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Mosquitoes


Buccy67

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Hi All,

 

We have hired a canal boat to go up the river Avon from Pershore to Stratford for the last week of June...  Is there any issues with Mosquitoes on the River at this time of year? 

 

It might sound a silly question but one of our party has a reaction to their bites. 

 

Thanks for any info you could give me. 

 

Phil

 

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July '20  had awful bites somewhere between Evesham and Stratford, unable to leave boat in Stratford due to swollen feet. Possibly due to mooring in stagnant water above a lock one night. Would advise avoiding such moorings and covering up /  plenty of Deet or similar that works for your party.

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I come out in big lumps if I get an insect bite and after trying every potion on the market I now use After Bite. I apply it as soon after the bite as possible and if the itching and swelling still occur, I do more applications. It is a sort of pen thing and smells of ammonia. I keep After Bite on the boat, in the car and caravan as well as in the house so I always have it to hand when the little blighters find me. 

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An antihistamine may help whilst on the boat eg Loratadine (Sainsburys or Tescos do them) plus the stuff mentioned as repellent.  
Had a few bites last night but overall they are nothing too much. The inside of our roof was covered in insects on the Avon 2 years ago but our crew of 7 got one bite between us. 
It’s never on the scale of Scots midges, agree it’s probably because the water moves so much? 

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Better half doesn’t do well with mozzie bites, for some reason they’ll leave me and my daughter alone and make a beeline for her :( 

 

In the armoury, in no particular order: Jungle Formula Max spray, bite cream with antihistamine, antihistamine tablets, bite cream with hydrocortisone, little clicky thing that applies an electrical zap to the bite (supposed to stop itching, doesn’t IMHO) and a fly swat!

 

Anyway, never mind the mozzies, it’s the clegs you need to look out for 😱

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3 minutes ago, Hudds Lad said:

Better half doesn’t do well with mozzie bites, for some reason they’ll leave me and my daughter alone and make a beeline for her :( 

Ideal!

As a further tip, travelling with your wife also works for bears - you can't outrun a bear, but that's ok 'cos now you only need to outrun the wife. ;)

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13 hours ago, Ianws said:

 Smidge or something with the same active ingredient works well. My wife has extreme reactions to bites and this is her go to. 

Another vote for Smidge, works great and doesn't affect plastics etc (e.g. camera and sunglasses) Deet can. 

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37 minutes ago, PCSB said:

Another vote for Smidge, works great and doesn't affect plastics etc (e.g. camera and sunglasses) Deet can. 

The first spray cans i ever got that contained Deet, after a couple of uses had no printing on them. The spray dribbled down the side and removed all the ink from the metal :( 

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Horse flys are  the real brutes to watch out for. Herself swells up at the thought of them. Piriton has always been the answer taken straight ater feeling the bite. Our GP once said to her “ what do you expect messing around on muddy ditches “

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5 minutes ago, Dav and Pen said:

Horse flys are  the real brutes to watch out for.

Exactly, at least you have a half chance with a mosquito as you hear the buzz. Clegs (horseflies) are silent and stealthy, if you swat at them they’ll circle round behind you and have another bash!

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23 minutes ago, Hudds Lad said:

The first spray cans i ever got that contained Deet, after a couple of uses had no printing on them. The spray dribbled down the side and removed all the ink from the metal :( 

Yep, the active ingredient is aggressive can't remember what it is now as haven't used the stuff for a while. Smidge works as well imo/e.

16 minutes ago, Dav and Pen said:

Horse flys are  the real brutes to watch out for. Herself swells up at the thought of them. Piriton has always been the answer taken straight ater feeling the bite. Our GP once said to her “ what do you expect messing around on muddy ditches “

Evil sods they are, used to get them on our allotment. Hurt like hell when they bite. Anthisan always worked on the bite for us. Smidge also keeps these away too fwiw.

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6 minutes ago, Hudds Lad said:

Clegs (horseflies) are silent and stealthy, if you swat at them they’ll circle round behind you and have another bash!

And whether you do or don't, the rest of the squadron will still be circling! Only one thing to do with horseflies... get out of Dodge.

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I wouldn't worry about Mosquitos as the only flying examples are 3 in the USA and 1 in Canada.

 

Surviving aircraft[edit]

For a more comprehensive list, see List of surviving de Havilland Mosquitos.
There are approximately 30 non-flying Mosquitos around the world with four airworthy examples, three in the United States and one in Canada. The largest collection of Mosquitos is at the de Havilland Aircraft Museum in the United Kingdom, which owns three aircraft, including the first prototype, W4050, the only initial prototype of a Second World War British aircraft design still in existence in the 21st century.[218]
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6 hours ago, Hudds Lad said:

Exactly, at least you have a half chance with a mosquito as you hear the buzz. Clegs (horseflies) are silent and stealthy, if you swat at them they’ll circle round behind you and have another bash!

Really? I've generally found them rather sluggish insects, easy to swat if you are quick. But agree that the bites are painful.

 

Walking around some Inner Hebridean islands brought out a clot of clegs* at practically each step through the bracken, I seem to remember.

 

* Is this the correct collective noun?

Edited by Puffling
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