Saturday, March 31, 2012

Evil green bugs

The bugs are out in full force already.  No doubt the mild winter has been a major factor in their early emergence and numbers.

I saw the first dragonfly a few days ago, a lightning bug on my seedlings this afternoon and I saw this Luna moth on the front door this evening:

A green bug, but not an EGB.

And the little evil green bugs (EGB's) are here already.  I don't know what they are, but they are teeny-tiny flying, jumping, biting buggers than can manage to get through the screens so I can't even keep the windows open with this beautiful weather.  The only good thing about them is that they seem to have a very limited life span as come morning their tiny carcasses litter the areas directly beneath any light source.  The katydids (the other EGB's) haven't come out yet, thank goodness.  They are just as annoying as the little EGB's but instead of being tiny they are noisy.  They make their calls.  All.  Night.  Long.  

I can only imagine how bad it's going to be come summer.  

12 comments:

  1. Oh boy. My youngest son would be in evil green bug heaven!! He actually keeps all the weird bugs he finds and displays them proudly in his room~I try to avoid his room by kissing him goodnight at the door. Bugs ick me out. Especially big bugs. This is why I no longer live in Oklahoma! :) ((*SHUDDER*))

    The Luna moth is pretty though...maybe I'm growing up. :)

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  2. I've never seen a Luna moth before. Cool! It's almost time for buffalo gnats here, don't even get me started-grrrrr.

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  3. Oh my, that Luna moth is stunningly beautiful!! Guess I have never seen one before!

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  4. Maybe try some "white noise" machines at night :)

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  5. I agree with you CR. I think it's gonna be a bad EGB year or any bug for that matter. They say ticks are going to be awful.

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  6. Guineas could help you with bug control.

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  7. Although we have plenty of mosquitoes and black flies whose bites 'bout send me over the edge, it's the ticks that are becoming more and more prevalent in our area (it used to be too cold for them) that make me consider becoming agoraphobic. ((Double shudder!)) We may have to get guinea hens as Chai Chai suggests!

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  8. Let's not forget snakes, I can take bugs over snakes any day. Not looking forward to finding another rattlesnake out my back door again. First eight years here I never saw any, last 5 years found 2 big ones and several babies.

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  9. We don't have too many bugs yet, although the mosquitoes are out. I am hoping that this cold spell we are having (or would that be the way the weather is supposed to be?) will do them in for a little while... Nice shot of that moth!

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  10. Here the EGB's are the Japanese Beetles, I wonder how much earlier they will show up than usual? I always love seeing Luna moths, nice photo!

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  11. That moth is beautiful! Most bugs bug me. We get black flies that (like Mama Pea said) can almost drive you over the edge. I am going to try guineas this year because our tick population is blooming.

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  12. Kim, I think DD is having the opposite reaction to bugs as your son is...she FREAKS when she sees even a tiny ant! Don't know how to break her from it; it's going to be a tough childhood around here if she's not able to "accept" the bugs.

    Hoosier Girl, we see about a dozen Luna moths here during the spring / summer. Not sure what buffalo gnats are, but if they are those big black gnats that swarm around the faces of the critters, then we get them too! :(

    Candy, the first time I saw one at a campground here I was amazed! Very beautiful.

    Nancy, the white noise machine would have to be REALLY loud to drown out those little katydid buggers.

    Tami, I'm VERY surprised that we haven't been picking ticks off ourselves yet. I've only had one on me! Weird.

    Chai Chai, I've been tempted to get them for bug control, but I like my chickens too much to be bullied by them!

    Mama Pea, I suppose that is one good reason to be up north; cold weather subdues the ticks!

    Tombstone, I'd much prefer the snakes.....weird, I know. Although with DD wandering around now I do have to be extra careful.

    Tiny Gardener, cold spell? At least it will keep the bugs in line for a little while longer.

    Erin, I think we had Japanese Beetles a few years ago and I was constantly digging up grubs in my garden soil. Ick!

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