UKC

Remember this? ("Where were the midges?")
http://www.ukclimbing.com/forums/t.php?t=310192

Well - according to this:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/highlands_and_islands/7518005.stm
There has been an apparent drop in the levels of the insects in the north and west of Scotland.

There were none in the NW last weekend either - not surprising this time though as it was so windy. But it does sound as if this seems to have been a good year midge-wise. Maybe the very dry spell of weather during May and June could have something to do with it.

In reply to DougG:
yeah I was thinking similar as most the midgies die over winter right and after the first batch of survivors hatch and multiply its the second batch that get us badly. If the first batch have a hard time of it then this could affect things. Also I don't know if you remember but although most the uk had more rain than normal last summer the west coast of Scotland actually had less (see MET office site for data)

In reply to DougG:

They're lurking, and lulling you into a false sense of safety. And then, just when you think you're guaranteed a midge-free day, sometime in October, the little feckers will be out en masse and you'll be a mass of itchy bites after 10 minutes.

In reply to DougG:
Hardly any on Rum at the weekend, which was a pleasant surprise. It was pretty windy on Saturday and Sunday, but even when it was calmer on Monday we weren't swarmed. I was pretty much eaten alive during a brief stop at Glenfinnan on the way home, though.
On a related note, the ticks are awful this year, aren't they?

In reply to Iain Forrest:

I found one in my leg last night.

Being the paranoid type, I am now worried about Lyme Disease. Maybe it was a nervous tick.

In reply to DougG:
Heh. I've only had a couple embedded so far this year (in Knoydart), but that's due to overwhelming paranoia leading to me checking every 15 minutes or so and picking them off my trousers!
Lyme Disease is still pretty rare here, but it's an unpleasant thought.

In reply to DougG:

Touch wood I havent encountered any yet this year and I have climbed in some of their "hot spots". They will attach at some point I am sure though.

In reply to DougG:

They're all at Widdop. Yes, all of them.

In reply to DougG: Keep an eye on it. Apparently our local friendly midgie scientist isn't well with her lyme's disease.

Sorry, cocked that up.

In reply to Chris F:


Aye, I know.

In reply to Iain Forrest:

Where?
I thought it was common, a few folk working on Mull have caught it. I think someone was on UKC that had caught it on Islay. Seems to be everywhere.

In reply to Iain Forrest: I bought a tic remover from the vets in Doune a couple of weeks ago for £4, not seen any sign of the little buggers since!

In reply to Colin Moody:
Yet, of the tens of active hillgoers I know (out most weekends), none have had it. The only person I knew who had it lived on a farm and didn't go out on the hills. I've had hundreds of ticks embedded in me over the years and never had it (so far, fingers crossed, etc.)
I hear about it more and more, but if it was common I'd surely know some sufferers.
It may be a lot more common in certain restricted areas, of course - I've heard on here that this is the case for Rum and Jura - maybe Mull is another hotspot for it?

In reply to dek:
The otter hide we visited at the weekend seems to be working very well too

In reply to Iain Forrest:
Mind you the dugs hoaching with them!

In reply to Iain Forrest:

Just heard that a bloke in our office is on antibiotics after apparently having contracted Lyme Disease. He's a mountain biker, seldom ventures out of NE Scotland.

One tick - had got under his watch and was there for quite a while (several days) until he noticed.

In reply to dek:

Whit, otters? I'll know where to look next time then...

In reply to DougG:
My friend contracted it earlier this year. We are not exactly sure where she got it though because she is always up and about the north of scotland.

In reply to dek:

Pretty effective then! Wonder if I can buy a midge remover?

In reply to DougG:

Paranoia means that I very rarely have them embedded for as long as 24 hours.
Still, if it's getting more common (as seems to be the case), it's a bit of a worry.
At least midges don't spread anything nasty (as far as I'm aware). I guess that's because they only bite once?

In reply to Iain Forrest:
And, if that is the reason, does it mean that the really wee ticks are less likely to infect you as they're less likely to have fed before? They're the ones that get embedded most often, as they're harder to spot beforehand.

In reply to Iain Forrest:

The climate getting warmer seems to be mentioned as a factor in the increasing prevalence of Lyme Disease. I don't know whether it's the bacteria themselves that are spreading, or whether there are more ticks - or maybe it's both.

In reply to Chris F:
Dunno, but that Avon Skin so Soft is a marketing triumph, as its 'pish'!

In reply to DougG:
I guess there are more folks walking in the hills too, so probably more human exposure to it.

In reply to Chris F:
I know where some of them are - I got midged (albeit in a small way) in Muchalls the other night...

In reply to dek:

It seems to work for a relatively short period of time from what I can tell, but then I tend not to stand around still when the midges are out, so it may have more to do with that.

In reply to DougG:

I read that there are more cases of MS in the Highlands than should be expected and it was thought that some of these might be misdiagnosed Lyme Disease.

In reply to DougG:

I got savaged by midgies in Glenfinnan at the start of June. I reckon the wee gits were all there on thier holidays. It was like a midge convention or something!

Also had more ticks this year so far than over the past 20 odd years combined!

Have been told that it's due to there being less sheep on the hills(high cost of feed/low price of lamb or something) apparently the ticks stick to their oily fleeces.

In reply to Colin Moody:
Isn't MS much more common in women (and presumably Lyme Disease isn't)? Looking at the gender distribution might give an idea of whether this has happened to a significant degree.

In reply to SFM:
I attended midgefest'08 during this year's LAMM (Glenfinnan)

was none on hoy this weeknd, mind u it was blowing a force 6 gale!!

In reply to DougG:

We were in Badacro, nea Gairloch weekend before last and I fully expected to be eaten if I stood still for more than a wee while, saw and felt a few but nothing to be bothered about.... a pleasent surprise

In reply to FrankBooth:

It was mental wasn't it! I pity the folk that camped on the Friday night...must have ben murder.

In reply to DougG:
They were 2/5 in glen clova last night

In reply to DougG:

Last night they were ALL at Wilton 1 in Lancashire!

In reply to CurlyStevo: Lol! I thought you meant there were 2 to 5 of them and wondered if you stood there and counted them!

In reply to SFM:
In case of midge attack dive in yer tent, close all screen doors and scuttles, light the primus full blast. Plus 10°F they all peg out before you do. No tent? Get under a tarp or poncho, same same. Works on mossies too.
They don't like the heat and neither do I.
Peace!