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As Summer nears an end and Fall is just around the corner marks the return of those pesky insects called love bugs!
Yes, they are back! Love bugs are generally seen twice a year. April and May are the first sighting of the bugs and late August and September is the second! The bugs seem to travel in packs! Is their arrival due to tropical storms in the gulf blowing them in? Either or they have arrived and will be here for the next few weeks.
The bugs can stay up to about 4 weeks but usually only 2 weeks.
As some consider the love bugs to be a nuisance it is not due to the harm they might cause from a bite or sting but rather from their slightly acidic body chemistry!
The biggest nuisance is the aftermath of the bugs on the vehicles! The acidic from the bug’s splat will eat away at the vehicles paint after 24 hours. Suggestions are to wax vehicles before driving or spray the front of the vehicle and side mirrors with spray pam. Make sure to wash the bugs off the front of the vehicle immediately after traveling.
Mating takes place almost immediately after emergence of the females. Adult females live only 2-3 days. “The female lovebugs lay from 100 to 350 eggs which are deposited beneath decaying vegetation.” For more detailed info check out the site: https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/MG068
Another suggestion is to keep grass trimmed. The bugs search for food over the taller grassy areas and marshes.
So be patient those annoying pest will be gone shortly.
MageeNews.com is an online website covering Simpson and surrounding counties as well as the State of Mississippi.
