Painless bug bites that draws blood, Very strange.

Earwigs are disgusting things. So are the ginormous centipedes that used to live in the basement of my folks' old house. We also used to find slugs bigger than banana peppers on the porch when it rained.

0 Replies

Like I said in my original post, the bites were completely painless and yet they bled, No irritation or itching either, just the red marks.

Earwigs, you would know your being bit, ticks don't attack you and drop off, leeches live in water, ladybugs, you would feel, and just about everything that was suggested in this post, there would be a definite link if there was pain, itching, or some other reaction. After careful inspection of the sandbox and playset, there was no sign of anything unusual.

1 Reply

I no longer think the offending insects are fleas, because there would be many bites on the children's legs. I agree that nothilng mentioned so far seems to fit, except possibly the black flies, which I am unfamiliar with. Horse or deer flies cut the skin and produce blood, but they are painful.

The only thing I could suggest would be to return to the scene of the crime and watch for a recurrence, and catch them in the act, so to speak.

0 Replies

a believer in the scientific method

0 Replies

farmerman wrote:

Portal, thats the same earwig I posted. that little pinch can be very painful and draw blood. The males pinch is worse, and they can be persistent if youre in their area.

If you brush your teeth with diatoms , remember they are silica shelled . radiolareans are mostly calcareous and therefore not as abrasive. THE DIATOMS can be like sandpaper unless theyre powdery like the "natural" toothpastes that have ground , milled pumice.

I always kept my distance from earwics. I read one website a while ago that said they were harmless, but it was apparently wrong. The things look so creepy I never handle them anyway.

According to my oceanography class (for which I am currently studying) diatoms (single celled plants) and radiolarians (single celled amoeba-like animals) are both siliceous based. They don't have either listed as calcerious but maybe there is a difference in what they are made out of and the sediment deposits they leave behind. Or maybe they simplified the material so as not to confuse us. I'll look into it later.
My book says calcareous sediment deposits come from Foramniferans, pteropods, and coccolithophores.

Those Natural toothpastes don't work for shite. Damn hippies are afraid of flouride.

0 Replies

Portal star- please forgive me,you are indeed correct. Forams are calc tests. radiolarians and diatoms are both siliceous. Oops, see, after you learn something it doesnt necessarily stay with you. I never paid much attention in micro-paleo , no big monsters, yet these little critters were the big indicator fossils for oil deposits and other environments. Thats why we always have a real micro-paleontologist with us for all deep drilling. They would never make such a mistake , even in fun talk.
I rarely ever use snails as environmental indicators and coccoliths are very important where we want to distinguish post- Jurassic sediments and environments. Outside of that Id have to look up every little guy in the treatise on Paleo(or ask my micropaleontologist). I would imagine you are doing environmental assessments and health of recent marine sediments.

0 Replies

farmerman wrote:

Portal star- please forgive me,you are indeed correct. Forams are calc tests. radiolarians and diatoms are both siliceous. Oops, see, after you learn something it doesnt necessarily stay with you. I never paid much attention in micro-paleo , no big monsters, yet these little critters were the big indicator fossils for oil deposits and other environments. Thats why we always have a real micro-paleontologist with us for all deep drilling. They would never make such a mistake , even in fun talk.
I rarely ever use snails as environmental indicators and coccoliths are very important where we want to distinguish post- Jurassic sediments and environments. Outside of that Id have to look up every little guy in the treatise on Paleo(or ask my micropaleontologist). I would imagine you are doing environmental assessments and health of recent marine sediments.

No problem. Yes, I was studying marine sediments. Ooh, speaking of which I am supposed to be studying for my lab final now heh HEH...

I had never thought about the complex knowledge involved in deep drilling. Sounds interesting. I like the fact that you have a micropaleontologist. Do you ever play april fools pranks on him/her, like throwing a barbie doll head under his microscope or something? My only experience with drilling is a drill simulator I "rode" down into the earth on in a science museum.

0 Replies

Samples are logged in withh a great degree of "custody" so we dont play with the samples. we do play mean jokes in other ways, like super gluing field boots to the deck, or opening beer bottles and replcing the beer with gypsum water. (its an ex-lax cocktail. )

0 Replies

On the bug -- how about calling the County Department of Health Services. They might have a clue...

0 Replies

My first guess would be blackflies. They can leave you bleeding.

0 Replies

Upon doing a little research, it appears that Ceiti is right about blackflies being the culprit and deserves ten points.

The Merck Manuel claims that blackfly bites occur on the neck, face, and ears.

Blackflies are parasitic like mosquitoes, and the bites draw blood.

Here is an annecdotal testimony I copied. it seems to fit the symptoms of your daughter's bites. Isn't Algonquin in Penn. or NY?

"In late spring and early summer the density of blackflies, mosquitoes and other winged pests in Algonquin is staggering. Blackflies are particularly obnoxious since their bites cause little immediate pain, but may lead to a severe reaction and swelling. The first sign of a blackfly bite is often a stream of blood trickling down an arm or face."

0 Replies

Aha!!!

0 Replies

My dad once saw a blackfly land on his arm. Since it didn't cause pain, he decided not to swat it and instead he held still and watched it do its work. He said it sawed a hole into his skin and drank from the pool of blood, then a few more came and joined it at the 'well'.

As Ceili's link says, they develop in moving water (streams and such).

0 Replies

gwana, do you live in Del County? If it were blackflies, perhaps the heavy rains of the last year have caused a larval explosion in slow draining or tidal areas. Im used to blackflies in Northern Woods. We dont usually have big problems with this insect but perhaps our water budget has allowed for a surge in their populations.
It appears that we should be getting out our favorite insect repellants. Osso, have you been using my Farmerman mix out there for skeeters?

0 Replies

Farmerman, luckily I don't need to right here in my port city, in northern CA - I see about two mosquitoes a year. But, back when we first talked about your mosquito elixir, I was going to the woods in Idaho right by a lake, and it worked fabulously. I still have some, in case we go to map a jobsite inland of here in mosquito season...

0 Replies

I live in misquito central, how does one acquire this bug juice?

0 Replies

one makes it from lavendar and deet

0 Replies

I live in Collegeville, Pa.

I'd have to agree it's blackflies and the bite looks exactly like the one shown at http://www.entomologist.free-online.co.uk/bfpicsad.htm

I thank everyone for their information and support. My youngest daughter who is 8 months old just got bit today also, and it had us very worried and now we feel a lot more at ease. Thanks again.

0 Replies

Yay Ceili, bromeliad, and especially coluber! (That quote sealed it in my own mind.)

Glad you found out what it is, gwana. (I've been reading along but haven't had any bright ideas -- have a 3-yr-old myself, can relate.)

0 Replies

ossobuco wrote:

Farmerman, luckily I don't need to right here in my port city, in northern CA - I see about two mosquitoes a year. But, back when we first talked about your mosquito elixir, I was going to the woods in Idaho right by a lake, and it worked fabulously. I still have some, in case we go to map a jobsite inland of here in mosquito season...

Remember, you gave me the small container that you brought with you when you were on your way back from Idaho. You said you had another at home. Sharing the wealth! (Thanks!)

0 Replies

Painless bug bites that draws blood, Very strange.

Related Topics

Quick Links

My Account

able2know