BAY ST. LOUIS, Miss. – To the delight of no one, Mississippi’s most feared residents – its voracious flying and biting bugs – are recovering quite nicely from Hurricane Katrina.
Mosquitoes, midges (also known as “no-see-ums” and “flying teeth”) and deer flies have been particularly nasty this summer, making things miserable for work crews and giving the locals something to talk about besides insurance and repairs.
“The midges have been really severe,” says David Mayley, owner of Pest Control Specialists. “There were some areas where you almost couldn’t work outside.”
Mosquitoes have been getting lucky at the Casino Magic construction site, says Marty Moore, senior director of marketing.
“There were some ‘nuclear bugs’ down here right after the storm, and now the mosquitoes are meaner than hell,” he says.
To the west in Pearlington, volunteer firefighter Tommy Dean says deer flies have been the biggest pest.
“We had a real bad year,” he says. “You’ll need stitches (after they bite you). They crawl up under your shirt and suck all the spinal fluid out.”
Mayley suspects that a big decline in the local bat population could be contributing to the banner bug year.
“A lot of the old, beautiful homes were infested with bats, and they’re almost all gone,” he says.
Anecdotal evidence aside, not everyone buys into the theory that the insects are worse than usual this year.
“The raw numbers of mosquitoes are down this year compared to last, but it’s not from control; it’s because it’s dry … real dry,” says Jerome Goddard, a medical entomologist with the Mississippi Department of Health.
The bad news is that the drought conditions favor the southern house mosquito, which can transmit the West Nile virus, he says.
Blake Layton, an entomologist with the Mississippi State University Extension Service, says that flying insects with an appetite for human flesh appear to have weathered the storm well, though he hasn’t seen any evidence that they’re more prevalent.
He also says that other forms of insect life that suffered some disruptions in the immediate aftermath of the storm -- such as fire ants -- have recovered.
But the biggest six-legged winners if the post-Katrina environment are likely to be termites and cockroaches, Layton says.
“There’s a lot of downed wood, which will boost the termite populations, … and I’m expecting an increase in cockroaches as well, both the smaller ones that only live indoors, and the big ones – the Americans and smoky browns – that also can live outside,” he says.
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We live in Waveland... have a FEMA trailer and an 18X30 revival tent. The revival tent has sunshade on all sides. For reasons I don't understand, mosquitos and no-seeums don't like the sunshade: we can be inside the tent, bug-free; guests outside the tent are eaten alive. We don't sleep in the tent though, as my wife does not sleep well with silverfish crawling in her hair!
John S
Waveland MS
John Sosville, Waveland MS (Sent Jun 27, 2006 1:54:49 PM)
What are they going to complain about next? Why don't you just go ahead and blame it on FEMA or some other gov't agency? I think everyone needs to stop complaining and get back to work---get that coast rebuilt so another hurricane can take it all down again. God bless the little termites and roaches. They didn't do anything to anyone---they get such a bad rap!
Mark Randall, Atlanta, GA(formerly Biloxi, MS) (Sent Jun 27, 2006 3:06:17 PM)
The insects have always been horrible in Biloxi. You can't be outside and not be bitten or see a cockroach the size of a Buick. It's hard to imagine it worse than it once was.
parie (Sent Jun 27, 2006 4:08:20 PM)
To the guy who wants to know what they will complain about next----go visit there and then talk. They have every right to complain. God bless em. It is
a nightmare. Rebuild, easy for some to say--but the thieves are stealing the equipment and contractors are fed up. We are hear to listen. Complain and talk all you want. People do care!
Dale (Sent Jun 27, 2006 6:13:25 PM)
Perhaps it has been a reduction in alternative hosts available to the biting flies that has made it seem like there are more of them such that they are attacking humans more readily. I wonder what the storm's impact was like on wildlife.
michelle (Sent Jun 27, 2006 6:19:02 PM)
I'm really tired of hearing about why rebuild because another storm will take it down. In that line of thinking why should the area along the northern east coast clean up after the flood they are having --- it's just going to rain again!!
hy, huntsville, AL (Sent Jun 27, 2006 7:44:58 PM)
Please rebuild houses of concrete and steel not plasterboard and sticks as they will not last in a stong storm Make sure the roofs have hurricane straps. That is what we do in Jamaica.
Yvonne, Kingston, Jamaica (Sent Jun 27, 2006 9:09:13 PM)
Yes, people will rebuild but if you rebuild then don't complain if it happens again. I do feel sorry for the homeless down there though. It is now obvious that the gulf coastlines were not meant to be built on. I think that no insurance company should ever cover a structure in the damage zones. And our government should not cover any new structures in those zones. If you want to live there then be prepared to afford to rebuild again if you want to. I think that there are many people that would still build there under those conditions. Sorry, I got off the point of this blog.
Bob from Georgia (Sent Jun 27, 2006 9:19:06 PM)
they is turkey skeeters in the north part of da state....danditt they will raise a whelp!!!....ain't sure iv'e ever seen em dis big!!!.....ON KIDDING!!!!.......I think I got some kinnda Nile virus.....cough...cough....
andy,booneville ms. (Sent Jun 27, 2006 9:27:37 PM)
Unless you have allergic reactions to things that fly, crawl, and/or bite, you probably don't understand why complaining about them is a big deal. A bite from any number of bugs swell me up just this side of an ER visit. A wasp or hornet will send me to the ER, but the rest of them.....are the reason why I stay away from the woods and tree lines and spend my time on the coast during the summer.
If we weren't to rebuild after natural disasters, there is no place in America that would be safe. We'd either have fires, or floods, or hurricanes, or tornados, or earthquakes, or avalanches, or any other host of problems. Within a year, America wouldn't have a population.
Stephanie Umbro, Maine (Sent Jun 27, 2006 9:50:47 PM)
To the guy that said we are just complaining, I can only say that one day you will have to deal with something really difficult and maybe you will realize that your words have come back to haunt you.."walk a mile in our shoes", then talk~
lj, Gautier, MS (Sent Jun 27, 2006 11:19:09 PM)
I am from down south, I feel that this has always been a problem. Only because of the storm it is worth talking about. They are rebuilding to give those people hope for there future. If you haven't notice, most of them have not been really welcome other places. Much different from it was when everyone came to there state and city to visit.
Monica Mckinney, Baton Rouge, la (Sent Jun 27, 2006 11:25:49 PM)
Those insects are our fossil fuels in 1000 years. I say let them live and multiply.
Perhaps we could train the insects and send them over to Iraq. We'd get our troops back quicker and they could help rebuild the coast.
GL (Sent Jun 28, 2006 12:21:50 AM)
hey bob from georgia...are you saying that people shouldn't build in california also, along the san andreas fault?? geesh....obviously, from your point of view, the entire state of california (and alaska for that matter) should be declared uninhabitable!
Jaycee, San Jose, CA (Sent Jun 28, 2006 12:43:46 AM)
As to what Parie said, that just proves (much to this born and raised Texan's delight)that not everything is bigger in Texas. I thought I had seen large roaches, but that was before moving to the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Then I learned what big cockroaches really were!
SG, Mississippi Gulf Coast (Sent Jun 28, 2006 12:50:45 AM)
Sometimes I just have to ask, why even attempt to rebuild anything in such a hellhole? So much of it is unchanged from last fall, the wreckage is going to get blown around in the next Cat 3, 4, 5, or even perhaps 6 storm that comes through *this* year. Go somewhere where you've at least got a fighting chance! Don't say to me "but it's HOME!" Home's where you hang your hat - hang it where the hurricanes don't roam.
Joe Lansong (Sent Jun 28, 2006 1:08:00 AM)
On the news, I saw that Washington, D.C. is being flooded and more floodwater is expected for the next few days, as a result of a tropical system. Federal buildings had to be evacuated. It would be just awful if our public servants had to be evacuated and couldn't serve the public.
worried, ms (Sent Jun 28, 2006 2:43:16 AM)
The american psyche is wounded and festering. Symptomatic of this is what is occurring in the Katrina-hit LA and MS regions with stolen large construction equipment etc. It is incredulous that this goes unchecked. Such blatant actions just show how close we are to anarchy. Neither political party offers any true salve or is likely to spark any constructive actions other than continued partisan dogfights. What is wrong with the American people that they don't just throw these dogs out - we are so jaded, we cannot imagine true representative democracy. Meanwhile, other nations surpass us in the sciences and our reputation among world nations continues to decline. Give us a John Kennedy, someone we can believe in and who can give us a new sense of honor and duty.
Laurence Ransom (Sent Jun 28, 2006 7:22:06 AM)
Hey John S ...Yah should have spent a few extra bucks on that big ole revival tent and had a floor sewn into it along with sceeter netting on the windows and doors. Then you could avoid the silver fish and get some freash air as well. But no .. yah never listen to me ..! Then you could be sleeping in your tent as well .. (hey you forgot the best part ..tell'em about the "porta-potty experience").
Joe S
Joe, Oxford Michigan (Sent Jun 28, 2006 7:53:12 AM)
"flying teeth"....shouldn't that be on the post about the theives?....if I catch a thief on my place...there will be flying teeth...you can bet
andy,ms (Sent Jun 28, 2006 8:39:11 AM)
Given the state of things in LA, I say let the population complain about the bugs - for heaven's sake, they have enough to deal with and we have no right to censure them - as for the man saying no ins company should cover those areas, imagine the next time you have an accident and no ins co will cover you even though the accident wasn't your fault. Feel crappy doesnt it?
Alex, Elgin, IL (Sent Jun 28, 2006 10:06:07 AM)
Complaining about bugs? Complain about something we can control, like the thieves and the insurance fraud going on down there
Theo (Sent Jun 28, 2006 10:16:56 AM)
To the person who is telling us to stop complaining, I know it's probably difficult to comprehend what we have been through here on the coast since Katrina came through if you're not from the area. However, compassion towards your fellow man should be a universal thing. We're not asking you to come down here and rebuild our homes or clean up our mess. We aren't asking for your sympathy. The only thing we ask is that people stop making detrimental remarks towards those of us who are trying to rebuild our homes and lives. For many of us, the beautiful Gulf Coast has been home to our families for generations and we wouldn't consider the thought of living anywhere else.
R. Tolar, Pascagoula, MS (Sent Jun 28, 2006 10:23:14 AM)
Mark,
I believe you must have some of these critters up your...sounds like you are the one that is complaining!
Linda Plano, TX (Sent Jun 28, 2006 10:34:46 AM)
Apparently, no one noticed that the guy used to be from Biloxi. Try reding the whole post before you post your response...
chis (Sent Jun 28, 2006 11:24:58 AM)
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