Insects flourish after mild winter

CANFIELD — After the mild winter, insect emergence here this year is running ahead of the usual schedule, an Ohio State University extension educator said.

“We’re ahead of every year in the past five years, except 2012 that was really warm” and included a warm spring, observed Eric Barrett.

“We’re seeing a lot of gnats” in low-lying areas near water this spring, he observed.

“We could see some issues with mosquitoes this year,” he added.

At the extension office and the nearby Mill Creek MetroParks Farm, extension office personnel keep track of the timing of plant blooms and insect emergence each year; and weather stations around the state help in this effort, Barrett said.

“I think we’ll see flea beetles” that attack sweet corn, he said. “I think we’ll definitely see an issue there because of the warmer than usual winter,” Barrett said.

Barrett urges the public not to act impulsively, however, concerning insect control measures and to consider spraying to be the last resort.

“Just be vigilant. The first thing is, definitely, identify that insect. Is it really a pest or not? We don’t want them to kill an insect that’s a good insect,” which eats other insects, he said.

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