Now that warm weather is here, so are the gnats

AUGUSTA, Ga. – It’s the season for gnats — the bugs that come out as warmer weather arrives.

There’s a “gnat line” that passes through Georgia – keeping the majority of the pests in middle and south Georgia.

The line runs from Columbus through Macon, then right through the middle of Augusta, so we’re going to get some here, so matter what.

In a report from 2019, experts and meteorologists said that cleaner rivers are the reason for an uptick in gnats in recent years.

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Nancy Hinkle, an entomologist at the University of Georgia, said they are bothersome because they gravitate toward parts of the body that produce odors.

“They’ll try to get in your ears. They like the smell of warm wax. They’ll try to get up your nose, they like the mucus coming from your nose. And they’ll to get in your mouth if you open your mouth,” Hinkle said.

If you like to wear perfume or cologne, that’s a nearly sure way to attract them.

Especially notorious in the Southeast are “eye-gnats” – so-called because they are attracted to eyes.

Hinkle said it’s almost impossible to avoid them.

“There is nothing you can do to get away from eye gnats and still live in Georgia,” Hinkle said.

Hinkle added that sprays can help at moments, but are useless. She said one way is having a fan with a steady flow of air. For example, a fan or air conditioning.

Other Georgians use spray.

“Bug spray, spraying it on me and making sure I use Off spray that really helps,” Alina Jackson said.

One Georgian offers a unique tip that she finds helpful for her.

“I have a fan and a spray that comes with it, and so I spray and fan at the same time. So, you know they go away when they see stuff like that,” Haidynn Muff said.

According to an article by Forbes, using vinegar traps is another effective way to kills gnats.

If you would like more way to prevent gnat you can find them here.

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