Hornet Wars 2021/2022

I haven’t noticed those here @Ancient_Mariner but the only thing that works for ordinary flies in my view is old-fashioned flypaper, available everywhere here. However, it is certainly rather less than aesthetic :smiley:

2 Likes

@Ancient_Mariner and @AngelaR
Over the years, we have fitted discrete fine-mesh rollerblinds in all but the 3 largest windows.
This lets us keep windows open on all sides of the house, night and day when suitable, without insect/lizard/bat intruders…

and no risk of human intruders either, if we close the shutters at street level, leaving the meshed windows opening inside (as they do…) and fresh air passing everywhere…

Going for a good quality mesh proved its worth. Most have been in situ 20 years now and still working well.
EDIT: At first, we did kitchen, bathroom and one bedroom. Took time to get the rest done as we waited for Sale times to grab our preferred product.

1 Like

Outside, kept well away from the house, there are containers called red tops (they stink once they start filling up - which attracts more flies)
Indoors, I agree with @AngelaR, fly paper.

1 Like

Whatever you use outside… it must be well away from where you will be a sitting target.

Yes. Fiberglass mesh seems to be the stuff.

I’ve had 2 or 3 years’ worth of the fiber polyester mesh shredded by kittens climbing on it. I am currently deciding whether fibreglass mesh is worth the more than 5 times the expense to replace it with. I am really not sure if even the fiberglass mesh won’t tear, with a happy kitten suspending itself from it and climbing up it with its claws.

couldn’t even say what ours is made of… we bought it so long ago. It’s strong, black… and doesn’t notice. Plus one can let it roll up and leave the whole opening or part of it wide to the world…

We noticed a lot in the Cantal, and commenting to the agent we saw there, he said they were associated with the charolais cattle. On this trip our room at the b&b was invaded with fresh critters every day and they were everywhere at the house too. We suspect that the usually cold winters kill them off, but this year has been mild.

That sounds ideal Stella. What is it actually called?

No idea… after it first appeared… all sorts of similar stuff/much cheaper came into the shops. We bought some of that for the gîte and it’s not nearly so good.

These days, I’d say get a kit for a small (out of the way) window… so if it’s not quite what you hoped for it’s not cost too much and won’t be seen too often… :rofl: :roll_eyes:

1 Like

We have used the magnetic fly screen curtian doors very successfully on the cottage and stable doors, especially good with all our cats and dogs going in and out.
We have the below on the windows we do open.

https://www.leroymerlin.fr/produits/menuiserie/fenetre-et-porte-fenetre/moustiquaire/moustiquaire-enroulable/moustiquaire-a-enroulement-vertical-pour-fenetre-artens-140-x-140-cm-alu-blanc-82709118.html

Horse flies perhaps ? We have them here, and they seem to be prevalent when the sheep are in the field at the back of tbe house. They look like a large fly, but can bite through clothing. They also seem to be able to fly at an appreciable percentage of the speed of light :open_mouth::zap:
At least we don’t get hornets or mosquitos though.

Also known as cleggs.

No, these were the same size as houseflies, and with a bite that merely stings a little. My wife was bitten once by a horsefly, and it took away a chunk of flesh, leaving a bleeding and extremely painful wound.

I was bitten by a horsefly here on the top of my foot 2 years ago. As well as leaving a wound, it caused my foot to swell up enormously.

This is one of the few flies which ressembles the “normal” housefly, but goes after blood…
Found where there are cattle etc (and they seem to love biting humans…)

EDIT: This is called a Stable Fly in UK I believe. (stomoxys calcitrans)
Not a Horse Fly though, this is much smaller, like a housefly, only vicious.

Anyone wishing to be sure of identification… can check the fly’s abdomen for spots… :rofl:

2 Likes

Before or after its been squished🤣

1 Like

Squish first, ask questions afterwards :rofl:

1 Like

Just as an extra piece of info. We have horse flies and although, on the whole, over the years we’ve avoided being bitten, it’s far from ideal to have them around our gite and pool. They rely on sight to see their prey and are attracted to dark shapes at about horse head height. There are some expensive traps you can buy but I found something cheaper
Last summer I bought Sticky Trap glue and three of the cheapest black buckets I could find - 1€ each. I hung them upside down on the end of a piece of rope so they could move in the wind, in the trees around our boundary. I smothered the buckets in the glue. By the end of the season the buckets were covered in flies, including some horse flies and were a great success. Fortunately we have enough space around so that they don’t intrude too much on our guests’ views. This has reminded me to reorder the glue and buy new buckets for this year. I found the easiest way to dispose of them (because they are very sticky) was to untie the buckets from the trees and drop them straight into a large bin bag.

3 Likes

But did nice things get glued??

Very rarely. Certainly no evidence of bees. A few moths. Nothing else I’m aware of. After all most other flying things are attracted either to light or to scents. So anything else has to literally bump into the bucket rather than choose to seek it out.

2 Likes
1 Like