What to do if you have a midge bite.

What about if you've been bitten by Midges?

Many people just come out in red dots when bitten by midgies, a bit itchy, but on with the Itch Ease a couple of times and all is fine. Some people really get lumps, but if you have a few bites and only one or two are really bad, the bites may not be midge bites, they could be from some other insect - like a cleg (horse-fly). Horse flies seem to have a soft touch so you don't notice them on you, unlike midges which nip. The bites might not come out for a day or so, and then leave swellings that last for days or weeks, sometimes with a hole in the middle. You can get a bad reaction and people think clegs are "dirty". The bites can be bad enough to visit a doctor, and even end up in hospital for a few unlucky people. It's rare for midge bites to affect like this, but more common for cleg bites, or it could be a tick. So don't always blame the humble midgie who's just trying to feed her weans!

For more information on the Scottish midge check out Scottish Natural Heritage: Biting midges in Scotland.

Next time, use a repellent ...

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main page about midges
when do you get midges
where do you get midges
what can you do about midges