With the onset of the first warm spring days, insects appear, including the ubiquitous flies. And if during the spring and most of the summer they behave mostly peacefully, then in August the flies bite, and very painfully. It was believed that they become angry on the eve of death with the onset of the cold season. This is fundamentally wrong - in the fall, another type of insect attacks people and bites painfully - burner flies, the number of which increases significantly by the end of summer.

Burner flies are very similar in appearance to ordinary house flies, differing only in the structure of the proboscis

Flies are dipterous insects distributed throughout the world. Currently, about 5 thousand of their species are known. The bulk feeds on plant sap, decaying fruits and other organic matter, feces, and manure. Only a small proportion of these insects bite. Blood-sucking flies are capable of attacking people and animals. The most common of them are burner flies.

In appearance and biological characteristics, burners are very similar to house flies, which is why they believe that house flies bite. These are gray insects 5-7 mm long. The main difference from non-predatory species of flies is in the structure of the proboscis. Ordinary flies cannot bite a person or animal, since their proboscis is soft and cannot pierce the skin. In stink bugs, the proboscis is elongated and “armed” with rough chitinous plates, with which they cut through the skin of the prey. Both females and males of these insects feed on blood (and therefore bite). Mostly their victims are animals and only sometimes people. Penetrating the skin with their proboscis, burner flies inject poisonous saliva into the wound, so their bite causes severe pain and itching.

During the summer, flies are found in large numbers in places where domestic animals gather - in pastures and farms, where they have all the conditions for feeding and breeding. During her life, one female lays up to 400 dirty-white eggs in manure or rotting plant debris, and sometimes in animal wounds. The larvae emerge from the eggs after 1-5 days, depending on the ambient temperature. The future fly remains in the larval phase for 2-4 weeks, after which a pupa is formed. After another 7-26 days, young flies are born and are capable of laying eggs for about 10-15 days. Thus, the development cycle of a fly from egg to insect emergence lasts from three to eight weeks. During the warm season, several generations of the zhigalka manage to emerge, quickly increasing their numbers. By autumn, the largest number of individuals is reached.

The mechanical method of controlling flies is the simplest and most harmless, but ineffective

In the fall, with the onset of cold weather at night, these insects often fly into warm houses and apartments, and, having no other sources of food, bite people. That is why most often these insects bite in the fall. The appearance of a burner fly in human housing is especially dangerous if there are infants or elderly and disabled people in the house who are not able to drive away insects and prevent a bite.

Burner flies feed on blood, which means they bite animals and people. At the same time, they are capable of transmitting pathogens of dangerous diseases, such as tularemia, sepsis, trypanosomiasis, anthrax and many others. It is clear that it is better to prevent bites from these insects. Measures to control biting flies are practically no different from methods to control house flies. They can be divided into mechanical, chemical and biological.

• Mechanical barriers include various barriers on windows and ventilation in the form of mosquito nets that prevent insects from entering the premises.

To destroy those individuals that managed to get into the apartment, sticky tapes or various types of traps are used.

These methods are effective in controlling adult flies and are aimed at preventing insect bites. These methods are harmless to residents, which is why they are used mainly in residential premises.

• Chemical agents, which include various insecticides, help get rid of not only adult insects, but also larvae. These preparations are used to treat farm premises, manure heaps, and animal stalls.
• On large farms it is possible to use biological control methods that are completely harmless to humans and animals. For this purpose, insect predators (entomophages) are used, which feed on various types of flies and their larvae. The population of harmful flies will decline rapidly.

The closer it gets to autumn, the more painfully the flies bite. Sometimes it seems that these are not tiny insects, but a real tiger that has grabbed your leg. Especially when you notice the shifty bully too late and give him time to prepare a full-fledged “strike.” But why do flies bite? Do they really enjoy torturing innocent people so much? Or is there another, more significant reason for this?

Biting flies - who are they?

The truth is that not all types of flies are capable of causing harm to humans. Moreover, the overwhelming majority of these insects are completely harmless, except for the fact that they spoil food by laying their eggs in it. Otherwise, they just buzz above your head, thereby getting on your nerves.

Biting flies are a completely different matter. Although these creatures are similar to their counterparts in appearance, they are still very different from them in their habits. In particular, because they like to consume the blood of other creatures. Therefore, it will be quite logical to talk about which flies bite the hardest and how to distinguish them from peace-loving insects.

Annoying burner fly

The more common name for this species is autumn zhigalka. This name is due to the fact that this insect moves into people’s houses only with the arrival of autumn cold weather. The reason for this behavior is quite simple: as soon as the temperature drops below 8 degrees, the fly will die. Therefore, she climbs into warm rooms in order to save herself from the coolness of the night.

Externally, the burner fly is very similar to its harmless relatives, only slightly larger in size. Thus, an adult has a body length of 5-7 mm. At the same time, the fly itself is gray: there are several dark spots on its belly, and four horizontal stripes of the same color run along its chest.

This fly bites because it needs blood. For her, this is an excellent source of energy, and it is also easily accessible. A razor-sharp proboscis helps her pierce flesh, which easily cuts through both human and animal epidermis.

Moreover, these biting flies inject a special enzyme into the wounds of their victims, which stops blood clotting. It is this that causes the intense burning sensation, which increases as the toxin spreads through the blood. In addition, such a solution can cause an allergic reaction, which can lead to high fever and nausea.

Inhabitants of coastal regions

Horseflies are one of the varieties of flies that live mainly near water bodies and concentrations of cattle. Such a sonorous name for the species comes from the fact that during a bite the insect becomes defenseless, as if an invisible veil covers its eyes.

To begin with, these biting flies are very similar to mosquitoes. That is, only females drink blood, since it is needed to conceive offspring. As for the males, they are vegetarians and feed on plant nectar. Therefore, you only need to be wary of “girls”, who also have a very persistent character.

The appearance of a horsefly largely depends on its subspecies. Thus, the length of its body can vary from a few millimeters to two centimeters. For example, the bullfly grows up to 2.5 cm, which is why its bites are extremely painful. As for color, this species is easily recognized by the red-yellow horizontal stripes that encircle the insect’s abdomen.

The danger posed by gadflies

The gadfly is another species of fly dangerous to humans. These insects live mainly near animal pastures, since they are their main target. Unlike their biting relatives, they do not feed on the blood of other creatures. Moreover, scientists have recently discovered that adults do not need food at all. The reserves they acquired while at the larval stage are quite enough for them.

However, a completely justified question arises: why do they bite animals? The fact is that when they bite, they lay their eggs under the skin of the victim, thereby providing them with an excellent source of food. Let's be honest, after the larvae hatch from the eggs, the poor animal experiences terrible pain, as they literally eat his body from the inside.

But the main danger is that gadflies can lay their eggs on human skin. Even if this happens rarely, the consequences of this accident are extremely sad. After all, the only reliable way to get rid of larvae is to partially remove the infected area of ​​flesh.

Tsetse fly

Central Africa is home to the most dangerous of all biting flies, the tsetse. Science knows that this insect is a carrier that affects about 10 thousand people a year. It should be noted that most of those infected die, since this disease is practically untreatable, especially in the later stages.

At the same time, she calmly tolerates the effects of the infectious agent. As for the reasons, this insect feeds on blood. At the same time, it doesn’t matter to him whether she is human or animal, the main thing is that there is plenty of her. Fortunately, modern medicine is getting closer and closer every year to creating a vaccine that can forever protect the human immune system from this deadly virus.

With the onset of the first warm spring days, insects appear, including the ubiquitous flies. And if during the spring and most of the summer they behave mostly peacefully, then in August the flies bite, and very painfully. It was believed that they become angry on the eve of death with the onset of the cold season. This is fundamentally wrong - in the fall, another type of insect attacks people and bites painfully - burner flies, the number of which increases significantly by the end of summer.

Burner flies are very similar in appearance to ordinary house flies, differing only in the structure of the proboscis

Flies are dipterous insects distributed throughout the world. Currently, about 5 thousand of their species are known. The bulk feeds on plant sap, decaying fruits and other organic matter, feces, and manure. Only a small proportion of these insects bite. Blood-sucking flies are capable of attacking people and animals. The most common of them are burner flies.

In appearance and biological characteristics, burners are very similar to house flies, which is why they believe that house flies bite. These are gray insects 5-7 mm long. The main difference from non-predatory species of flies is in the structure of the proboscis. Ordinary flies cannot bite a person or animal, since their proboscis is soft and cannot pierce the skin. In stink bugs, the proboscis is elongated and “armed” with rough chitinous plates, with which they cut through the skin of the prey. Both females and males of these insects feed on blood (and therefore bite). Mostly their victims are animals and only sometimes people. Penetrating the skin with their proboscis, burner flies inject poisonous saliva into the wound, so their bite causes severe pain and itching.

During the summer, flies are found in large numbers in places where domestic animals gather - in pastures and farms, where they have all the conditions for feeding and breeding. During her life, one female lays up to 400 dirty-white eggs in manure or rotting plant debris, and sometimes in animal wounds. The larvae emerge from the eggs after 1-5 days, depending on the ambient temperature. The future fly remains in the larval phase for 2-4 weeks, after which a pupa is formed. After another 7-26 days, young flies are born and are capable of laying eggs for about 10-15 days. Thus, the development cycle of a fly from egg to insect emergence lasts from three to eight weeks. During the warm season, several generations of the zhigalka manage to emerge, quickly increasing their numbers. By autumn, the largest number of individuals is reached.

The mechanical method of fighting flies is the simplest and most harmless, but ineffective

In the fall, with the onset of cold weather at night, these insects often fly into warm houses and apartments, and, having no other sources of food, bite people. That is why most often these insects bite in the fall. The appearance of a burner fly in human housing is especially dangerous if there are infants or elderly and disabled people in the house who are not able to drive away insects and prevent a bite.

Burner flies feed on blood, which means they bite animals and people. At the same time, they are capable of transmitting pathogens of dangerous diseases, such as tularemia, sepsis, trypanosomiasis, anthrax and many others. It is clear that it is better to prevent bites from these insects. Measures to control biting flies are practically no different from methods to control house flies. They can be divided into mechanical, chemical and biological.

• Mechanical barriers include various barriers on windows and ventilation in the form of mosquito nets that prevent insects from entering the premises.

To destroy those individuals that managed to get into the apartment, sticky tapes or various types of traps are used.

These methods are effective in controlling adult flies and are aimed at preventing insect bites. These methods are harmless to residents, which is why they are used mainly in residential premises.

• Chemical agents, which include various insecticides, help get rid of not only adult insects, but also larvae. These preparations are used to treat farm premises, manure heaps, and animal stalls.
• On large farms it is possible to use biological control methods that are completely harmless to humans and animals. For this purpose, insect predators (entomophages) are used, which feed on various types of flies and their larvae. The population of harmful flies will decline rapidly.

Many people probably notice that annoying swarms of flies fly around every summer. Those that penetrate human habitation are especially annoying. They buzz and land on the body and food. And flies also bite! Or not? But this is worth dealing with.

Do flies bite or not?

It is impossible to answer this question unequivocally. Some flies, such as horse flies and autumn flies, can sting a person, and very painfully. The bite site not only itches, but sometimes becomes so inflamed that the temperature rises, especially if there were a lot of bloodsucking insects that decided to feast on human blood. So, when asking the question of whether flies bite or not, you should answer: “It depends.”

These insects still exist and live in Central Africa. With their bites they spread sleeping sickness, which sometimes ends in death.

Common house fly

Everyone knows how annoying they are once they get into a human home. But not everyone knows whether these flies bite or not. Most people are inclined to think that these insects are quite friendly in June-July. But in August they turn into real monsters! But this is not true at all.

Common house flies are dipteran insects and belong to the family of true flies. They are almost never found in the wild. Houseflies are predominantly diurnal.

Flies have four wings, but they use only the front ones for flight, and the rear ones are reduced, they are needed to maintain balance.

Flies can only eat liquid food. To eat solid food, they need to dissolve it in their saliva. In order for the female to lay eggs, she needs protein food. Their lifespan depends on the temperature of the environment in which they are located. Optimal for flies is 25 degrees.

But these insects cannot bite living creatures. Therefore, the main harm from them is that houseflies carry various infections on their legs. After all, in the summer they live not only in houses, but also in latrines, near garbage dumps, finding food there.

Gray fly

These dipterans can be up to 25 millimeters long. But these are very rare; ten-millimeter gray flies are more common. They are gray with black spots and have red eyes. They are often confused with ordinary flies. But this insect is much larger.

In addition, these dipterans immediately lay larvae. The nesting site is rotten fruit, carrion, feces, manure - any organic matter. For this reason, gray flies are called meat flies. No one would have thought that the gray blowfly was even useful in any way. These winged carriers of infection act as natural orderlies, destroying carrion.

Autumn burner

Many people notice that by the end of summer the flies seem to become angrier. Now they are not only annoying with their buzzing and crawling over the body and food - they sting painfully. And many are interested in why flies bite in August.

People used to say: flies take revenge on people because they will see the next spring, and insects will die. But all this, of course, is a myth. It arose from simple ignorance. After all, people blame the bites of ordinary house flies, believing that for some reason they suddenly changed their eating habits.

But in fact, they incorrectly answer the question of why flies bite in August. It’s just that during this period the life cycle of a special type of fly begins, called flies.

These dipterans are extremely fertile. They leave their eggs everywhere, laying them many times during the season. Therefore, in August there are countless numbers of them flying. These insects bite painfully because they feed exclusively on blood, piercing the top layer of skin with their sharp proboscis.

These bites are not only painful. Burner flies are carriers of dangerous viruses and infections. Therefore, you should, if possible, protect yourself and your children from them: install protective nets on windows, use repellents while walking.

Why do flies bite in the fall?

In appearance, the autumn fly (Stomoxys calcitrans) is practically no different from the common housefly (Musca domestica). The length of the burner fly is 5.5-7 mm. It has a gray coloration with dark stripes on the chest and spots on the abdomen. The proboscis is strongly elongated and at the end bears plates with chitinous “teeth”. By rubbing the proboscis against the skin, the fly scrapes off the epidermis and, feeding on blood, simultaneously lets in poisonous saliva, causing severe irritation. Females and males feed on blood, attacking mainly animals, but sometimes also humans. Fertility is 300-400 eggs, laid in groups of 20-25 in manure, less often on rotting plant debris, sometimes in the wounds of animals and humans, where the larvae develop.

Their bites are very painful. Most of these flies occur in the fall (and indoor flies in the spring and summer), which explains the prevailing belief that by autumn flies become angrier.

In addition to painful bites, the burner fly can serve as a carrier of: anthrax, sepsis, tularemia, trypanosomiasis and other diseases.

Preventing the appearance of burner flies and house flies is by maintaining cleanliness in living and utility rooms when preparing food. Store food out of the reach of flies.
Do not allow kitchen waste to accumulate in buckets. Use buckets with tight-fitting lids in the summer. Avoid leaving leftover food on your plates in the summer. Wash dishes immediately after eating.

As summer begins to wind down, in August and early fall, “the flies become aggressive and angry.” Is this statement true, and are all these insects really starting to behave so bloodthirsty for some reason?

In fact, it is difficult to imagine an insect capable of experiencing emotions characteristic of humans, including anger. But what then makes flies attack people in order to feed on blood at the end of summer - beginning of autumn, and how true is the myth about their increasing aggression during this cool time?

Ordinary house flies, so annoying with their constant buzzing and omnipresence since spring and throughout the summer, it turns out, are not at all to blame for the fact that, unknowingly for most people, they have been “caught” in increased aggression. Their absolute “alibi” is their physical inability to bite anyone. The proboscis of ordinary flies is too soft to pierce the skin of a person or animal, and is created by nature only to suck out juice, feed on liquid and soft food such as fibers of fruits or vegetables, rotting organic matter, etc.

The real “aggressors” are the autumn fly flies, which really bite in August and early autumn. It is because of them, outwardly so similar to their indoor counterparts, that the incorrect generalization began, claiming that by autumn all flies begin to “get angry” and attack.

How to distinguish a light fly from an ordinary fly (description)

As already mentioned, these insects are extremely similar to their harmless “relatives” - house flies that are unable to bite. But if you look closely, they still have differences. Of course, it is unlikely that you will be able to see this difference on the fly (these insects fly by too quickly), but in a sitting fly it is quite noticeable:

1. Widely spaced wings (whereas a regular fly's wings are more close to the sides).
2. The body color is gray, there are longitudinal black stripes on the back, and dark spots on the abdomen (in non-biting counterparts the body is dark, almost black).
3. The proboscis is relatively thin, more like a sting (in ordinary flies it is thickened, not sharp).

The proboscis of livestock has a special structure that allows the insect to pierce even the rough skin of cattle, and even more so human skin. Sharp, slightly rough chitinous plates at the tip of the proboscis quickly cut through the epidermis, after which the “sting” easily penetrates directly to the blood vessels.

Unlike many other species of insects, both female and male burners feed on blood.

Causes of attacks by zhigalkas

The observation that these flies bite more often in August (closer to autumn) has its own explanations. It has been noticed that during the summer, while it is warm, burners attack people much less often than with the approach of the cool season. The reasons for this are:

• over the summer, the population of flies increases significantly (each female lays up to 4 hundred eggs during her life, and the overall development of an insect from egg to sexual maturity is 1-1.5 months, depending on external conditions);
• zhigalki cannot stand the cold, so closer to autumn they rush to the warmth (into a person’s home, premises for livestock, etc.);
• Before the cold weather, insects begin to actively bite, because their need to feed on protein sharply increases in order to breed healthy offspring by next spring.

From the above it is clear why fly bites have nothing to do with the fictitious anger of these insects, supposedly experienced by them before imminent death due to cold weather.

Bite danger

The attack of a burner is an unforgettable moment for those who have never been lucky enough to become its victim at least once. Victims describe their sensations from the bite as a very painful prick followed by a strong burning sensation. The fact is that after cutting through the skin layer, the insect injects a special substance into the wound that prevents blood clotting. This substance is poisonous, and it is what causes that very feeling of sharply increasing burning sensation.

But pain is not the only trouble that a burner bite brings with it. A fly is a fly, it lands on various dirty surfaces, bites animals that may not always be healthy, and in times of famine, even a fly does not disdain carrion due to the lack of fresh blood. All this carries with it a certain risk of contracting the following diseases:

• sepsis;
• tularemia;
• anthrax;
• allergies, etc.

An allergic reaction develops precisely to the poisonous secretion introduced by the burner fly after piercing the skin. In this case, the bite site may become very red, swollen and unbearably itchy (and this is only the mildest form of an allergic reaction to an insect bite).

If the allergy develops rapidly, in addition to the above symptoms, the victim may experience:

• severe swelling of the affected area;
• weakness, nausea with or without vomiting;
• dizziness;
• difficulty breathing;
• darkening of the eyes;
• Quincke's edema or anaphylactic shock - in the most severe cases.

If, with a mild allergic reaction, the victim can be helped independently (give an antihistamine, cold to the bite site, ointment for bites, etc.), then at the first suspicion of a more severe form, an urgent visit to the doctor is necessary.

How to get rid of burners

Despite the identified differences between flies and flies that do not attack people and animals, you can get rid of both species using the same methods. With a moderate number of insects, mechanical methods are quite suitable:

• Velcro tape;
• fly swatter;
• mesh on windows.

If there are too many flies, you can use more aggressive means - any insecticides against flying insects.

- is not at all a harmless dipteran, both in terms of transmitting infections on its legs and the relatively dangerous consequences of a bite. Therefore, active control of it is necessary to avoid infection with serious diseases.

What are the dangers of firebug bites?

It is interesting to note that in a hungry year these flies do not even disdain carrion.

They are carriers of zoonotic diseases inherent in animals and humans.

Among them may be: tularemia, anthrax, sepsis, trypanosomiasis. Methods for exterminating these flies can be placed into three groups: mechanical, using chemicals and biological.

Sticky tapes attract adults

Mechanical

This method is effective in combating adult individuals and helps prevent their bites.
They do not harm the health of residents and are used in residential buildings:

• install mosquito nets on ventilation compartments and windows;
• hang sticky tapes around the perimeter of the living space;
• place several different bait traps in some places.

Chemical

This method is based on the use of all kinds of insecticides. Its advantages are that it allows you to destroy both adult individuals and their larvae.

It is most often used to treat farm premises, manure heaps and in farm livestock stalls.

Biological

In very large farms they resort to a method that is absolutely harmless to living beings.
It is based on the use of insect predators (entomophages) that feed on flies and their larvae. This significantly reduces the fly population.

Diptera become active in the fall - during this period they begin to bite animals and people. Females are especially aggressive, because they need improved nutrition to produce offspring. The danger of a fly bite is that when the skin is pierced, the insect can infect a person with an infection. Among these insects, which are ubiquitous, there are extremely dangerous individuals. For example, the tsetse fly. It is considered the causative agent of trypanosomiasis. Fortunately, such species live only in Africa, but travelers should remember that a fly bite of this kind can be fatal.

There are surprisingly many varieties of dipterans. There are 120,000 species of these insects. A fly has as many wings as all dipterans, that is, a pair. They are found in different parts of the world, but the most dangerous species love warm climates. If we talk about the types of flies in Russia, then these are:

At one time, millions of people suffered from the plague bacillus, carried by dipterans. But even now Diptera should not be underestimated. Thus, the African fly is a carrier of sleeping sickness. What makes this disease dangerous is its irreversible neurological damage.

Tsetse flies, which transmit the disease, live primarily in tropical and subtropical Africa, and the tsetse's habitat is not changing. You can bring a dangerous insect from the continent, but it will not reproduce in unusual conditions. Features of the tsetse or Glossina are considered to be a long proboscis, overlapping wings and an expressive pattern.

Why do flies sometimes bite?

It has been noted that flies are angrier in August. During this period their number reaches its maximum. Females plan to lay eggs and need additional nutrition. It is this fact that explains why flies bite intensively in August. Note that not all flies bite even in the fall, and we have already found out which species attack humans. These are mainly fireflies, horseflies and bloodsuckers.

Who really bites?

Autumn burner

If we talk about insects living on the territory of Russia, then the popular biting flies, of course, include a separate species - the autumn flies. These are bloodsuckers. It was thanks to the firelights that people began to hear: flies bite - it’s approaching

It is important to remember here that this is not a housefly that suddenly changed its culinary delights and became embittered, but another type of insect. Second name: biter

The flies lay their 9mm larvae in manure. They pupate directly in the ground.

Outwardly, it looks like a housefly, only a little larger. In addition, there are differences in the structure of the proboscis, and its wings are spaced slightly wider than those of an ordinary housefly. The favorite places of biters are the countryside, stables, and barns. After all, there is appropriate food for them.

Man from the fireplaces most often in August and September. Those who believe that they bite all year round are a little mistaken. It is worth noting that the favorite place to bite these flies is the legs. Having aimed, the zhigalka slightly pierces the skin with its proboscis, injects special saliva into the wound, which prevents blood clotting, and begins to suck on it. Such bites do not go unnoticed - an allergic reaction is not long in coming. It comes on instantly, accompanied by burning and pain.

These are perhaps the largest flies of the order Diptera. Some individuals reach a length of 3 cm. Horseflies are one of the most greedy bloodsuckers. The female is capable of sucking up to 200 milligrams of blood at a time. For comparison: the same amount of blood can be sucked simultaneously by 70.

Like mosquitoes, only female horseflies bite humans. They need blood during fertilization for the maturation of eggs. Male horse flies, like male mosquitoes, feed on flower nectar.

It is important to note that the bites of these flies are painful and dangerous. The fact is that horseflies carry infectious diseases, including anthrax and polio.

Tsetse fly

In Central Africa, the world famous tsetse fly. In addition to its painful bites, tsetse carries the pathogens of “sleeping sickness”. If appropriate measures are not taken in time, the bite site will swell, after which the lymph glands will enlarge and death will occur. There is no escape from the last stage of “sleeping sickness”. A person dies from deep exhaustion of the body.

And the flies become angrier, biting - many people note this in practice. And if everything turns out to be relatively clear with nettles, the plant cells simply begin to become woody after the plant blooms, then what happens to the flies? Many people, especially those who often travel outside the city in the autumn, would like to know the answer to this question.

If in the summer you can find quite a lot of flies, but they, for the most part, do not show aggression towards humans, then by the end of summer - by autumn they begin to bite strongly, and superstitious grandmothers point out that the insects sense the approaching cold weather, which adds to their aggression. However, one should not attribute emotions to them; insects are unlikely to have such intelligence.

Getting to Know Biting Flies

Interesting!

During the summer, zhigalkas live near livestock. They bite cows, pigs, goats and other domestic animals, without at all annoying people with their presence.

Do flies bite? Most people will answer in the affirmative. But not everyone suspects that only certain species do this. Insects are especially active in late summer and autumn. People explain this phenomenon by the rapid death of insects. This statement is incorrect, the reason is completely different.

Biting flies

There are about 5 thousand read in the world. They differ from each other in color, size, and vital activity. Most of them feed on plant juices, decaying fruits, corpses, manure, and feces. Their mouthparts are equipped with a special proboscis for sucking up food, but it is so soft that it is not capable of piercing the skin of a person or animal. Such insects do not bite people, do not attack pets or wild animals.

A biting fly is a fly. Distributed everywhere. The arrangement of the wings, which are directed to the side, not along the body, differs from the usual one. And also the oral apparatus. At the end of the proboscis there are special bristles that can bite through the epidermis. Why do flies bite - to replenish vital energy reserves, to be able to lay eggs.

Interesting!

Whether flies bite or not can be debated endlessly. And all because a person does not see the difference between an ordinary annoying insect and a firecracker, which are active at the end of summer. They spend most of their lives in the wild, attacking animals, but with the onset of cold weather they look for favorable places. They enter a person’s house through open windows, doors, cracks, and bite in August and autumn before the onset of persistent cold weather.

Types of biting flies

They bite in the fall, at the end of summer. Males and females need to replenish their blood reserves. The development cycle of a young zhigalka lasts about a month. Initially, females lay eggs in rotting plant food, from which larvae emerge - white worms. After 3 weeks of existence, they pupate and adult insects emerge. Already on the tenth day, females can lay eggs.

What flies bite extremely actively are horseflies. A large representative of the genus.

On a note!

The most bloodthirsty females - at one time they can drink as much blood as 70 mosquitoes can do at the same time.

The biting fly lives near bodies of water and identifies the victim by its natural smell - carbon dioxide when exhaling, sweat. reaches a size of 3 cm. Horseflies are distributors of dangerous diseases - anthrax, polio. Even in the absence of infection, their bites are extremely painful, causing instant redness, swelling, and severe itching.

The most dangerous species is that living in Central Africa. The insect carries deadly sleeping sickness and is infected through a bite. A few minutes after the pest attack, a deterioration in health is observed, the temperature rises, the lymph nodes become enlarged, and serious signs of intoxication appear. The last stage of the disease cannot be treated, which leads to death.

What insects should you not be afraid of:

• Gardeners often encounter ground flies -,. These are striking pests of garden crops, with which a merciless fight is being waged, but they do not bite humans.
• , the carrion or colored fly is distinguished by its extremely beautiful body colors. Shimmers of green, yellow, emerald. Can be annoying, but not capable of biting.
• Insect and fly - . The body is yellow with black stripes, long transparent wings. An absolutely harmless creature, despite its external resemblance to a wasp.

On a note!

For a person in the house, it is the firefly that poses a danger, which at the end of August makes its way into the home by all means, displacing ordinary house flies.

Signs of bites

The insect is active during daylight hours. Bites exposed areas of the body. It can bite the legs, arms, back, stomach, neck, shoulders. The bite of a fly is especially pronounced in children. The insect injects a special substance that prevents blood clotting and facilitates the feeding process. The body instantly reacts to the ingestion of the pest’s saliva and damage to the integrity of the skin.

Symptoms of bites:

• sharp pain;
• redness;
• edema;
• a dot with dried blood in the center;
• swelling;

The photo of the fly bite is located below. In children and people with sensitive skin, allergies are much more severe. A large red spot appears, the limb swells, and the itching does not stop.

In most cases, symptoms disappear on their own without special treatment within a few days. If the bite itches, treat the sore spot with ammonia, medicinal alcohol, or any alcohol tincture - calendula, valerian, motherwort, ginseng. Wash the wound with water and laundry soap, apply a paste of baking soda to the bite site.

If your leg is very swollen after a fly bite or other serious allergy symptoms appear, take antihistamines and use external antiallergic agents.

To prevent pests from entering the house, mosquito nets are placed on windows and doors. They hang it in the room. Aerosols are used for bullying - Dichlorvos, Karbofos, Raid, Clean House.

Flies wake up in the spring, accompany us in the summer and even in the fall do not give us rest. But if at first they pester you only with their buzzing, then in August they already bite. Popular opinion says that insects become angry as autumn approaches because they are about to die. However, this version, of course, has no confirmation, if only because insects cannot experience any feelings. So, why do flies actually bite?

With their bites, flies annoy not only humans, but also animals.

Who bites us and why?

Those flies that have been next to us throughout the spring and summer are not capable of causing any harm. These are ordinary house flies with a soft proboscis, which is simply not designed to pierce hard skin. Such insects feed exclusively on plant juices, fruits, waste products and plant debris, and are generally harmless.

And as the days get cooler, representatives of another species, the zhigalka, become especially active. It is these flies that bite in August. Externally, the light fly and the housefly are very similar, so they are constantly confused.

Liver habitats

Predatory flies live mainly on farms and pastures, where they bite cows, bulls and horses, since it is their blood that forms the basis of the diet. Farmers are trying their best, but due to the high reproduction rate, swarms of flesh-eating flies are not decreasing.

On a note! The zhigalka fly is very prolific and can reproduce four generations of offspring over the summer!

Females lay their clutches in compost and manure heaps, where the heat from rotting helps the hatched larvae to develop successfully. The young emerge from the egg in about 5 days, after 2-4 weeks the larvae turn into pupae, from which new flies appear after another 1-4 weeks. And after 10 days, the young animals emerging from the pupae are completely ready for reproduction.

By the beginning of autumn, there are especially many fly flies, so some of them fly away from farms and pastures in search of new food sources. In addition, the gradual cooling forces them to look for warm shelters in which they can safely survive the approaching night frosts. As a result, they end up in residential buildings, where they attack people. This is why flies bite in the fall.

Features of the bite

As mentioned above, in biology and morphology, the zhigalka fly is very similar to a housefly: the body length is about 6-7 mm, the integument is gray, there are dark stripes on the chest, and dark gray spots on the abdomen. The main difference is the oral apparatus, which in predators is represented by a highly elongated proboscis. At the end of this organ there are hard chitinous plates curved backwards. The fly rubs them against the skin of its victim, scrapes off the layer of epidermis and feeds on blood. At the same time, she injects a poisonous secretion, which leads to irritation. Because of this, the fly bite is quite painful.

Plus, jug flies are carriers of pathogens of many diseases, among the most dangerous:

• pathogens of staphylococcal infection;
• anthrax;
• tularemia;
• sepsis.

Moreover, some diseases are zoonotic - common to animals and humans.

Pet protection

In most cases, flies bite animals, not only cattle, but also some pets. For example, flies can gnaw on a dog's ears, often very actively, and the owners do not know what to do to help their pet. Protecting your pet is quite simple. Some owners prefer to use folk remedies, in particular grease. It has a strong repulsive odor and creates a protective oil film on the skin, which prevents the attack of flies and other insects. At night, solid oil can be washed off with regular toilet soap and, if necessary, renewed in the morning.

Special factory sprays designed to repel blood-sucking insects come to the aid of dog lovers. There are several products that are suitable not only for cattle, but also for dogs and even cats. Among them:

• "Flycide." Repellent spray containing the substance diethyltoluamide. Its effect is enhanced by camphor and menthol. It is used externally and provides a comfortable stay in nature, during hunting and walking in the forest, as well as in swampy areas. But if the animal gets wet in the rain or swims in a pond, the effect of the drug stops.
  

  Important! Read the instructions carefully and follow the application rules. Please note the side effects: “Mukhotsid” can provoke an allergic reaction, urticaria, erythema and dermatitis, so it is highly undesirable to use it for dogs sensitive to the components of this product!

  What else can you use to treat your dog against flies? As practice shows, “OFF” ointment brings excellent results in the fight against flying predators. Only to protect against flies, it is advisable to use a product not against mosquitoes, but against horseflies and midges. The ointment is applied in an even thin layer to the skin, avoiding wounds and other problem areas. In addition, the “OFF” line of drugs also includes a spray. If desired, you can use it, but only be careful not to get it on the mucous membranes of the animal’s eyes.

  And remember that if your dog is bitten by flies, you should immediately look for a remedy for them. Often, insects cause very serious problems, gnawing the tips of the ears so much that these wounds have to be treated in a veterinary clinic.

When spring comes and everything around begins to bloom, you want to go to the bosom of nature as quickly as possible and avoid having a picnic. But these delights can be overshadowed by midges - winged insects, whose bites can cause irreparable harm to a person. Midges can be found in alleys, parks and squares; they bother urban and rural residents. Let's look at what flies bite, as well as why flies bite, and whether there is a reason to panic.

The danger of a midge bite

A person may not immediately feel the very moment of a midge bite (in another way they can be called midges), because the insect begins to inject an anesthetic that dilates the blood vessels on the skin. But if a midge bites, then after a few hours a person may feel the first symptoms and ailments. They depend on the individual characteristics of the organism, as well as the degree of severity. The reasons for these factors are quite simple, because midges have very poisonous saliva, which causes characteristic symptoms.

Why does swelling occur?

After the injection of saliva, a biting fly can fly away and forget about its action, but a person then experiences swelling after the midge bite. By the way, an allergy to midge bites is not the only manifestation. There are other risks associated with the possibility of blood contamination with viruses (the carriers of which these insects are), as well as with intoxication by microorganisms. The greatest activity of midges is observed during hot and sunny days, in August; most often they “attack” people wearing light-colored clothes. They often “hunt” at night. The smell of sweat also attracts them. In bad weather, such activity is not observed.

Relieving swelling caused by a bite

You should not ignore the fact that you have been bitten by a midge, since lack of treatment can cause vascular diseases. To prevent the negative consequences of a midge bite, you can use various means, but preference is given to the most effective measures.

Soda-based compresses made by mixing a teaspoon of soda with 0.5 cups of water.

Substances and preparations containing menthol, this also includes toothpastes that have a cooling effect.

Ice, which is wrapped in a soft cloth and applied for several hours, will remove swelling and inflammation.

But what to choose from bites if an allergic reaction occurs? After all, sometimes a midge bites not painlessly. Let's consider what else can be used to treat bites from representatives of this unwanted “neighborhood”.

What needs to be done?

If the first itch from a midge bite appears, the affected skin area must be treated with pure alcohol or a special alcohol solution. This is necessary for disinfection and elimination of bleeding. After this, you need to monitor the affected area for several days, see what the midge bite looks like, and what changes in symptoms occur over time.

The bite entails not only swelling, but also significant pain. This is due to the special composition of the poison; you always want to scratch the affected area. In this case, treatment consists of regularly wiping the lesion with a 9% vinegar solution or baking soda. To disinfect the surface, brilliant green is used. Considering the answer to the question of how to treat the symptoms of a bite, it can be noted that even without any special manifestations, you will need to take a preventive medication. An effective drug is suprastin, which relieves redness and itching. If the area has become swollen and a person has an allergic reaction, it is recommended to take fenistil. If all measures have been taken and the situation does not improve, the only thing to do is consult a doctor.

Midge bite in the eye: measures and actions

All midges bite indiscriminately - whatever they see, a midge bite to the eye is especially dangerous. When a midge bites the eye, there are many manifestations - painful itching, increased secretion of tear fluid, redness and swelling of the eye and mucous membrane, as well as around the eye area. If the bitten person suffers from an allergic reaction to such bites, additional symptoms if a fly has bitten the eye may include pain in the head, dizziness, shortness of breath and chest tightness. If the eye is swollen, finding itself at the epicenter of a negative influence, it is necessary to take action.

Under no circumstances should you rub the bitten eye to ensure the safety of the mucous membrane.

Rinse and blot the wound, cool the skin with ice, apply a pressure bandage, and blot the lesion with a tampon or disc.

In traditional medicine, the situation is solved by applying a cream with an anti-inflammatory effect around the eye.

To remove toxins from the body, you need to drink as much fluid as possible, preferably clean water.

If a child is bitten by a midge, or this happens to an adult, a number of actions must be taken. The most common complaint of affected people is itching, which leads to a strong desire to scratch the skin. To prevent a reaction to toxins, there are a number of steps you need to take.

Increased swelling in children and adults can be treated with folk remedies.

If the eye is swollen, a slice of raw potato is applied to it;

applying crushed mint or bird cherry leaves will simplify the process;

Special compresses made from parsley have an effect.

It is worth remembering that if a midge manages to bite an eye and it is swollen, the first action that needs to be taken is to seek specialized help in order to promptly restore vision and eyes and return to the normal rhythm of life.

Bite in the leg: features

Midges can bite day and night, and absolutely any place can be negatively affected. The greatest danger is when the leg is bitten in the ankle or lower leg area. The situation is aggravated by the fact that in this part of the body, swelling and other symptoms can persist for several weeks, which leads to the formation of circulatory disorders and the occurrence of vascular diseases. Therefore, if the leg area is swollen, appropriate measures must be taken.

Effective traditional medicine

Traditional medicine is far from the only effective remedy designed to combat midge bites. If there are no allergic manifestations, all kinds of folk remedies are used for the treatment process, which can prevent allergic symptoms and eliminate swelling.

Plantain juice from pre-mashed leaves;

soft mint leaves, preferably “young” ones;

a paste made from raw cabbage leaves;

onion head;

dandelion leaves;

lemon essential oils.

To ensure prevention, especially at night, it is recommended not to use perfumes with strong aromas, and also not to wear clothes that are too light. A mosquito net must be attached to the windows.

The best pharmaceuticals

Ointments with antiallergic effect

These remedies are usually used twice a day - day and night.

fenistil gel

Cynovitis in cream form

prednisolone ointment

hyoxyzone.

solcoseryl;

panthenol;

actovergin.

So, we looked at what midge bites look like in the photo and determined exactly how different midges bite. If any part of the body has been negatively affected and has become swollen, it is important to take certain measures in a timely manner.

Already in August, the dipterans become aggressive and begin to bite. According to our ancestors, this is how they expressed dissatisfaction with the approaching cold and the imminent death that they foresaw. But science has proven that this behavior of insects is not associated with their imminent death. It's just that towards the end of summer, the number of a certain species of individuals known as autumn flies increases significantly.

Why do flies start biting?

Evil individuals can attack a person, and their bite is painful. In appearance, a biting fly does not differ from an ordinary one, but if you look closely, the difference is easy to see. Most of these individuals are outside the city. Therefore, all those who like to relax in the country or in nature often encounter harmful dipterans in late August and early autumn.

Why do flies bite and how to deal with annoying insects? Let's start with the fact that only a few species of dipterans bite, among them the zhigalka. It is she who is called autumn or evil. And if anyone doubts whether flies bite people, then we can say with confidence: they bite, and for the specific purpose of drinking blood.

But why do flies bite in the autumn? There are several reasons for this:

1. the number of individuals increases sharply;
2. the need for food increases before the onset of cold weather;
3. competition between dipterans for food increases;
4. colder weather forces people to move closer to people.

Usually the fly fly feeds on the blood of animals, but when the number of insects increases greatly, the flies bite people. The zhigalka is not attracted to sweets and food that humans eat, so the individuals circling over the table have nothing to do with the zhigalka.

What flies bite, besides the flies? The most famous are horseflies and tsetse. But the first prefers to live near water, and the second does not live in our climatic conditions. So the only colored fly that bites is the fly.

Its bite is far from harmless. The zhigalka is a carrier of diseases such as anthrax, relapsing fever, tularemia, and yellow fever. Massive insect attacks on livestock can lead to their death.

How to recognize a fly

In size and shape, the predator resembles an ordinary fly. The zhigalka is distinguished by a long proboscis with a reflection. Who doesn’t know what flies bite with, it’s with this proboscis. It works in the same way as a mosquito: through it the insect sucks blood. At the end of the proboscis there are teeth. Using them, the insect bites through the skin.

Among other differences of the burner:

• dense and short body,
• widely spaced wings,
• the presence of stripes on the abdomen.

The development period of the insect is 2-3 weeks. This explains why the number of pests increases so much by autumn. The insect lays eggs in manure or straw, but sometimes lays eggs directly in an open wound of the animal.

The appearance of the burner fly is not too different from the house fly. But their behavior and lifestyle are different. The predator sees in a person only a source of food. If a zhigalka appears in the house, it means that it will bite constantly. The diptera is dangerous for infants and people with disabilities who cannot drive away annoying individuals themselves. With multiple bites, weight loss may occur. If flies bite in the fall and annoy the owners of a house or apartment, it is necessary to treat the premises.

The bite site is treated with a soda solution, and an antihistamine is taken orally to prevent allergic reactions. If swelling and inflammation occur, you should consult a doctor.

Now we have found out whether flies bite, and what threat they pose to humans. Diptera themselves are not dangerous if their number does not exceed the permissible level, and there are no sick animals in the neighborhood that could become a source of infection for others.

Probably, many of us have noticed that with the onset of autumn, some insects, especially flies, begin to show somewhat more aggression towards humans than usual.

Why do flies bite in the first place? Are there really blood-sucking flies? These questions are answered in this article. As well as an explanation for what makes blood-sucking flies show such an unhealthy interest in humans precisely in the autumn period, which only intensifies with the onset of the first cold weather.

Who bites?

Let’s not hide the fact that among such seemingly harmless insects as flies in terms of physical impact on surrounding insects, there are many predators. We will not dwell on exotic species like the tsetse fly or the Siberian midge, but will talk about our original, domestic, one might say, species of biting flies, which is autumn burner.

Autumn zhigalka: description.

The autumn fly is an insect from the family of true flies. Outwardly, the autumn fly is practically no different from any other housefly. It is also small in size, usually reaching a length of no more than 5-8 mm. It has a uniform gray color with a slightly darker chest and a slightly lighter belly, on which you can see dotted black inclusions.

The main distinguishing feature of these insects is their predatory nature. These are the same bloodsuckers as mosquitoes or vampire bats. Their mouthparts have a trunk-like structure, which allows these bloodsuckers to pierce the skin of warm-blooded animals and suck out blood, which serves as food for these predators.

How does a bite occur?

The fly, as we have already said, has the necessary means of access to our blood. Its proboscis has a pointed shape, and along the edges of its tip there are small teeth resembling a file. In this case, the tip of the proboscis looks flat, resembling a serrated knife.

With the help of these teeth, the insect wipes the top layer of skin, after which it injects its poisonous saliva, the composition of which does not allow the blood to quickly clot, onto the bite site. Thus, having drilled a hole in the skin, this bloodsucker licks off the protruding blood droplets.

Why is it dangerous?

Phases of fly development.

Well, let’s even start with the fact that the bite of a burner is very painful. It is not without reason that this type of fly received such a name. At the moment of the bite, the person feels a fairly strong burning pain.

This is not at all a harmless mosquito bite that appears only some time later, no. The zhigalka acts, let's say, much rougher. A mosquito next to a fly is simply a jeweler in his field.

In addition to, in fact, a painful puncture with the proboscis, the burner fly also introduces saliva that irritates the affected area, which has an inflammatory effect at the site of the bite.

In addition to pain and inflammation at the puncture site, these dipterous pests, like all flies, are malicious carriers of all sorts of dangerous diseases.

One can only imagine how many times this pest used its piercing weapon during the season, and how dangerous the bite of such a carrier of all sorts of nasty things could be for humans.

Among the diseases that a bite from such a bloodsucker can give us, we highlight the following, namely:

• sepsis;
• anthrax;
• tuberculosis;
• dysentery;
• polio;
• trypanosomiasis.

And this is not the entire list of “free services” that this pest can provide to us voluntarily and completely free of charge.

How to treat a bite?

Now it’s quite reasonable to talk about what to do if you’re bitten by a fly. First aid measures are somewhat similar to those provided for a wasp sting, but, of course, in a much milder version.

So, if you are bitten by a fly, you need to do the following:

• wash the wound, preferably with hydrogen peroxide or just a soap solution;
• take an antihistamine, for example, suprastin;
• To relieve pain, you can apply cold packs with ice to the bitten area;
• treat the bite site with iodine;
• Monitor your condition and the appearance of the wound for any suspicion of infection.

Thus, if everything goes well and the bite site begins to heal (usually the next day), you don’t have to worry, the inflammation will soon go away on its own. If there is a persistence of the inflammatory process at the site of the bite, or, moreover, a deterioration in health, you should immediately consult a doctor.

Why do they bite?

So we move on to the main question of this review. Indeed, why do flies tend to bite, especially somewhere from the end of August, right up to the November frosts.

We have already partially answered the question earlier, pointing out the predatory lifestyle of these insects and their need for blood for nutrition. But this is only one side of the coin, because mosquitoes also need blood to be able to produce offspring, just like mosquitoes.

This biting fly becomes active in the fall for the simple reason that the insect senses the approach of cold weather. The fly quickly reacts to the tendency of the daily weather to steadily strive to worsen the conditions for the life and reproduction of the insect, hence the nervousness and haste in the behavior of these biting bloodsuckers.

Among the reasons why flies still bite in the fall, we also note the maximum increase in the population of insects of all species in the period from August to October. That is, competition for power sources is increasing.

We should also not forget about cold weather, the approach of which forces insects to increasingly intersect with humans and stimulates them to look for suitable places for wintering or laying eggs in human habitats.

Prevention

It is very short and without innovations. At home, do not forget to use mosquito nets on the windows. And on the street, and especially during country house maneuvers, you should use special bloodsucker-repellent sprays and not yawn.

Conclusion

So, we found out the main reasons why flies bit last fall. Now we know that not all flies are harmless, and among them there are many that can deliver memorable sensations with a painful bite.

We also became acquainted with such a variety of flies as the zhigalka, and now we know that this bloodsucker is a carrier of many dangerous diseases, which this insect can reward any unwary lover of outdoor recreation.

In addition to true bloodsuckers - mosquitoes and bedbugs, there are also some types of flies that happily join this category of insects. The question here is not whether flies actually bite or not, but which flies and why flies bite in August or autumn. Oddly enough, it is not the usual house flies that attack humans, whose mouthparts are not adapted for biting. The main predators living in Russia and attacking humans are:

Autumn flies

Stomoxys calcitrans. Externally, biting flies are very similar to common flying insects. And after their painful attacks, confusion arises as to whether house flies bite. There are differences in appearance, but they can only be noticed after careful consideration, these are:

Habitats and life cycle of the burner

The usual habitat of the insect is livestock pastures, barns or paddocks. Under these conditions, both a table and a home are always ready for them, that is, an abundance of warm-blooded animals as food and rotted hay or manure for reproduction and rest. The insect's diet consists only of blood, and in one bite, burner flies drink twice their own weight.

The reproductive characteristics of bloodsuckers provide an answer to why flies bite at the end of summer. Clutches and burners are made in manure or animal bedding in the warmest places at a temperature not lower than 35°C. The insect goes through a full development cycle, but the time of each stage is much shorter than that of the house fly.

The laid eggs develop in just a day and release the larva, which in turn, sequentially going through four stages of maturation, turns into an adult insect after 4 days. And within a day, the insect is in the imago stage, ready to mate. The life cycle of a fly can be 7-8 weeks and during this time, the fly makes 5-7 clutches of 100 eggs. When the temperature drops to 10°C and below, the zhigalka goes into hibernation. It can overwinter at any stage - larvae, eggs and adults.

Why do flies start biting in the fall?

The onset of cold weather forces the zhigalkas to look for warmer places and during this period they may appear in the house. How flies bite is memorable for a long time. Unlike an ordinary flying insect, the zhigalka has chitinous plates at the end of its proboscis. With them she scrapes the skin down to the blood vessel and, before eating, injects a poison that prevents blood clotting.

Both females and males attack. By the end of the summer period, the population of insects is quite significant and the person who comes into contact with them begins to wonder whether house flies bite or others. The bite of this insect causes burning pain, followed by swelling. In addition to painful sensations, the zhigalka carries many pathogens of dangerous diseases:

• sepsis;
• tularemia;
• trypanosomiasis;
• anthrax, etc.

For parents, if their children are attacked by a burner, they need to urgently consult a doctor, and not wonder whether flies bite in a city apartment in August.

Other flies that bite

A visit to a forest park area can bring you acquaintance with other species of dipteran predators, especially if there are bodies of water nearby.

Horseflies

Tabanidae. The attack is carried out by female insects, since they need blood for a successful pregnancy. The oral apparatus of horseflies is universal and is equipped with both mandibles for receiving plant food and chitinous stylets for piercing the skin and feeding on blood.

The interesting question here is not what flies bite with during pregnancy, but how much blood they consume at one time. The female horsefly is very bloodthirsty and can consume up to 200 mg of blood per meal.

Blood-sucking midge

Bysson maculata and Odagmia ornate. When live flies bite, it is painful, but when a swarm of midges attacks, it is also fraught with severe swelling and allergic reactions. Midges are the most biting flies in August and June. With a large number of midge bites, the development of simulidotoxicosis is possible.

A short proboscis does not facilitate rapid penetration of blood vessels, so the midge carefully selects the bite site in order to quickly get to the blood. Most often these are eyelids, nose, open limbs.

Like horseflies, the female feeds on blood to procreate. Blood proteins are needed to form the egg shell and as a supply of nutrients. Since eggs are laid in bodies of water, this is where the largest number of eggs is observed.

This insect is called a cattle tormentor. Many people do not know whether these flies bite people or not. The peculiarity of the insect's life cycle is its long existence as a larva, inside a living host.

In the adult stage, the gadfly exists for only a few days. During this time, he needs to find a warm-blooded carrier - a forest animal or livestock. In extreme cases, the eggs are laid in the grass and can end up in the stomach of the herbivore. There are cases of attacks on humans. In case of such attacks, if edema develops, it is necessary to urgently consult a doctor.

To protect against blood-sucking insects, especially in forests, it is recommended to wear discreet, thick clothing and use repellents. Use Velcro, repellent essential oils and protective nets in the house.