Deer Fly Traps

We have been plagued by deer flies over the last few weeks, especially where the wood piles are - they will dive bomb your head and, given the chance, bite huge chunks out of you. Luckily the internet had a solution (what can't you find on the web?) - deer fly traps made out of blue buckets and sticky goo. You have to move around, so the buckets can go on a tractor, on a stick, or on your head... We caught about 80 in half an hour.

May be useful for anyone else having problems....

If you get the the feed store pick up a cattle ear tag. Put er' on the top of your hat. Flys leave you alone.

Very nice. Trolling for deer flies... Next time I go down to the swamp I'll try to have a set up for the jeep.

I love the beer dixie cup on the baseball hat. My kind of fashion statement for going to town.

I'm gonna try this. They bother me a lot when I'm mowing.
If I'm walking about and can back up to a window, they seem to get more interested in the window than me - that's another solution.
Happy burning.

Thanks for passing along that idea, Alex - those things are like the plague over here. I've already got the pot and the paint, and will track down the sticky stuff on Monday. My wife laughed when I told her I was going to try wearing that on my head. Well, to get rid of those things I would even try wearing a Yankee hat (just kidding - that ain't happening :lol: )

I think I'll try one on the groan. She's forever bringing her deer flies to me. I was looking for some tanglefoot today but none of the stores in town carry it. They do have ready built traps with sticky stuff on them I could easily adapt.

This seems to be a good year for deer fly's, lots more compared to last year. This company offers great environmentally responsible products that work (its there slogan, but the products really do work great, its all I use for my lawn care!) They seem to have a good solution for deer fly's too: http://www.gardensalive.com/product.asp?pn=1165

My local Ace had Tanglefoot - Lowe's did not. I'm still catching them, but their numbers are definitely down. Also just being able to sit in the garden, albeit while waving a blue bucket around, is fantastic.

I've been tempted to put double sided sticky tape on my truck's rear view mirrors to catch them - they attack the mirrors coming in or going out the driveway into my lot.

ditto, maybe the mirrors look like deer heads?

They are awful up here too, cant even walk the dog in the morning without getting attacked, very frustrating. gonna have to try that bucket trick

edit, wonder how wierd my neighbors will think I am if I tape a bunch of these traps to the cab of my truck. they already think I am loony for the the 6 cords of wood stacked on my quarter acre lot.

I hate those rat bastards but not enough to wear a blue cup on my head.

I hate them enough to ensure that my neighbors belief that I'm crazy is sound

I'll wear a blue cup on my head. I'll wear an athletic protective cup on my head if I can kill some of those &^%$ flies.

I hate them. I don't want to repel them. I want the satisfaction of killing them, and I don't say that about much.

I find they leave me alone when I'm running power equipment.

Can't say as though I would walk around with a Dixie cup covered in bugs on my head . . . guess I'll stick to the wait and swat method.

Incidentally what is the difference between horse flies and deer flies . . . I think most folks around here seem to use both terms interchangeably for those pests.

Same family (of which there are 3000plus members), horse flies are bigger

Interesting, that isn't a regional quirk for them...same thing happens down here. Act's like a deterrent for a few seconds when you get out of the truck so you can dash away from the swarm...if you're quick enough and have somewhere to hide.

I think it's instinct to go for the ears - easy nibbling or access to a blood vein ?
They just bite rather than try to inject a numbing agent like a mosquito, so they gotta be quick.


Terms for horsefly / deer fly get swapped here a lot too.

Pretty sure yellow flies are deer flies and green flies are horse flies.


My sister is allergic to "horseflies" that get ya at the beach. Will blow up like a balloon.

Great Post

Those deer flies are bad in the UP this year too. I can see a blue bucket going on the roof of my fourwheeler soon! And Yes I would wear a blue cup on my head but I will try the patches first.

Billy

Do a google search theirs a company that sells deer fly traps made to stick on the back of your hat, they are white with sticky stuff on them.. seen a pic of a guy in Georgia with one on that looked like it had a 100 on it and he said hed only been outside for 20 minutes....had it saved on my computer but it was knocked out by lightning last Wed., picked up a new computer but havent transfered any of my files over to it yet... I think they were like 2-3 bucks for 5 of them but wont swear to it.

LMAO. That's hilarious that is. And I can relate. I've experienced the infuriating curse of a hungry swarm (herd?) of deer flies. I actually tryed smearing myself with mud to thwart them while tree-planting in northern Ontrio. No, didn't work a bit.

Made one up today, here is what I got after about 3 trips up and down the lane. 25-30 deerflies
and one horsefly.

FWIW-

Biting Fly Traps that work - $125 (Nokesville)