Hi, Gary.

If the black flies were pretty small, like house flies, they may have
been stable flies (Stomoxys irritans), which seem to be ubiquitous
wherever there are large mammals. Check that species out on the web.
Most deer flies out here are yellow or brown, as you say. Only the
huge horse flies are black. Or if they were tiny, they could have
been true black flies (Simuliidae), which live around streams and
don't seem to be as common here as in the East and farther north. All
of them seem to relish human blood, and we really should know what is
eating us!

Dennis


On Jul 28, 2009, at 12:00 PM, tweeters-
request at mailman2.u.washington.edu wrote:

> Message: 9
> Date: Tue, 28 Jul 2009 11:54:25 -0700 (PDT)
> From: Gary Bletsch <garybletsch at yahoo.com>
> Subject: [Tweeters] Chelan Cty Ptarmigan
> To: tweeters tweeters <tweeters at u.washington.edu>
> Message-ID: <703753.94061.qm at web51306.mail.re2.yahoo.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
>
> Dear Tweeters,
>
> Insects that a back-east hiker would call "black flies" were a big
> problem the whole day, except for the last few hundred yards, at
> which point horseflies took over. Howard tells me that the black
> ones are called deerflies out here; deerflies back east were always
> yellow, so I was calling them blackflies, and several other
> epithets. Whatever you call them, it's wise to take along some
> insect repellent, protective clothing, and a few cuss words, if you
> take this long hike.
>
> Yours truly,
>
> Gary Bletsch Near Lyman, Washington (Skagit County), USA
> garybletsch at yahoo.com

-----
Dennis Paulson
1724 NE 98 St.
Seattle, WA 98115
206-528-1382
dennispaulson at comcast.net



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