Don’t Bug Me
By Bob Humphrey
Besides bad weather, few things can spoil an outdoor adventure, and possibly present a potential health risk, than creepy, crawling critters. Fortunately, there are ways to avoid or address the host of six- and eight-legged biting, stinging pests you may encounter.
Big Stingers
In general, large stinging insects like hornets, wasps and bees sting only as a defense mechanism. The simplest and best solution then is avoidance. It doesn’t hurt to be extra vigilant around areas they frequent, like under the eaves of your home or camp or under picnic tables, benches and other outdoor furniture. Obviously, you can’t avoid ground blinds and shooting houses, so give them a careful inspection before climbing in.
Almost all are venomous but in most cases, the worst you’ll suffer is a painful sting followed by a sore, and/or itchy welt. The greatest risk is an allergic reaction. If you know you’re allergic, you should carry an epipen. If you witness someone having an allergic reaction, seek medical help immediately.
Much the same applies to the large eight-legged pests like spiders and scorpions. Stay away from woodpiles, fallen trees and the dark, neglected corners of old buildings (and double-check those same ground blinds and shooting houses). It’s also not a bad idea when in scorpion country to check your boots every morning before putting them on. Turn them over and pound on them. Don’t stick your hand in.
Arachnids pose similar risks to wasps, but a couple — the black widow and the brown recluse — can be even more insidious. A black widow bite can cause both local pain (at the bite) and general body pain, cramps, weakness and even tremors. In addition to those, a brown recluse bite could result in severe pain and itching, nausea and vomiting, fever, blistering and necrosis (tissue death). A widow bite may or may not require further treatment depending on the individual’s reaction. A person bitten by a recluse should seek medical attention as soon as possible.
Smaller Stuff
Dealing with ticks and chiggers calls for both a passive and active approach. Avoidance is tough because they could be most anywhere outdoors. A tightly woven synthetic base layer with tight cuffs can reduce bites significantly but isn’t very comfortable in warm weather.
A preferable and effective alternative is treating your outdoor clothing with a permethrin-based solution developed specifically to repel ticks and chiggers (sold under a variety of trade names). Spray this onto your clothing, not your body, and let it dry before wearing. It will act as an effective arachnicide for several weeks, depending on how often you launder your clothes.
As an alternate or a supplement, standard repellents like DEET also work and can be applied directly to the skin. However, they have a much shorter period of effectiveness and require frequent re-application. Regardless of what you use, you should also check yourself every day after leaving the field.
Afflictions range from a simple welt to lifelong debilitating disease. If you find an attached tick and are concerned, use a tick tool or fine point tweezers to remove with gentle pressure away from the skin, being careful to grasp as close to the head as possible. If you are uncertain as to the species, save the tick and bring it (and yourself) to a medical professional.
Plain Old Pests
Mosquitoes and black flies are the most irritating to most folks, primarily because of their abundance. We may as well include those tiny midges as well (alternately referred to as gnats, no-see-ums and an array of other colorful names). Fortunately, there are several solutions.
We’ll start with simple avoidance. Reduce your time outdoors during the peak bug hours of dawn and dusk. Or, reduce the amount of exposed skin by wearing long pants and long-sleeved shirts. That’s not always practical in the heat of the day but is almost mandatory with certain activities like spring bear hunting, or fishing at dawn and dusk — when hunting and fishing are typically best. Then you might also add a head net and gloves.
Next on the list, and probably the most popular, is applying insect repellents. The most common ones contain some percentage of the active ingredient DEET (N,N-Diethyl-meta-toluamide). Obviously, the higher the concentration, the more effective the solution. It’s FDA-approved and should be safe but if you’re concerned there are organic alternatives. Again, they have a short period of effectiveness and require periodic reapplication.
Hands-down the most effective mosquito repellent I’ve ever seen and used is the ThermaCELL. It’s a small portable device consisting of a tiny heating element powered by a replaceable butane cartridge and a pad saturated with a synthetic copy of a naturally occurring insecticide. When activated, the device will maintain a 200 square foot mosquito-free zone around you. There is also an array of natural and organic repellents available for those who prefer.
Other than itchy welts there’s not much to worry about as far as reactions and infections, at least domestically. Encephalitis is extremely rare, and any occurrence is usually localized and followed by widespread alerts. Risks increase significantly if you travel overseas, so do your homework before going abroad.