Gnats galore: Insects interrupt Long Islanders’ weekend
News 12 viewers sent in photos of the bugs in Farmingdale, Lynbrook, Levittown and Cedar Beach.
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Swarms of what are known “fungus gnats” have been spotted all over Long Island in recent days.
Arborist Evan Dackow says it’s a result of the “wet environment” we’ve had lately.
“We’ve had a lot of rain, it’s been very wet, so their population is on an uptick,” Dackow says.
News 12 viewers sent in photos of the bugs in Farmingdale, Lynbrook, Levittown and Cedar Beach.
“I see them around the pool, anywhere in the front of the yard when I’m getting the mail, an abundance of them,” says Ray Dean, of Levittown.
Dackow says the gnats don’t bite and live for about a week.
In addition to the gnats, flying ants have made appearances across Long Island, with one resident turning to a leaf blower for help after they interrupted a backyard barbeque.
Dackow says ants develop wings twice a year, in the spring and then in the late summer and early fall. They then start another colony somewhere else.
