Have you been on a mountain hike or in the woods and been surrounded by large insect swarms?
It will not go away right away, we must believe biologist and doctoral fellow at Tromsø Museum, Jon Peder Lindemann.
“In isolation, climate change with increased temperatures and more precipitation may lead to a total of more insects in the future in Norway,” he told Dagbladet.
The biologist and doctoral fellow believe this will happen because the weather changes make it possible for new species to establish themselves in Norway. And because the evolution of many insects is temperature limited.
Invasion
The corona pandemic has led to more Norwegians holidaying in their own country. Thousands have traveled through deep fjords and high peaks, and many have experienced that the idyllic mountain hike has been invaded by insects.
Insect researcher and associate professor at the NTNU Science Museum, Frode Ødegaard, believes this is a natural explanation for the huge swarms.
– It is the high temperatures we have had this summer that make the swarms feel bigger and more intense. Flies and mosquitoes thrive under the same conditions as us – in sun and heat, he says and elaborates:
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– The weather conditions so far this season have been very favorable for the insects. Most flies are associated with humid environments because their larvae live most of the year in smaller ponds. If the early summer is dry, these ponds will dry out and the flies will die. More humid conditions in early summer, followed by hot summer days, is the recipe for a good fly season. And this is exactly what we have seen this year.
The insects are more active the higher the temperature of the degree scale. Therefore, there can be large differences in both amount and intensity on days with 20 and 25 degrees, says Ødegaard.
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Hard to get rid of
This year, the whole country is plagued by large numbers of insects. So no matter where you spend your Norwegian holiday, it is unlikely that you will escape.
– What should you do if you are surrounded by large swarms?
– The very best thing is to stay indoors, especially when it is scorching sun, hot and windless. If you want to avoid flies and mosquitoes, you should rather travel outside on days when it is cloudy, rainy or lower temperatures. But these are the nice days Norwegians would most like to spend outdoors.
May cause mosquito explosion
The insect expert continues:
– Once you have ended up in the middle of a swarm, they are unfortunately difficult to get rid of. The general recommendations against stinging and biting insects are to cover yourself with clothes or smear yourself with mosquito repellent. If it is the black flies that are the problem, you should seek out places where it is windy or take a bath because they are attracted to sweat.
But despite the fact that the insects have taken over large parts of the country, Ødegaard has good news for anyone who gets annoyed green about the fly swarms or mosquito bites that come with the tent trip:
– The season does not last long. The insects usually live between three and four weeks, and the intense swarms will subside in August.
Mysterious “mosquito invasion” in Oslo
Increase in the time to come
With longer and warmer summers, we can get more insect species to Norway – and the species that are already here will be able to live for several generations, Lindemann explains.
One of the reasons why we can expect more insects in the future is climate change – it is getting warmer and more extreme weather.
– When there is shock heat and it has also rained beforehand, there will be an extra number of insects. Because then a lot hatches at once, he says.
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