Vampire Bugs
(Critters • Nature)
Our July had become something of a monsoon, so when we vacated north for a few days, one of our hopes was to return to a somewhat dried out semblance of midsummers past.
In addition to squelching most of our fig harvest, the rains had produced so many damned mosquitoes that they covered one’s legs from where one’s shorts ended until one’s socks began, as one circled the big fig trees slapping frantically and looking for fruit that hadn’t opened at the end and fermented yet.
Alas, upon return, it was clear the rains had continued, along with the blood-sucking insects. I called the kind folks at the city of Richmond’s public works office and asked if they could spare a truckload of mosquito spray, as we were being pretty well eaten alive down here.
Turns out the truck had been around spraying the night before we got home. Crikey!
The city’s allegedly coming back Saturday, but it’s pretty clear they aren’t armed with enough chemical power to knock out the bad bugs. Only a typical summer dry spell can do that, and unfortunately, instead we’re going to have one of these by early next week.
So stay alert, o my brothers, don your netted underwear and watch for the West Nile Virus Express, coming soon to a backed-up sewer drain or pile of old tires near you.
→ B.Dunn, Jul 22, 2010, 12 58 PM
