Hi all,

We'll be visiting our plot around the second week in October this year and was wondering if the 'Mossies' or 'Mozzies' will be a problem at this time of year.

I've heard horror stories that we'll need head nets etc. Has anyone had any experience with this?

Simon........

Milord and milady, why don't you PM Lady Laura and ask her, she sould be able to help answer yor question.

No, the midges should be long gone by then! The thing to watch is that you dont drown, there is so much rain at the moment here in Scotland! We've not had a dry day in ages and its August...well it was until today (1st sept)

I dread to think what it'll be like in October this year unless it picks up!

Here in Florida, USA, we call them "swamp angels" or "swamp fairies." Such names add a light, fanciful touch to the bloodsucking bastards, wouldn't you say? By the way, has anyone tried one of those electrical "bug-zapper" devices that electrocutes the little, flying hypodermic needles with 120 volts of electricity? It is considered high entertainment here in the southeast U.S. Here, anything you can do to eliminate the biting bugs is considered fair play. Oh, and by the way, the bugs are still winning.

Thanks for the info Laura. I'll leave the mossie nets at home and pack the wellies instead!

'Swamp Angles' and 'Fairies' !! A bit like calling an Alsation a German Shepherd! It's an Alsation in my books.

Hopefully they should be gone but I hiked Ben Nevis 2 weeks ago and was almost flown away by the number of Midges we encountered and attacked me. I know hiking through the Highlands in Late Summer and Early Fall it is strongly advised to wear face nets!!!!! Boat Drinks Lord Hedlund

I have found that the very best source of information about troublesome insects and wildlife is the government workers who work at the hiking trails and camps. We call them "park rangers" here in the U.S. I don't know what you call them in Scotland. At any rate, they have to work outdoors every day. They have no incentive to sell you anything. They will give you the straight, honest answer. Just ask them! For example, they can tell you which insect repellant works best at the current time of year, and how to correctly apply it (extremely important). They can tell you which hours of the day and which wind directions have the fewest insects. They'll tell you many other, little things that make a huge difference in your comfort and enjoyment.

OK. The Scottish Midge is a voracious little beastie. Sees every human as a tasty meal.

I'm originally from Scotland but been living in the SW of England for the past 14 years. We get the dreaded Midge too - and Mozzies, not to mention, even worse, Cleggs.

I've found Jungle Formula is really good at keeping the little biters at bay but you do need to spray liberally - and don't forget to spray your head as they sneak into your hair. Even wearing a hat doesn't deter them.

If camping, Citronella candles help to keep them at bay too.

Good luck.

Having never been to Scotland myself, if I ever do go for a visit, I want to see the Scotland depicted in the film Brigadoon. That is, I want to see the sheep grazing on the heather on the hill, with strains of bagpipe music wafting over the loch as I stroll across the meadow with my lassie on my arm. The thought of being attacked by dreaded Highland Midges and mozzies and Cleggs has just destroyed that fantasy. Will someone please send in Gene Kelley in with some industrial strength pesticide to eradicate all the little devils? I won't tell.

You can do that if you spray yourself with Jungle Formula first.

I live in Wiltshire, South West of England and although it is very wet is still mild for the time of year. I noticed yesterday a cloud of midges hovering over my hedge by the front gate. What we need is a few nights of really hard frost to kill off most of the little nasties.

If you do ever come to Scotland and go for a walk in the heather, wear stout boots that come over your ankles. We have one venomous snake here - the Adder and it's not the first time someone has stepped on one and got bitten. Usually their bite is not much worse than being stung by a wasp but some people have put up a bad reaction to them. In some people, particularly youngsters and the elderly, their bite can be fatal.

I have a love of snakes, and keep several as pets (non-venomous) but anytime I've been up in the Highlands, I always wear strong walking boots.

I'm not a big fan of snakes because we've got lots of very big, venomous snakes here in northeast Florida where I live. Such snakes are very bad news indeed. I'll bet the Australian Lords and Ladies share this sentiment, as Australia is said to have the most and worst venemous snakes. However, I like non-biting reptiles. Our family's 6-foot long pet iguana just passed on. It was a great pet! It would scratch at the door like a dog when it wanted in, until it eventually learned to slide open the door itself! It was house-trained and we walked it on the beach with a leash like a dog. Somtimes, when I fell asleep on my reclining chair, it would slide upen the door, come in the house and fall asleep on my belly, facing me! We really miss Iggy.

Here's a link to a photo of the kind of nasty, venemous snakes we have here in Florida: http://www.news4jax.com/news/21162885/detail.html I don't know which is worse, the snakes or the insects!

I did an Internet search of "jungle formula" and learned that the active ingredient in it is DEET. DEET works very well the world over. The problem with DEET is that it is absorbed into the skin and leaves many people with a headachy / hangover feeling the next morning! If you put on a lot of DEET and then pass the whisky bottle around the campfire at night, you'll really wake up feeling terrible the next morning! Just try it and see. Most people over-apply DEET. Some recent studies have indicated that low concentrations (i.e. 17% DEET insect repellants) work just as well as the high concentrations (like the 50% concentration in Jungle Formula) without all the headachy after-effects. I have found that spraying a small quanity of the stuff into my hands and then rubbing it thinly over my body works just as well as an all-over body spray, and I don't get all the ill effects. Another "trick of the trade" when using DEET insect repellants is to re-apply precisely after 8 hours. The stuff abruptly stops working after 8 hours and, if you don't re-apply fast, you'll get eaten up and all your previous efforts will have been in vain. In the really badly infested areas of Florida, USA, we use a second substance called Permethrin on our clothing so we don't have to use DEET anywhere but on our exposed hands and faces. Much better! Do an Internet search of "Permethrin" and you'll see info about it. I Don't know if Permethrin is legal in the UK, but using Permethrin on your clothes and limiting DEET to exposed hand and face areas is much better than using DEET everywhere!

Must be lucky because I've never had any side-effects after using Jungle Formula. Mind you, although I'm Scottish, I can't stand whiskey. Not keen on any other spirits either. Much prefer a cup of coffee. No hangovers with coffee (unless it's in Tia Maria which I've only tasted once years ago). Must admit I'm not too keen on alcohol and only have the occasional glass of wine. I used to be a taxi driver some years ago and when you see some of the drunken idiots and the things they get up to, it kind of puts you off. I think there's nothing worse than seeing a woman lying dead drunk in the gutter.

One for the smokers though. Midges hate cigarette smoke and they hate pipe smoke even more, so if you're ever walking with friends and one is a pipe smoker, make sure you give him plenty of tobacco to puff Word of warning though. Any smokers (and I smoke myself), always take a portable ashtray or a tin with a lid (tobacco tin is good) as it is very easy to start forest fires with discarded butt ends

Another thing the dreaded Midge hates is Lavendar (one for the ladies here). You'll never see Midges near a lavendar bush. I have several in my garden and during the summer the Midge free areas are where the lavendar bushes are.

You can buy lovely Lavendar perfume in Scotland. Granny certainly knew a thing or two

Just had a look at the report about the 7'3" Rattlesnake. Poor snake. Did they really have to kill him? (Her probably because of her size - females are usually bigger than the males)

Most snakes, with the exception of the Mambas which are notoriously territorial prefer to warn people off by, in the case of a Rattlesnake, rattling their tails. I've been up close to a Rattlesnake (it was in a viv though) and their rattles are really loud. Like most snakes, they like a quiet life and prefer to slither off in the opposite direction.

Cobras are the same. They will rear up, show their hoods but as soon as you back away, the hood goes down and they disappear in the opposite direction. Been very close to Cobras too. Magnificent snakes.

Although I wouldn't keep a venomous snake as a pet - for one I'd need a DWA Licence and two, I prefer something I can handle without any fear of being bitten, I would still like to learn to handle them properly. I do know a professional snake handler who did say he would be willing to teach me but I just haven't had time as it would involve travelling quite a distance.

Iguanas make really good pets. My daughter had an Iggy a few years back. He too was house-trained (she still lives in Scotland) and I didn't believe her when she said he used the cat's litter tray - until I saw it for myself. He would come and sit on you too and loved his chin being stroked.

Sadly he died a few years ago We weren't sure how old he was because my daughter's other half got him from a friend of a friend. He was about 5ft long.