Highland Midge (Culicoides impunctatus) Photo byBy Dunpharlain – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=79829802

Dear Readers, I am one of those people who attract insects (well, I am Bugwoman I suppose).  I was parasitised by a tumbu fly when I was in Cameroon, which laid an egg in my leg (gee thanks). I went for a night walk in Madagascar wearing a head torch, and ended up so covered in gigantic insects that my fellow holidaymakers had to help me pull them off. But I promise that I have never been so badly bitten, so frequently, as when on holiday in the Highlands of Scotland, one of the most beautiful places that I know. They are tiny, determined, and capable of getting through the smallest of openings in clothing – on the last occasion I was clad pretty much head to foot, but they got in just under my neckerchief and gave me a lovely necklace of little pink blisters.

So it was with some interest that I read in The Guardian that midges are positively thriving this year. Scotland had its wettest April on record this year, and midges love damp, humid conditions, so there was a massive hatching of the little devils in May. A second peak is expected in August, and there could even be a third peak, as there was in 2015. On a ‘Midge Scale’ of one to five, this week saw a predicted score of four to five.

Midges are small members of the fly family, and there are over 5000 species – my Dad used to complain about the ‘No-see-ums’ that would bite him when he worked in Jamaica. Like most midges, the Highland Midge evolved to feed on deer and other wild mammals rather than humans. It’s only the females that bite: they need a single blood meal in order for their eggs to develop. Alas, multiply this single blood meal by literally millions of midges and you have the current situation in places like Ullapool and Fort William.

When I first saw people wearing midge protection (usually a large brimmed hat with a mosquito net over it, well tucked down into a long-sleeved top) I laughed, but not for long. On my first encounter, we were cycling and camping. I note that midges do not generally enter houses, but will enter tents. After a few days I looked like the elephant woman, and the itching is infernal. The midges are attracted by the carbon dioxide that we breathe out, and our sweat – someone once said that the more you resemble a large over-heated cow, the more bites you’ll get. Gee, thanks.

But what to do? Midges are most active on drizzly, dreich days – they don’t like wind, or sunshine. They are most active at dawn and dusk. You could smother yourself in DEET, though I am always a little alarmed at its carcinogenic reputation and habit of eating through plastic. Apparently, soldiers on manoeuvres in the Highlands used to use Avon’s ‘Skin So Soft’ skin cream, and I know several people who swear by it. Other kinds of insect repellent may work, though I’ve never found the more nature-friendly types, such as citronella, to provide much of a deterrent to the little devils. Do let me know if you’ve had more luck!

And of course, midges are part of the ecosystem of the Highlands – they provide food for bats, birds, and lots of other smaller predators. Interestingly, the exceptionally cold winter of of 2010 in Scotland was expected to reduce the midge population, but in fact it did the opposite – the weather killed off many of the midge predators instead, so 2011 was a peak year for the insects. And the other benefit that they provide, strangely enough, is to limit development in the area – a combination of endless bogs and biting insects seems to have made it too expensive and risky to build on a large part of the area. There’s good reason to claim that the bogs and lochs of North Western Scotland form the last true wilderness in the UK, and it’s partially thanks to the midges.

Do not let the midges put you off visiting this most beautiful of areas, but do be prepared. And if the worst comes to the worst, I’m sure someone will sell you a midge hat.

Midge Hat from Craghoppers https://www.craghoppers.com/nosilife-ultimate-hat-ii-woodland-green/?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwhvi0BhA4EiwAX25uj5OYIG6APNJsziQdW6-NTbBayLpCbE7PISBvBep_7gxXQKponA0hEBoCwegQAvD_BwE

Cat Update: Willow has been in the animal hospital over the weekend, without much change – she is being fed through the feeding tube but shows little interest in feeding herself. Today, I got a phone call that one of her eyes has dilated pupils, which is clearly not a good sign. I’ll keep you posted.