Midges

[TMAN]

Are these friendly but annoying insects blooming at Bruce or Burwell? I just want to get the boat wet and do a first run tomorrow but don't want to come back and have to completely clean the boat again.....

Little info I found about these things

-- Midges and mayflies are not the same. People can think that because of their small size, midges are baby mayflies. Really, midges are a signal that mayflies are on the way. Mayflies have larger, distinct wings and longer bodies.


-- Midges aren’t a sign of good water quality. Mayflies are very sensitive to water quality, which is why it’s a good sign if a large amount emerge. But midges are hardy creatures, and can live in mucky water with contaminants.


-- Midges eat algae. Midge larvae love eating algae and are what’s called a detritivore, Calabrese said. When the insects are larvae, they live near the bottom of the lake, eating up algae and rotting plants. They enter the pupal stage closer to the water’s surface.


-- Only the males have feathery antennae. Midges are often nicknamed “muffleheads” or “muckleheads” because of the fluffy antennae on their heads used for finding females. The feathery antennae are included in the species’s name: Chironomus plumosus.


-- Swarms are often so big they show up on weather radar. Because there are just so many, meteorologists can often see how the midge and mayfly swarms move on instruments used to detect weather patterns.


Last year for mayflies was no exception.

 

[binfishn]

If the midges are out and you want to fish and keep a clean boat,stay home it will be a mess.some will blow out most will be dead in the hard spots to reach.It will be the ones you sat on or leaned on that will need cleaning the most.They do not bite.

 

[TMAN]

If the midges are out and you want to fish and keep a clean boat,stay home it will be a mess.some will blow out most will be dead in the hard spots to reach.It will be the ones you sat on or leaned on that will need cleaning the most.They do not bite.

Thanks, I know they are harmless but I have had to clean out the boat because of them too many times. I took your advice and stayed home. Took my apprentice hunter neighbor out turkey hunting instead and he shot a trophy turkey. His first bird almost about as big as my 25 year personal best...lol Guess I made the right decision.

 

[Wave Runner]

Are these friendly but annoying insects blooming at Bruce or Burwell? I just want to get the boat wet and do a first run tomorrow but don't want to come back and have to completely clean the boat again.....

Little info I found about these things

-- Midges and mayflies are not the same. People can think that because of their small size, midges are baby mayflies. Really, midges are a signal that mayflies are on the way. Mayflies have larger, distinct wings and longer bodies.


-- Midges aren’t a sign of good water quality. Mayflies are very sensitive to water quality, which is why it’s a good sign if a large amount emerge. But midges are hardy creatures, and can live in mucky water with contaminants.


-- Midges eat algae. Midge larvae love eating algae and are what’s called a detritivore, Calabrese said. When the insects are larvae, they live near the bottom of the lake, eating up algae and rotting plants. They enter the pupal stage closer to the water’s surface.


-- Only the males have feathery antennae. Midges are often nicknamed “muffleheads” or “muckleheads” because of the fluffy antennae on their heads used for finding females. The feathery antennae are included in the species’s name: Chironomus plumosus.


-- Swarms are often so big they show up on weather radar. Because there are just so many, meteorologists can often see how the midge and mayfly swarms move on instruments used to detect weather patterns.


Last year for mayflies was no exception.

I was out of Port Glasgow on Tues morning they were horrific. Spend 4 1/2 hours yesterday cleaning up the mess inside my boat. I'm not going out again until those puppies are gone.