Author Topic: Where in the US has the least biting insects?  (Read 43450 times)

meadow lark

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Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« on: July 20, 2015, 09:25:08 PM »
Losing my mind waiting for the Benadryl to kick in.  Never doing yard work again.

Dee

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #1 on: July 20, 2015, 10:22:18 PM »
At the risk of hijacking the thread, if anyone has the more specific experience of avoiding mosquitoes in Canada, I'd be super interested.

I went to Vancouver and Victoria in May this year and was not visited by any mosquitoes. It was magical. And unprecedented. I have been bitten while waiting for a bus in the downtown core in Ottawa. I got my butt destroyed by the little beasties this year just riding along bicycling trails. Or taking the dog out to do his business.  They fucking love me. They seem to follow me wherever I go and I am super sensitive to their bites. They swell and hurt so bad! Gah!

Visiting Capilano Suspension Bridge in Vancouver was the most amazing experience for me because I was outdoors and enjoying myself. The only difference on that day and every other outdoor experience I've had was that there were no mosquitoes. And no snow. All at once. Truly unique for me.

Did I just luck out? I've heard elsewhere Vancouver Island is an excellent location for the mosquito averse. Is this true? Or was I just lucky?

Mirwen

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #2 on: July 20, 2015, 10:33:37 PM »
Places where there is the least moisture.  I'm still amazed at how few pest insects there are in the desert.

Chesterfield

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #3 on: July 20, 2015, 11:32:15 PM »
Seattle is relatively bug free. We have a lot of spiders but never been bit by one.

deborah

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #4 on: July 21, 2015, 12:14:05 AM »
Places where there is the least moisture.  I'm still amazed at how few pest insects there are in the desert.
You have not met the flies of the Australian desert!

ShoulderThingThatGoesUp

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #5 on: July 21, 2015, 05:56:37 AM »
Another mosquito favorite here. DEET solves it for me, though. To protect my face, I spray it in front of me and headbutt the cloud.

sheepstache

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #6 on: July 21, 2015, 06:15:21 AM »
This thread is close to my heart.

Roots&Wings

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #7 on: July 21, 2015, 06:26:51 AM »
Also to consider - some towns with biting insects spray to eliminate said insects. I'm a magnet for biting insects and currently live in such a town, which definitely helps.

forummm

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #8 on: July 21, 2015, 06:37:24 AM »
Phoenix has essentially no bugs that will bite you other than some spiders (like black widows) that are easy to avoid. There are some ants, but not a lot, and I don't think they are the biting with allergic reaction kind. If you go out into the desert you might find a scorpion. But you'd have to look for awhile in some untrafficked areas. The bugs are too smart to live in the heat and lack of moisture.

EricL

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #9 on: July 21, 2015, 06:56:02 AM »
Places where there is the least moisture.  I'm still amazed at how few pest insects there are in the desert.

This.  Bugs correlate with moisture, so the drier the place, the fewer the bugs.  We have lived in some very buggy places (MN, WI, upstate NY) and I too think seriously about how nice it would be to live somewhere where you could sit outside in the evening, or work outside without donating a pint of blood.  That first hard freeze of the fall is a glorious thing.

I beg to differ. Not only is there mention above about biting bugs in Australia but let me tell you about the critters in our own US deserts.
The mosquito - there are parts of the desert with enough water to support mosquitos and their prey.  Though they're nowhere near as fierce and numerous as Washington state's.
The horse fly - big, black, evil flys that drill into you. They're hateful.
The deer fly - more innocuous little grey flys that bite worse than the horse fly. I've had them bite through jeans.
The scorpion - fortunately not usually deadly poisonous but still painful as hell. 


JLee

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #10 on: July 21, 2015, 08:03:58 AM »
Phoenix has essentially no bugs that will bite you other than some spiders (like black widows) that are easy to avoid. There are some ants, but not a lot, and I don't think they are the biting with allergic reaction kind. If you go out into the desert you might find a scorpion. But you'd have to look for awhile in some untrafficked areas. The bugs are too smart to live in the heat and lack of moisture.

+1 for Phoenix.

Axecleaver

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #11 on: July 21, 2015, 08:10:14 AM »
Quote
At the risk of hijacking the thread, if anyone has the more specific experience of avoiding mosquitoes in Canada, I'd be super interested.
When I fish up there, I bring a supply of cigars and smoke them pretty much any time I'm awake and outside. Seems to work pretty well.

Best way to reduce mosquitoes on your property is to make sure there's no standing water for more than 24 hours, or add fish to the water. Mosquitoes can breed in a half inch of water in an upturned leaf.

Villanelle

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #12 on: July 21, 2015, 08:35:47 AM »
Las Vegas has very, very few bugs.  However, scorpions are somewhat of an issue.  All my parents neighbors swear they have no scorpions, so my dad went out in the yards with each of them at night, armed with a black light and a hammer.  Every single one of them was shocked when he found multiple scorpions lurking in the rocks.  And they live in what would be considered suburbia, though they back up to a golf course and are not too many miles from undeveloped areas.   And occasionally one does make it in to the house, but mostly they stay outside.  My dad goes scorpion hunting around his yard every night with his trusty black light and hammer system. 

In my years in SoCal, I rarely saw many insects other than ants. 

Cookie78

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #13 on: July 21, 2015, 09:07:07 AM »
Phoenix has essentially no bugs that will bite you other than some spiders (like black widows) that are easy to avoid. There are some ants, but not a lot, and I don't think they are the biting with allergic reaction kind. If you go out into the desert you might find a scorpion. But you'd have to look for awhile in some untrafficked areas. The bugs are too smart to live in the heat and lack of moisture.

+1 for Phoenix.

I came here to say this.

But you have to watch out for the plants in Phoenix and the rest of AZ, those things are vicious!

TheThirstyStag

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #14 on: July 21, 2015, 09:27:30 AM »
Quote
At the risk of hijacking the thread, if anyone has the more specific experience of avoiding mosquitoes in Canada, I'd be super interested.
Best way to reduce mosquitoes on your property is to make sure there's no standing water for more than 24 hours, or add fish to the water. Mosquitoes can breed in a half inch of water in an upturned leaf.


+1

Especially the asian tiger mosquito, which is my most hated invasive species.  These things are not only viscious day-hunters, they can also breed in a tiny amount of water. 


Brian5000

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #15 on: July 21, 2015, 09:34:24 AM »
Dry, desert areas. SoCal, Arizona, New Mexico.

Another Reader

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #16 on: July 21, 2015, 10:33:30 AM »
Phoenix has mosquitoes anywhere there is standing water.  Some of the lake communities use fish and other forms of natural control, but the controls are not really effective.  I have been bitten several times when I was not careful.  I am allergic, so I know when it happens.

In areas near the river beds, there are other biting insects in addition to mosquitoes - flies and other small biters. 

There are pockets in the Phoenix area with high concentrations of scorpions.  The old-timer theory is they are concentrated in places that were once pecan orchards.  In Tempe, there seems to be some truth to that.

Phoenix has brown recluse spiders.  The bites are very toxic and painful.  The tissue around the bite usually dies, and complications can occur.  These are small spiders that like to hide in folds in bed linens, among other places.

The bees in Phoenix are now largely Africanized, so they tend to be more aggressive that the standard honey bee.  Several fatal attacks have occurred.

The good news is that fleas are not generally a problem, especially if your pets go outdoors.  It's just too hot and dry.

Trifle

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #17 on: July 21, 2015, 10:57:31 AM »


I beg to differ. Not only is there mention above about biting bugs in Australia but let me tell you about the critters in our own US deserts.
The mosquito - there are parts of the desert with enough water to support mosquitos and their prey.  Though they're nowhere near as fierce and numerous as Washington state's.
The horse fly - big, black, evil flys that drill into you. They're hateful.
The deer fly - more innocuous little grey flys that bite worse than the horse fly. I've had them bite through jeans.
The scorpion - fortunately not usually deadly poisonous but still painful as hell. 



Yep -- we've got deer flies and horse flies too.  I'm all too familiar.  (Agree that deer fly bites are nasty, but horseflies are worse.  They actually punch a good sized hole into you that hurts like hell.  In addition I am actually allergic to horse fly bites. I got one on the back of my hand one time and the whole hand swelled up like a baseball glove.) 

And we have black flies -- nasty little blood suckers.  Small insect and a painless bite, but then the bug's anticoagulant keeps the bite hole bleeding for up to 24 hours. You can literally feel nothing, and then someone tells you that you've got blood running all down the back of your legs.   

Not saying these creatures don't exist in the desert -- I'm sure there are some -- but it's all relative.  In the north and the northeast US, there are so many of these things that you head indoors at times.  There were way, way, way fewer biting insects in the desert areas I've visited than what I am used to. 

Oh -- and about DEET -- I can't stand it.  I feel like I can't breathe when it's around, so never use it.  Plus, anything that will melt the back of a plastic watch is probably something we shouldn't be putting into the environment, IMHO.  I'd rather deal with the bugs by covering up, using citronella, or moving indoors at times.

God.  Just talking about all of this makes me want to move west right now. 
« Last Edit: July 24, 2015, 04:45:40 PM by Trifele »

CletusMcGee

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #18 on: July 21, 2015, 01:33:06 PM »
Minnesota doesn't have biting insects, they just swallow you whole.

TheOldestYoungMan

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #19 on: July 21, 2015, 01:37:01 PM »
North slope of alaska.

I keep a can of off in the garage sitting on top of my gloves.  There's another can sitting on top of the bicycle seat.  Never leave home without it.

I've actually gotten to where I like the smell and taste of it.

By the end of winter I'll be out of the habit of using it, but I quickly relearn.

flygal

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #20 on: July 21, 2015, 01:44:18 PM »
No shortage of winged blood suckers here in GA.  I am super sensitive to DEET (can't taste for days afterwards) so I use a natural insect repellent (Summer Survivor XS Pomegranate).  Works well unless there is rain coming and the mosquitoes go crazy.

For casual sitting on the deck with a frosty beverage we use a Cutter Mosquito Repellent Lantern.  My dh found a hack on youtube to refill the butane cartridges and one to replenish the repellent for a fraction of the cost of new.  I don't use sprays and foggers in my yard out of respect for my native pollinators, not to mention my honey bees, but this provides a small area of sanctuary and has given us back our deck.  There are wearable cartridges that I haven't tried yet, but I like the overall product. 

UnleashHell

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #21 on: July 21, 2015, 01:56:15 PM »
Florida.
The gators and the sharks have eaten them all.

NoraLenderbee

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #22 on: July 21, 2015, 02:16:15 PM »
Northern California. It's not totally skeeter-free, but a mosquito bite is a once-in-a-while thing. I grew up in the northeast and I understand the problem. We do have lots of spiders, but most of them are harmless and just want to get away from you. Even the harmful ones don't actively seek people out.

Hamster

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #23 on: July 22, 2015, 01:25:43 AM »
Seconding what people have said about very few mosquitoes in the Pacific Northwest - No Cal to Vancouver island. I grew up in the midwest and have lived in other places where mosquitoes are a constant nuisance, so I am particularly grateful.

In coastal Washington we have very few mosquitoes. Further inland we see more biters - there are mountain lakes where the flies are terrible, but you have to hike to find them. A quick google search says low mosquito populations are because of the cool summers in the Pac NW. Mosquitoes that mature in 4-5 days in the midwest and southern US, take 2-3 weeks to mature in cool Seattle summers.

So, cool summers = poor tomato yield, and few mosquitoes. Worthy trade off in my book.

forummm

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #24 on: July 22, 2015, 07:42:28 AM »
Phoenix has essentially no bugs that will bite you other than some spiders (like black widows) that are easy to avoid. There are some ants, but not a lot, and I don't think they are the biting with allergic reaction kind. If you go out into the desert you might find a scorpion. But you'd have to look for awhile in some untrafficked areas. The bugs are too smart to live in the heat and lack of moisture.

+1 for Phoenix.

I came here to say this.

But you have to watch out for the plants in Phoenix and the rest of AZ, those things are vicious!

Only if you attack them.

You can actually touch a cactus and not get stabbed--if you're careful.

spokey doke

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #25 on: July 22, 2015, 07:51:36 AM »
I think the high desert is a pretty good place to be for a lack of bugs...not only a lack of moisture to support their propagation, but colder temps to slow them down.

Cookie78

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #26 on: July 22, 2015, 09:36:39 AM »
Phoenix has essentially no bugs that will bite you other than some spiders (like black widows) that are easy to avoid. There are some ants, but not a lot, and I don't think they are the biting with allergic reaction kind. If you go out into the desert you might find a scorpion. But you'd have to look for awhile in some untrafficked areas. The bugs are too smart to live in the heat and lack of moisture.

+1 for Phoenix.

I came here to say this.

But you have to watch out for the plants in Phoenix and the rest of AZ, those things are vicious!

Only if you attack them.

You can actually touch a cactus and not get stabbed--if you're careful.

lol, ya. Somehow they always managed to get me. The first time I took my dog for a walk over by Superstition Mountains he learned really quick. There were so many needles and he wouldn't let me near him. I managed to pull the bulk of the cactus off his nose, but the rest of the thorns had to wait until we got home, with pliers. (Put a pair of pliers in his hiking bag after that - which we never needed because he learned the first time). And then there were these horrible spikey things that stick to the bottom of your shoes and end up hiding in the carpet at home waiting to jab your tender feet!

But 6 months there and I don't think I even saw a biting insect.

fattest_foot

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #27 on: July 22, 2015, 02:10:55 PM »
I think the high desert is a pretty good place to be for a lack of bugs...not only a lack of moisture to support their propagation, but colder temps to slow them down.

I'll second this. Currently live in the high desert and while the 3-4 months of summer are somewhat miserable, the fact that there are no mosquitoes or ticks is amazing. Really the only bugs here are spiders, ants, and cockroaches. There are probably some scorpions around, but in the 3 years I've lived here I've never seen one.

If you can get through the hot months though, the rest of the year is perfect. I'll also take a few months of hot over snow and ice; especially if it means no bugs.

deborah

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #28 on: July 22, 2015, 03:25:55 PM »
Spinifex grass is difficult to avoid in some of our deserts, and it is worse than biting insects.

The_path_less_taken

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #29 on: July 22, 2015, 03:34:46 PM »
Supposedly B supplements alter your 'smell' to mosquitos and they don't bite as much.

But if you're a natural magnet for one <raises hand> then I think the little bastards bite you and maybe just make a frowny face?

As for best bite free place, I was going to say Nome, AK due to temps, but bet they have a skeeter problem in the summer.

Deserts have bugs, but not as many as say, Louisiana.


forummm

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #30 on: July 22, 2015, 04:54:43 PM »
Supposedly B supplements alter your 'smell' to mosquitos and they don't bite as much.

But if you're a natural magnet for one <raises hand> then I think the little bastards bite you and maybe just make a frowny face?

As for best bite free place, I was going to say Nome, AK due to temps, but bet they have a skeeter problem in the summer.

Scientists think that the natural bacterial colonies on your skin are what attracts mosquitoes to certain people preferentially over others.

In Barrow, AK you won't find any bugs. Plus, it's so damn cold and windy (highs typically 30ish plus 20+ mph winds) you won't have any skin showing.

Sid Hoffman

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #31 on: July 22, 2015, 05:08:40 PM »
Phoenix has mosquitoes anywhere there is standing water.  Some of the lake communities use fish and other forms of natural control, but the controls are not really effective.  I have been bitten several times when I was not careful.  I am allergic, so I know when it happens.

In areas near the river beds, there are other biting insects in addition to mosquitoes - flies and other small biters.

This rings true to my experience as well.  I used to live near a canal in Phoenix and there would absolutely be mosquitoes and small flies along the canals even though the canal itself is flowing water.  It must pool in a bunch of places or something because at least 1-2 months in both spring and fall there would be some bugs along the canal paths.  Still, I've been up to Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, as well as in the Carolinas all in summer months.

Phoenix, even along the canal paths and overwatered HOA greenbelts can't even begin to hold a candle to the number of bugs in those other places.  It's pretty tame by comparison, especially in the more desert landscaped areas that are consistently low water usage over very large areas of land.

Gerard

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #32 on: July 23, 2015, 09:56:51 AM »
Seconding what people have said about very few mosquitoes in the Pacific Northwest - No Cal to Vancouver island.

Yes, this... my friend who lives in Eugene doesn't even have screens on his windows.

lcmac32

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #33 on: July 23, 2015, 12:14:52 PM »
Phoenix has essentially no bugs that will bite you other than some spiders (like black widows) that are easy to avoid. There are some ants, but not a lot, and I don't think they are the biting with allergic reaction kind. If you go out into the desert you might find a scorpion. But you'd have to look for awhile in some untrafficked areas. The bugs are too smart to live in the heat and lack of moisture.

All true except for the scorpions.  They are everywhere and must be sprayed for in your home.  I have been here four years and no stings yet...thankfully.  Praying for the continued non-sting streak.

Sid Hoffman

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #34 on: July 23, 2015, 12:20:07 PM »
All true except for the scorpions.  They are everywhere and must be sprayed for in your home.  I have been here four years and no stings yet...thankfully.  Praying for the continued non-sting streak.

It's still regional.  Certain regions have scorpions, others do not.  I've inspected properties in Phoenix where I went out with a blacklight and goggles at night and found 20 scorpions in a single inspection, while other properties I find none.  My parents lived in one home in Phoenix where they had no scorpions in 15 years and another with 2 in 13 years.  My ex-wife however is killing 5+ scorpions a year in her house in the Phoenix suburbs, LOL.  That was even after spending $1000 for all new caulking and sealing of the house by an anti-scorpion pest control company and altering all the landscaping to be less likely to attract bugs & scorpions.  It's different from one neighborhood to another.

zoltani

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #35 on: July 23, 2015, 01:22:58 PM »
Few/no mosquitoes in the PNW, bwahahahaha... Have fun living in your fantasy world!

Cassie

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #36 on: July 23, 2015, 01:28:23 PM »
Nevada!! I have lived in Wi & upstate ny & they were terrible for bugs.

forummm

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #37 on: July 23, 2015, 01:31:03 PM »
All true except for the scorpions.  They are everywhere and must be sprayed for in your home.  I have been here four years and no stings yet...thankfully.  Praying for the continued non-sting streak.

It's still regional.  Certain regions have scorpions, others do not.  I've inspected properties in Phoenix where I went out with a blacklight and goggles at night and found 20 scorpions in a single inspection, while other properties I find none.  My parents lived in one home in Phoenix where they had no scorpions in 15 years and another with 2 in 13 years.  My ex-wife however is killing 5+ scorpions a year in her house in the Phoenix suburbs, LOL.  That was even after spending $1000 for all new caulking and sealing of the house by an anti-scorpion pest control company and altering all the landscaping to be less likely to attract bugs & scorpions.  It's different from one neighborhood to another.

If you're in the suburbs, things get more rural, and you could even have rattlesnakes and coyotes in your yard. If you're in the neighborhoods, those things are very uncommon.

Gone Fishing

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #38 on: July 23, 2015, 01:32:56 PM »
The higher, the better, around here.  Steep terrain doesn't allow for much standing water.

kaizen soze

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #39 on: July 23, 2015, 02:01:37 PM »
Saw up-thread remarks about few biting insects in the PNW.  Here in Seattle we have paved over all of our swamps and marshes, so mosquitos are pretty rare in town -- I've never been bit by one here. 

davef

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #40 on: July 23, 2015, 02:21:14 PM »
In Oregon, there is a lot of water, but very little stagnant water. Misquitos cant lay egg in white water. Here in Oregon, I've been 7 years and the only place I've ever been bit, or even seen a misquito is on the bank of some of the lowland lakes.

At my house, none, by the mountain lakes, none, hope that helps.

zoltani

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #41 on: July 23, 2015, 03:17:38 PM »
I have no idea what you all are talking about, the mosquitoes have been terrible this year in the PNW. None around mountain lakes? What?

Potterquilter

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #42 on: July 23, 2015, 09:34:04 PM »
Not Florida. Plus we have snakes.

Hamster

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #43 on: July 23, 2015, 11:19:31 PM »
I have no idea what you all are talking about, the mosquitoes have been terrible this year in the PNW.
Where do you live? Seriously way fewer mosquitoes along the WA oast than when I lived in the midwest, New England, and various parts of Asia. I swear I get maybe 5 bites a summer in Bellingham at most. You get that many bites per minute during a summer evening in Iowa.

Do a google search for 'why so few mosquitoes in seattle'. You will see most people would agree. Further inland is a totally different story.

sheepstache

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #44 on: July 24, 2015, 06:58:03 AM »
Since a lot of people are mentioning standing water, my understanding is that's closely associated with mosquitoes because the species most responsible for malaria and west nile need standing water to breed. But different species can breed in creeks and streams (which probably have smaller pockets of standing water).

ShoulderThingThatGoesUp

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #45 on: July 24, 2015, 07:07:34 AM »
I saw a woman at the water park yesterday with a tramp stamp of a mosquito. What is somebody supposed to make of that?

forummm

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #46 on: July 24, 2015, 07:31:44 AM »
I saw a woman at the water park yesterday with a tramp stamp of a mosquito. What is somebody supposed to make of that?

She wants to suck your blood.

Roboturner

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #47 on: July 24, 2015, 11:24:48 AM »
Colorado, why do you think everyone moves here? for the Mountains and MMJ?! NOPE - bugs, none of them.

Hamster

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #48 on: July 24, 2015, 11:37:51 AM »
Since a lot of people are mentioning standing water, my understanding is that's closely associated with mosquitoes because the species most responsible for malaria and west nile need standing water to breed. But different species can breed in creeks and streams (which probably have smaller pockets of standing water).
All mosquitoes tend to lay eggs in standing, rather than flowing water (although some streams may have pockets of standing water like you say).

The preferred type of water is genus-dependent. Aedes mosquitoes (transmit dengue) usually breed in small containers or and are more 'urban'. Some Aedes vexans mosquitoes (a great name!) lay eggs on moist soil, and the larvae hatch after it rains and the area floods or forms puddles.  Anopheles mosquitoes (malaria vector), prefer stagnant water pools with vegetation. None of them like running water. I think Culex is the most common west nile vector. They prefer dirty stagnant water.

The black flies that transmit African river blindness like fast flowing rivers, but I don't think there are any mosquitoes that like flowing water.

mlejw6

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Re: Where in the US has the least biting insects?
« Reply #49 on: July 24, 2015, 11:50:36 AM »
+111 for high desert locales.

Mosquitoes love me. I can get five or six bites in as many minutes. However, when I lived in New Mexico, bites were rare for me and it depended where I was. The fact is that mosquitoes can and will be everywhere. But, the less water there is around you in your immediate vicinity, the less likely they will be around to bite you.