Once a year, every year, for almost exactly 30 days, Boquete’s dreaded “fly season” arrives. Yeah, like any place in the world we always have a few flies, but when fly season arrives it’s like Moses called down another plague! Suddenly flies are obnoxiously everywhere. If you leave a plate of food on the counter it’s almost like 50 flies descend to pick it up and carry it off. And it’s not just us, or because we have animals, or grow coffee. [These flies are the common house flies, not the tiny coffee flies which are another story.] Everyone is inundated simultaneously.
Then, almost exactly a month later, the flies are gone.
But during fly season it is a constant battle. We drag out the fly swatters we haven’t needed for a year. We string up fly paper until the house looks like an Iowa farm house. One of our most effective fly-killers is our Dalmatian, Spot. A fly gets near Spot and lightening-fast she grabs it and swallows it. That technique doesn’t work for us however.
The one product I’ve found that really does work are these fly traps. I know, it is the ugliest picture you’ve ever seen, but these things work. We hang one up on either side of the house and fill it half way with water. For about three days nothing happens . . . and then, the flies start entering the trap. And in a month the trap looks like this, filled with dead flies while their compatriots happily enter the trap . . . and are doomed. That big band of black? Dead flies.
There really is a lesson here folks for anyone tempted to get involved with hard drugs. When they talk about being “trapped” by drugs, this is exactly what they are talking about.
The traps are good for a month and ONLY a month. The directions tell you to dispose of the trap after a month and you had better follow the directions because after a month it is the most horrible, rotting smell you can imagine. But in Boquete a month is all we need. It’s nice to find a product that works as promised!
Super Sunsets!
Now that I’ve grossed you out with that totally disgusting dead fly picture, I’ll share with you some sunset pictures. The past few days the wind has been blowing from the North and we haven’t had our usual evening rains, so we’ve enjoyed some beautiful sunsets. This is what I see when I’m sitting on the back porch in my hot tub sipping wine and watching the sun set. Ah, retirement in Panama!
4 responses so far ↓
Bonnie Williams // July 16, 2009 at 8:11 am
Richard,
Where does one get those fly traps? I haven’t seen them.
Bonnie
Bonnie, We bring them back when we go to the States. I haven’t seen them in Panama. They are a seasonal item at Home Depot. Ah, Home Depot . . .the things you miss!
Shirley // July 16, 2009 at 1:11 pm
I use those same traps here in Alaska. They do get the flies, but if I cook meat with the door open some still come in. I hang the traps in trees so they are out of sight and I don’t have to smell that awful odor. I also use a little meat, with a little water, so it doesn’t dry out. What ever draws those flies into the house will also draw them into the trap. Here in AK I take the traps down at the end of the season, empty them into the burn barrel, while the fire is going, and reuse the traps the next year. Probably no burn barrels in Boquette, in CR we had the only one around.
Dinah // July 16, 2009 at 6:03 pm
Did you have this problem in VE…we never had problems with flies other than an occasional one or two on a daily basis. I never heard of a fly season in Panama…maybe it is like the micro-climates and just a problem in certain areas
Steve // July 18, 2009 at 8:57 pm
Try hanging plastic bags (like zip lock bags, or something similar) filled simply with pure water, wherever you don’t want flies to bother you. This works for my grandfather – he hangs them from the cover of his porch and wah-lah – flies don’t come there – and there are always flies in the area where he lives.