Mosquitos

[Darth Handsome]

They were the worst I've ever experienced at the lake last weekend. Lots of rain the week before, no dragonflies yet, warm and no wind. It was brutal.

Watkins lotion with 30% deet is my new religion.

 

[buldog5151bass]

Sounds like he was fried. Side dish. Again, get a bat house.

 

[embellisher]

Speaking of lizards, I'm not too crazy about 'em. Yup, they eat bugs but they're also really attracted to the energy field around 120v AC. I had one climb into my pool heater and crawl across one 120v terminal and a 24v terminal. He shorted my 120v AC through his body causing the current to bypass the transformer and go directly to the 24v side to the control board. In a split second he fried the control panel PCB of my pool heater so I can't heat my pool until I buy another $400 control panel for it. One lizard, $400 damage.

Lizards can be as much a problem as any other pest, IMO.


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Sounds kind of squirrelly.

 

[buldog5151bass]

Tastes like chicken.

But seriously, on your property, put up bat houses. It helps, and are interesting to watch at dusk. Invalid Link Removed

 

[bass_case]

I have free-roaming lizards of amazing variety - green anoles, Cuban anoles, Knight's anoles, various types of geckos, including foot-long Tokays, Ameivas etc. Never had a problem, although geckos leave their poop on the walls. I did have a black snake crawl up into my a/c compressor fan. The compressor won, Snake sushi on the side (of the house.)

 

[twocargar]

I put up a bat house hoping to attract more bats, it I don't think I put it in the right spot. We have a small family of them, but I'd like more around to keep the mosquitos at bay. I do recommend Mosquito Magnets. If you are handy, you can probably pick one up on CL for cheap and fix it. I bought one for $50 one year and with $15 worth of parts I fixed it and used it for 5 years until it broke again. Compare that to $300 for a new one.

 

[buldog5151bass]

The more the merrier. They really are fascinating to watch.

 

[bluesblaster]

A bat house seems like the logical and entertaining answer here. I know they like to swoop around when were out on a lake fishing in the evenings, always a welcome sight

 

[totallyfrozen]

Tastes like chicken.

But seriously, on your property, put up bat houses. It helps, and are interesting to watch at dusk. Invalid Link Removed

Fascinating idea. My wife's an unknown variable. I couldn't tell you if she'd freak at the idea or be enthused about it. I've seen her goes both ways on some pretty wild ideas. Another thing that makes bats more attractive than birds is bats are virtually silent. They only make squeaking noises is the Dracula movies.

How susceptible are they to pesticides and stuff like that? I have a Mosquito Mister system on my property that sprays pesticide around the perimeter of the house a couple times a day. The guy I bought the house from is an exterminator and he installed it and refills/maintains it.



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[buldog5151bass]

Oh come on. At dusk you can't tell the difference between them - just dark shapes flying around.

I would guess they are no more or less susceptible than any of the other creatures who eat them. If there is a local wildlife preservation office or whatever, you should drop them a line. In some areas, they will even help out.

 

[totallyfrozen]

How about those bug zappers with the black light in them?
I remember we had one when I was a kid but I don't remember if they work worth a darn.


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[bluesblaster]

those bug zappers are annoying if your idiot neighbor owns one and leaves it on all the time, listening to it go "ZZZZTTTT, ZZZZZZTTT" all night long, what a douche.

 

[elgecko]

Living in SoCal kicks butt. The only time I have to deal with skeeters is when I go to the mountains.

 

[buldog5151bass]

If you buy one, give it to your neighbor. They attract bugs. Putting it in your yard just brings them there. Think about it.

 

[Solarmist]

I put up a bat house hoping to attract more bats, it I don't think I put it in the right spot. We have a small family of them, but I'd like more around to keep the mosquitos at bay. I do recommend Mosquito Magnets. If you are handy, you can probably pick one up on CL for cheap and fix it. I bought one for $50 one year and with $15 worth of parts I fixed it and used it for 5 years until it broke again. Compare that to $300 for a new one.

My nearest neighbor has an old style gravity well house nearly 3 stories high, and sided with old wood shingles which has been a haven for bats since the mid 80's.

I love seeing them come out at night, and catching flying insects.

 

[buldog5151bass]

I meant the bug zappers, by the way.

 

[bluesblaster]

I considered getting a BB gun to take it out, must have burned out because he didnt have it out last summer.

 

[totallyfrozen]

those bug zappers are annoying if your idiot neighbor owns one and leaves it on all the time, listening to it go "ZZZZTTTT, ZZZZZZTTT" all night long, what a douche.

The guy across the street does that exact thing. I come home from work at 2am and it's going ZZZZTTTT!


Sent from my iPhone 5c zipped in a sandwich bag using TalkBass mobile app while floating in the pool!

 

[embellisher]

Sent from my iPhone 5c zipped in a sandwich bag using TalkBass mobile app while floating in the pool!

Thought I was the only one who did this!

 

[6jase5]

Seen one skeeter in San Diego in the last 9 years or so. He was apparently lost. It's not perfect here, but we have very few bugs other than aphids that like eating my pepper plants and plum tree.