Bugs

[weekend_warrior]

Any reports of swarming, man/woman eating flies and mosquitoes yet? It's got to be about that time now that snow is melting rapidly. Considering a Burnt/Cast Lake outing, possibly other lakes too, just wondering if anyone has any recent reports...

[Waffle Stomper]

I was at Trillium Lake two weekends ago, the skeeters were out in force.

[bushwhacker]

Kiss off Indian Heaven for the next couple of months. I parked at Crest Camp Saturday and wasn't out of my vehicle more then a couple of minutes before famous Indian Heaven mosquito cloud appeared.

[Grannyhiker]

About the time the huckleberries ripen!

Any place that's a relatively flat plateau with lots of lakes (some more like swamps) is going to be mosquito heaven. That includes not only Indian Heaven but also "Mosquito Valley" north of White Pass and the Olallie Lakes area as well as a number of areas farther south. Fortunately, it's usually bearable by mid-August, and really beautiful by mid-September, when the huckleberry bushes are turning red but still have some berries on them.

[drm]

There were some mosquitoes at the trailheads at MSH last weekend, but not a one at June Lake. There were lots of crawlies in the lake that were obviously about to pop out pretty soon.

[kelkev]

I sprayed my first dose of DEET this year, they were friendly at Marion Lake today. Love that buzzing in the ears.

[Splintercat]

Okay, here's a question: it is just folklore that only the male mosquitos buzz, and that it's mainly the silent females that are after your blood? It doesn't make a lot of sense that the males could do without feeding, of course, but this one has been around since I was kid... probably just to give us the creeps about those silent stalkers..!

I'd love to hear a report on the Serene/Cache loop -- I've yet to hit the snow-free-bug-free window at Cache Meadow (or that area anytime before Autumn when there weren't bugs, for that matter).

Tom

[retired jerry]

I thought the females like to have a blood meal before laying eggs, but it's not absolutely required

[drm]

Right, only females bite because they need protein from blood to produce eggs. Otherwise they both are pollinators. I don't know if it's absolutely required to produce eggs, or just helps them produce more.