shows a couple better photos of blackflies.
http://creatures.ifas.ufl.edu/livestock/bfly.htm
This site shows the difference between horse and deer flies.
http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/2000/2115.html
Basically, deer are patterned. The deer flies I saw in Maine last July were green and usually went for the back of my neck, but they were very easy to feel and kill before they bit.
tlbj6142
01-15-2004, 22:11
Sure go out and find a picture and ruin our fun at trying to come up with the perfect descritpion of these buggars.:mad:
I hiked SOBO last year. I started June 10th and got killed by Blackflies. Blackflies need the standing water to be cool. Once the water get's warmer they can not hatch anymore, which is why you don't see them in the heat of the summer. I definately recomend hiking SOBO, but maybe start in July.
Yes this is pretty much what I thought. But I beg to differ with you DebW. I sure can feel a black fly when it bites me.
black flies, horse flies, deer flies, biting gnats - all bite and all leave you itching, but none compare to pain suffered and welt resulting when bitten by the gulf coast's YELLOW FLY.
steve hiker
01-16-2004, 12:22
What about killer bees? I hear if you go out in the desert they congregate at water sources ansd will get you.
Smooth03
02-23-2004, 12:32
The bitch of it all with Blackflies is that as the season gets warmer they head for higher ground. So you wont have any problems with them at lower elevations but they'll run you off the peaks.
As someone put it: Blackflies work it 9-5 but Mosquitoes pimp it 24/7
This is all well and good (scratching my arms and legs after reading these posts), but can you use DEET to deter them?
Blue Jay
02-24-2004, 14:14
This is all well and good (scratching my arms and legs after reading these posts), but can you use DEET to deter them?
It depends upon your body chemistry. Deet is like ketchup on a hot dog to Black Flies the few times I tried it.
snowshoe
02-25-2004, 08:22
:datz Anything that flies and bits I can not stand. Thats why I prefere winter hiking. No bugs. Black flies are just nasty but at least they are not around all summer and the are only found farther North or at High Elevations. :datz Deer flies or what I call shadow flies are around from mid summer on. They can get really bad in the Kittatinny mts and they have a really nasty bite but easy to kill. :datz Horse flies I dont mind bacause it is usually only one that hangs around. Unlike the deer and Black fly were you ca get 20 or more at one time. :datz House flies are just like gnats they dont bit but they dont go away either. :datz Hope this cold weather sticks around. All this fly talk has got me itching and not looking forwad to summer. :datz
Blue Jay
02-25-2004, 08:57
One good thing is that after about a thousand mosquito bites they no longer bother you. So if you get all of them in the spring you get the entire summer off. I'm not joking. I found this out while hiking in Mosquito Hell. I was so tired I sat dow at a shelter with my pack still on and fell asleep. I woke up covered in mosquitoes. This won't work with black flies because a thousand bites from them would kill you.