Deer Flies

[Pop-up-family]

Just a warning about these pest, they were just about unbearable this past week. We do a lot of camping throughout Florida and have never come across so many deer flies attacking us. I don't know if they are always this bad at FW, but one of the store clerks told me they are from May through August. Last year we were at FW the end of June, it rained hard most of the time we were there so we did not notice any deer fly. I talked to a man at our church yesterday and he said they were really bad at the cabin area when they went last year in June.

So just a word of warning to those heading soon to FW, have your bug spray ready. Most of our bites are from the first day when we were setting up camp and did not have bug spray on. We only found them to be a problem at the campsites and the pool in the cabin area. They did not bother us too bad at the larger pool or the Marina. Never saw one single mosquito though .

 

[eeyorelover]

You aren't kidding! Skin-so-soft didn't even work to keep this pest away. I got bit so bad I was rushed to the walk in clinic. Put on strong drugs !

When we told the manager. She was like you can leave. They sent pest control out and all they would say was wow you have lots of bites and they can't do a thing.

 

[Memph1s]

Our neighbors were telling us about a moth looking bug that was real bad last weekend in the 300 loop and I never made the connection to what it was. After reading your post I am sure that it must have been the deer fly.

We have camped at FW more times than I can keep up with and have never encountered deer, yellow, or horse flies. I guess we have just been lucky. But these flies can be a real pain. You have to kill them to get them to leave you alone. They just will not give up trying to bite you. Unfortunately most repellents have not worked that well on them for use either.

Thanks for the heads up.

Here is a link to everything you ever wanted to know about these pest and more.

 

[campingcorgi]

We've had a couple of encounters with them! They don't bother most of us too much, but my sister must be allergic to them because they will make a large sore and leave a scar. We've got our DEET ready and she has antibiotic to take so we'll be okay!

I guess every paradise has a fly or two.....

 

[twinscandc]

Because of these pests, do you all suggest we bring our screen room?

We will be in FW in 12 days (yeah!!) and I had taken the screen room out of the camper to save on space/weight, etc. I'm now re-thinking this!!

We will be spending 3 or 4 days being lazy around the campsite and I don't want to have to worry about my DD's getting bit!!!

Do any of you take your screen room this time of year? And, since this is our first time, will there be room at our campsite for our screen room?

Thanks for any suggestions!!

 

[eeyorelover]

We brought our screened room and they still managed to get in. Some of them would get stuck in the netting and we would spray them with fly killer. But it really didn't matter b/c they are determined. If you applied skin-so-soft every 1/2 hour it helped a little but I mean you had to really apply it that much. I'm not trying to scare you but I am not kidding how bad.

 

[Memph1s]

On a 12 day trip I would bring the screen room anyway. If for nothing else for some shade and rain protection. You did not say what your camping rig is but most sites are large enough to put up a large screen room even if you are in a class A. If you have multiple other things like tents, dinning canopy potty tent it might get crowded. We have put a 22' popup with awning, 12x12 dinning canopy and 12 x14 screen room and the tow vehicle in most sites with no problem.

 

[Pop-up-family]

My son came for 2 days and brought the dog and she stayed in the screen room to get away from them. We made sure we kept it zipped up, but as someone else said they still got in (I think they rode in on us), but were easy to kill with the fly swatter they just went to the ceiling trying to find a way out. They got in the pop-up also, but they didn't seem to bite in there, to busy trying to get out, and easy to swat. We had to spray with DEET every 30 minutes, then it seemed to wear off and they would all attack, then we'd spray again. They really bothered the dog, she was biting at them, we even had to spray the dog with bug juice.

My brother was fishing in Ocala and said they were just as bad there, said he's never seen them quite this bad before and he's a hunter, always in the woods. Hope it's just an outbreak because of the record heat and not a sign of the whole summer...cuz heck I live here.

 

[bianca]

I have to say that I am actually somewhat relieved that someone else had problems with these nasty things. We just got back last weekend from FW and because of those pests we had our worst WDW vacation to-date. I was starting to question my "hardiness" as a camper, as we just darted from the truck to the fifth wheel the entire vacation to avoid them. Even with all of our avoidance techniques and cans of OFF, we all ended up with serious bites! As for us, we have sworn off any future May-September WDW vacations ...... we will only vacation in the cooler months from now on!

 

[Disney Campers]

I must admit having just returned we to were unhappy with the pest problem, we usually have citronella candles burning and they were little help against those flies, having visited the Fort for many years this was the worst trip as far as bugs are concerned.

 

[songbert]

No way can I tell my DH and DS about these posts.....are the bugs bad at the parks, too?

I just went to the WDW official site and sent an email asking if they are doing anything to deal with bugs other than mosquitos. Not sure if I will get a reply, but it was worth a shot.

We have deer flies in CT, too, but we were looking forward to spending time outdoors at FW - at the Campfire, riding bikes, etc.

 

[Memph1s]

No, Thankfully the bugs have not been a problem in the parks. However, we have not been in almost 2 weeks now. We are going back this weekend and will know more next week. I have not seen any post on the PS board so I think the parks are OK. Our neighbors said they were not near as bad at the big pool and campfire area as they were at the small pool and in the loops.

 

[Tuffcookie]

I was there during our Spring break (March 30-April 5) and came home with several large bug bites on my legs. I don't know what bit me but after reading this post I'm wondering if it was those deer flies you guys are talking about. Or was this too early in the year for it to be them? I never saw the boogers!

TC

 

[Memph1s]

We just got back today from a FW. The flies that we saw were yellow flies. They were the worst about 1 hour before and one hour after sunset. Once it got dark they were not near as big a problem. They were not near as bad as they could have been. I killed 3 that got in the pop up and about 4 outside. We keep box fans blowing on high out side and that seemed to help.

Tuffcookie

you would have to be a very Tuffcookie for these flies to bite you and you not know it at the time. Their bite is much more painful than a mosquito. When they bite you they get your attention.

 

[reallyandrea]

Deer Fly Info from http://www.pestproducts.com/deerfly.htm

Generally, Deer flies are pests of domestic and wild animals, but will annoy and bite humans. Deer flies feed by sucking blood and cause a severely painful bite. These flying pests are closely related to horse flies. Often confused with Horse flies, Deer flies are a little smaller in size. The wings of this fly have dark markings and their body is tan or dark in color.

The female of the species feeds on animal blood, while her male counterpart is a pollen collector. Deer flies deposit their eggs in damp areas around bays, lakes, ponds or swamps. The larvae of this fly feeds on insects and can be found developing in wet areas.

Eliminating Deer Flies

The nature of this fly makes it impossible to eliminate through spraying programs. If Deer Flies are found inside a structure, make sure that all possible entry points have been eliminated. If necessary, a pyrethrin aerosol can be used in these rare instances.

For extra protection from biting flies (as well as chiggers, punkies, no-see-ums, etc.) there are products made for applying to your skin and others for applying to your clothing. DEET is used extensively for repelling or killing various insects on people but is not always as effective on biting flies as it is on mosquitoes, ticks and a few flies.

The best biting fly repellent (for human use) is Sawyer's Broad Spectrum Composite Spray (http://www.pestproducts.com/sawyer_insect_repellents.htm#Broad). Broad Spectrum contains the perfect combination of DEET and R-326 which is effective against biting flies.

-Andrea

 

[cyndilou01]

no bugs in the park, we just got back yesterday after 8 wonderful days in the fort.... the fan does help so take one with you for outside eating....
the bugs are bad but not bad enough to stay home from fort wilderness.

have a great time.

 

[songbert]

Here is the reply I got from the folks at Guest Services. It doesn't address the deer fly issue at all, but it makes for interesting reading

We appreciate your interest in learning about the mosquito control measures that are employed at our resort. Two means
of controlling these particular pests are currently employed--larviciding and adulticiding. Larviciding is accomplished
by introducing growth regulators in bodies of standing water across our resort property to prohibit mosquito larvae from developing. Adulticiding is the spraying of a ULV (ultra-low volume) pesticide, in the form of a fine mist, in
open outdoor areas.

"Light" traps are in place in various locations throughout our property which are routinely checked by our Pest Management department. When the insect counts within these traps reach a certain level, the control measures described above are employed.

We hope this information is helpful, and we look forward to future opportunities to entertain you.

If you have questions or need further assistance, feel free to contact us.