The Blandford Fly
Encyclopedia
The Blandford fly is a species of black fly
, a biting insect
found locally around Blandford Forum and villages bordering the River Stour
in Dorset
, England
. Its larva
e breed in the weedbeds of the slow flowing river and when the fly emerges, the female seeks a blood
meal before mating
. It usually bites the lower legs causing pain and swelling, after which secondary infections set in.
The Blandford fly first came to the attention of public health officials in the 1960s and reached a peak in the early 1970s. In a four-week period during the spring of 1972, some 600 people were estimated to have visited their doctors in Blandford to be treated for insect bites.
In the late 1980s, Dorset County Council
asked the Institute for Freshwater Ecology (now the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology
), then based in Wareham, Dorset
, to investigate a means of ameliorating the problem. They suggested using a biological insecticide, Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis
(Bti), which was sprayed into the weed beds, resulting in the destruction of 80–90% of the Blandford fly larvae and a corresponding reduction in the numbers of people bitten. Indeed, it is reported that the number of people bitten has dropped to less than one hundredth of those affected in 1989.
Recently, the fly has begun affecting people in other parts of southern England, including built up areas, probably encouraged by water features. Singer Mollie King
and golfer Ian Poulter
have both been affected by bites, with the latter having to pull out of the French Open
, Denmark
, Finland
, France
, Latvia
, Germany
& Austria
, Belarus
, Belgium
, Southern England
, Lithuania
, Luxembourg
, Netherlands
, Norway
, Poland
, European Russia
& Western Siberia
, Slovenia
, Sweden
, Turkey
, Ukraine
Black fly
A black fly is any member of the family Simuliidae of the Culicomorpha infraorder. They are related to the Ceratopogonidae, Chironomidae, and Thaumaleidae. There are over 1,800 known species of black flies . Most species belong to the immense genus Simulium...
, a biting insect
Insect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
found locally around Blandford Forum and villages bordering the River Stour
River Stour, Dorset
The River Stour is a 60.5 mile long river which flows through Wiltshire and Dorset in southern England, and drains into the English Channel. It is sometimes called the Dorset Stour to distinguish it from rivers of the same name...
in Dorset
Dorset
Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. Its larva
Larva
A larva is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle...
e breed in the weedbeds of the slow flowing river and when the fly emerges, the female seeks a blood
Blood
Blood is a specialized bodily fluid in animals that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells....
meal before mating
Mating
In biology, mating is the pairing of opposite-sex or hermaphroditic organisms for copulation. In social animals, it also includes the raising of their offspring. Copulation is the union of the sex organs of two sexually reproducing animals for insemination and subsequent internal fertilization...
. It usually bites the lower legs causing pain and swelling, after which secondary infections set in.
The Blandford fly first came to the attention of public health officials in the 1960s and reached a peak in the early 1970s. In a four-week period during the spring of 1972, some 600 people were estimated to have visited their doctors in Blandford to be treated for insect bites.
In the late 1980s, Dorset County Council
Dorset County Council
Dorset County Council is the county council of the Dorset in England. It provides the upper tier of local government, below which are district councils, and town and parish councils...
asked the Institute for Freshwater Ecology (now the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology
Centre for Ecology and Hydrology
The Centre for Ecology & Hydrology is the United Kingdom's Centre of Excellence for integrated research in hydrology, terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems and their interaction with the atmosphere...
), then based in Wareham, Dorset
Wareham, Dorset
Wareham is an historic market town and, under the name Wareham Town, a civil parish, in the English county of Dorset. The town is situated on the River Frome eight miles southwest of Poole.-Situation and geography:...
, to investigate a means of ameliorating the problem. They suggested using a biological insecticide, Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis
Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis
Bacillus thuringiensis serovar israelensis is a group of bacteria used as biological control agents for larvae stages of certain Dipterans. Bti produces toxins which are effective in killing various species of mosquitoes, fungus gnats, and blackflies, while having almost no effect on other...
(Bti), which was sprayed into the weed beds, resulting in the destruction of 80–90% of the Blandford fly larvae and a corresponding reduction in the numbers of people bitten. Indeed, it is reported that the number of people bitten has dropped to less than one hundredth of those affected in 1989.
Recently, the fly has begun affecting people in other parts of southern England, including built up areas, probably encouraged by water features. Singer Mollie King
Mollie King
Mollie Elizabeth King is an English singer-songwriter. She is best known for being a member of girl group, The Saturdays. In the band, King has successfully enjoyed ten top-ten and five top-five singles on the UK Singles Chart and three top-ten albums on the UK Albums Chart...
and golfer Ian Poulter
Ian Poulter
Ian James Poulter is an English professional golfer who is a member of the world's top two professional golf tours, the U.S.-based PGA Tour and the European Tour. He has previously been as high as number five in the world rankings...
have both been affected by bites, with the latter having to pull out of the French Open
Distribution
The Blandford fly has been spotted in the following countries: Czech RepublicCzech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
, Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Latvia
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
& Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, Southern England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
, Luxembourg
Luxembourg
Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...
, Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, European Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
& Western Siberia
Siberia
Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...
, Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
External links
- Blandford fly bites by Tim Locke. WebMD/Boots. Accessed April 2011