Hugh Martin SINCE THE passage of Hurricane Ivan some Corpo-rate Area residents have been complaining about an upsurge of houseflies in their communities. It was the subject of a news story in The Gleaner a couple of weeks ago in which public health concerns were raised. A check with the Ministry of Health's Public Health Department reveals that they are aware of the situation and are in the process of devising a strategy to deal with it.
The housefly is known to be among the most efficient transmitters of disease germs because of its habit of flying from one object to another in its search for food. There should, therefore, be no delay in the efforts to eliminate it. However, controlling houseflies is not always easy. Attempts to control them with pesticides at source of contamination are always ineffective. The best approach is to determine the breeding ground and attack them at that point.
The authorities have determined that the explosion in the fly population results from a build-up of uncollected garbage and other household waste, as well as the decaying debris left in the wake of the hurricane. Houseflies breed in decaying organic matter. Hurricane Ivan, therefore, provided the ideal conditions for this state of affairs. But, it ought not to have happened. Immediately after the hurricane, I heard a gentleman from one of the agencies responsible for garbage collection boasting that within two weeks all the debris and garbage would be removed from the streets of the Corporate Area. An additional 50 trucks were being brought in, he said, to complement the existing fleet. A talk show host was fulsome in his commendations. Well, it is seven weeks since and everywhere I go I see debris on too many streets. When these are collected and properly disposed of we will begin to see a reduction in the population of these disgusting pests. That is where I believe the Public Health Department should begin.
BUTTERFLIES
There is another insect that has exploded on the scene in recent times also. This one though is a great deal more pleasing to the eyes and is in no way a threat to public health. Flocks of small, bright yellow butterflies, flitting all over the place - in the streets, in gardens, in trees - a flurry of constant motion, a picture of merriment. They have been coming out like this for many years, though their appearance is not an annual affair. I remember several years ago my friend and former Gleaner columnist, C. Roy Reynolds, doing, in his inimitable style, a piece on them. Don't be fooled for a second by the beauty of this creature though. If you observe closely, you'll notice that they show a preference for areas where there are lignum vitae trees and, to a lesser extent, poinciana. Check those trees later on and you'll find them completely denuded of leaves.
What they have been doing is laying their eggs on the undersurfaces. On hatching, the emerging caterpillars feed voraciously on the leaves. In no time, all you can see are bare branches and twigs and shortly afterwards a new set of yellow beauties flitting about searching for a mate and later a lignum vitae tree to start the cycle all over again.
The amazing thing though is that within a short time from now they will all have disappeared and the trees will clothe themselves again with a new growth of leaves. Perhaps some enterprising Ento-mologist could tell us about this butterfly and why the sporadic nature of its appearance. How about it Joe Suah?
LIZARDS
Right after Hurricane Gilbert in 1988, households throughout the country began to experience an invasion of croaking lizards. Their outdoor habitat seemed to have been destroyed and so they sought refuge indoors. Women, for some unknown reason, are particularly afraid of lizards and the 'croakers' are not the most endearing to look at. In fact, some of them seem most daring and, if truth be told, men are afraid of them too.
But, am I wrong to think that since Hurricane Ivan there has been a noticeable reduction in the croaker population? I for one haven't seen any and the women I know don't seem as stressed out as they used to be.
Another thing; lizards are great predators and feed largely on flies, mosquitoes and moths. Is there any connection between their scarcity and the increase in the population of flies and butterflies? It's an ill wind that blows no good.
Hugh Martin is a communication specialist and farm broadcaster. Email: humar@cwjamaica.com
