Ontario’s blackfly population is expected to be bigger this summer and will likely make a nuisance of itself longer, U of G emeritus professor Peter Kevan said in a CBC Kitchener story. Based in the School of Environmental Sciences, Kevan is an insect expert.
Cold weather in the spring delayed blackfly mating, but once it warmed up – and with plenty of flowing water everywhere – a population boom resulted. That population is expected to be active well into August, Kevan told CBC KW.
The insect is food for a number of species, but female flies deliver a nasty bite to humans and other mammals. The bites can leave a mark, but blackflies don’t carry diseases, Kevan said.
Kevan’s area of research focuses on pollination and bees. He has co-authored several peer-reviewed papers with Brazilian colleagues and continues to be part of international and national funded research projects.
In 2012, a new bee species discovered in the Brazilian state of Bahia was named after him and called the Chilicola kevani.