BRAD HORN/Nevada AppealJeff Knight, entomologist/insect survey and identification for the State of Nevada, displays dead bugs he collected in Dayton and Mound House on Thursday before taking them to his office in Reno to identify the species.
The black flying seed bugs that have infested Carson City are not new to the area but have surged in population this year, experts say.
"They're not at all related to the fire thing," said Jeff Knight, state entomologist with the Nevada Department of Agriculture. Speaking Thursday while checking bugs out in Dayton, Knight said they pose no danger to people.
"They're only plant feeders, so they don't bite people," said Knight, adding that he didn't think gardens were at risk either.
"They don't bite people or anything like that," said Ed Foster, the state agriculture department's plant industry regional manager.
But, he said, they caught many people's attention in a big way: "Yesterday was crazy" with calls from various individuals, he said.
JoAnne Skelly, Carson City-based extension educator with University of Nevada Cooperative Extension, said particular areas seem to be affected.
"Where we're seeing them is where there is a sagebrush interface," she said. "This is the first year I have had calls like this on these kinds of bugs. For some reason the population is unusually high."
Knight said reports to him indicate the same bugs were in the region last year, but in fewer numbers.
"The increase in the population was likely due to a combination of weather conditions and possibly a lack of natural predators and parasites," Knight said.
The bugs are from the genus Neacoryphus, with the species known as Lateralis, according to bugguide.net. Though they may leave folks unbitten, they still can interfere with the normal course of some events.
The Shell station at 1462 S. Carson St. closed its deli just inside the door on the Curry Street side, apparently to avoid any possible health hazard.
The station was still pumping gas and selling packaged food or drink items, but a clerk pointed out that bugs were on the floor near the deli just inside the door.
The bugs have been spotted in Carson City and Dayton, and the ag department noted the bugs' presence in Fernley, Silver Springs, Stagecoach, Gardnerville and south Reno.
For example, Skelly said, some places on the west side of the capital city, such as the area around the Western Nevada College campus, have seen impact. The bugs there are as much as one-half inch long, she said.
Knight said amber and yellow ultraviolet lights will reduce attraction for the bugs if whiter lights in buildings can be replaced. And he suggested in a release that vacuuming up the bugs will help the problem if they get into buildings.
Debugging the region may take care of itself eventually. Knight predicted they could be gone by early next week.