I'll die with a blackfly picking my bones....

[Rare Feathers Farm]

ACCKKK! I'd try Muscovies....they work wonders. They have really depleted the mosquito population around our house....but I'm not sure about blackflies....we have ticks really bad this year--I've already pulled four off my dog in the last WEEK and one off of one of the cats!

 

[lightbread48]

im not too sure what black flies are? i dont think we have them here. . . but ill tell you how we got rid of the mosquitoes and maybe it will help your fly situation. We have just bought 2 acres right beside a swampy area and the mosquitoes were TERRIBLE!!! i couldnt go there without getting at least 15 bites in within 30 seconds of getting out of the car. Then the man that owns the wet land burned it off and we burned our soon to be yard. the mosquito population went from 10 billion bugs a square cm to about 1 bug a square foot. i also dont know where those flies live and breed or your yard conditions or how far your nearest woods are but maybe this will help.

 

[Nugget]

Blackflies are small... about 3mm long. They're horrid things and go for your face. They often land on your neck and climb into your hair top bite behind your ears. In most areas they're a spring nuisance but here where I am we've got them all summer. They breed in fast moving streams and rivers where the larvae hold onto rocks in the current, and they travel very far to feed.

So muscovies eat tiny biting insects... I'll have to keep that in mind then.

 

[Rare Feathers Farm]

They do...mine eat mosquitos like crazy, including the nasty larvae in the pond...and they do a good job. I'm not sure about the blackflies because we don't have those here...but it may be worth a try. You might also try putting up a Martin House (if you've got them here!) They will eat thousands of bugs!!!

 

[SueNH]

I thought the blackfly was the NH state bird!

If they get me in a soft spot I'll get a welt the size of a tennis ball. I've had my eyes swollen shut and my neck look like I swallow golf balls. Feel something on your face, touch it and have your fingers coated in blood, your own. Sometimes you can't help inhaling or swallowing them they are so thick in the air.

I have 8 muscovies. They aren't making a dent.

I did have a small flock of regular ducks make a dent in the mosquito population last year though. All they did all day long was work the swales and swamp nearby.

After the winter we had I almost welcome the blackflies.
Almost.

 

[redoak]

Our blackfly season goes from start of May until 1st week of July. Then the heat kinda burns them off and you can go outside again.

 

[BowChickaBowMow]

No advice for ya, but I do feel sorry for you! My kids come back from my parents w/ their skin all chewed up all around their scalp... all summer long. I've bought them the bug nets that slip over a hat, but the little ones get annoyed wearing those. My mom swears by Avon's "Skin So Soft"... she says it really keeps the bites down to a minimum. (so then put it on the kids!)

I hope they're not getting yoru chicks. Have you ruffled through their feathers to check their skin? Hopefully the feathers are thick enough to keep them off. if not, I'd definitley put some netting over their living space. Ugh! I hate blackflies! I cant' ever feel when they bite me, I only know because of the blood dripping.

Good luck!

 

[warren]

I have heard that biting insects do not like the smell of some of the b-vitamins.
We get these vitamins in a preparation in the UK called 'Marmite'. It is a brown yeast extract and some people (including my husband) love it. I put it in the gravy as I could not eat it otherwise. Diluted in this way it actually tastes quite good.
It might be worth a try. I can't say if it works or not as we do not get many biting insects here, but it makes the gravy nicer.

 

[LynneP]

Black flies that bad can bleed down a chicken- they can even make cattle and horses anaemic and dehydrate them to the point of death.

If you have a shady place to which your chickens can retreat, and if it is dry, consider investing in some no-pest strips (pyrethins) made by Black Flag or Vapona. They're widely used in Canada and are safe in coops too. In conjunction with DE, Stall Dri or Stable Boy to control ammonia they are excellent for discouraging all kinds of flies. Be extra careful about your water supply at this time too, your birds my be stressed and dehydrating from bites. These flies carry many kinds of infections too.

 

[d.k]

* Well, my first thought was not terribly practical!! It was to string up a perimeter of bug zappers like christmas lights all around the yard!!! But, most biting bugs DO NOT like B-6 one bit. I'd take a low dose after lunch and maybe even make a solution of ground tabs and spray the yard!! OH!! and try some tiki torches around the patio. They can be had pretty cheap some places.