The "Love Bug"
Oddly enough, these creatures which afflicted me are called "love bugs"... fitting name I must admit. Thanks to 
anchasta for finding the info. It explains a lot, such as why they were attracted to my car. Seems the swarms can get so bad that they can mess up cars by clogging radiator cooling fins, making the engine overheat... as well as other problems. Here's a pic.
http://cricket.biol.sc.edu/love2.jpg
I must admit with the name, and some of the pics I've been looking at they seem rather harmless, but picture them in the hundreds all stuck together and getting into everything.
"despite the rumors, they are not a product of research gone wild, but have migrated into our state from tropical America some 50 years ago. These little pests are actually flies and were reported in Louisiana in the 1920's. By the 1940's love bugs had invaded Pensacola, and by 1975 love bugs had spread all over Florida, Georgia and South Carolina."
Does the Love Bug have natural enemies? (Phil Koehler, Ph.D., Staff Endowed Professor, Urban Entomology, Department of Entomology, University of Florida)...
"Yeah, as a matter of fact, one important natural enemy is a car. I always like to tell people the best way to kill Love Bugs is with a car."
Does the Bug cause any economic harm? (Koehler)
"Actually there's quite an industry of washing cars that would disappear if we didn't have Love Bugs. So its very important for a lot of people to earn their livings washing cars for the tourists as they go through the state."
To a question about the density of Love Bug swarms (Koehler)...
"How do you tell a happy motorcyclist? With the Love Bugs in his teeth."
And of course, observations about their flight (Koehler)...
"They'd be a very good advertisement for United Airlines: Fly United."
"Adult love bugs are harmless and do not sting or bite. They feed on nectar and pollen of various flowers, especially goldenrod, (Solidgo spp.), sweet clover (Melilotus spp.) and Brazilian pepper (Schinus terebinthifolius)."
"The love bug is a nuisance but not yet an environmental pest. However, its population has increased, and its range has spread in such proportions that some form of ecological imbalance may be expected (Peckham 1977). Love bugs spatter and stick to trucks and automobiles during daylight hours, often clog the cooling fins of the radiator, and may cause automobiles that travel at high speeds for extended time to overheat. Windshields that are covered with these insects obscure the driver's vision, and a cars finish may be damaged if the bugs are not cleaned off in a reasonable time (Kuitert and Short 1993).
At the present time, the chemical control of this species is impractical and environmentally unsound. The larval and adult stages of this species have many enemies, including birds, earwigs, centipedes, and two species of beetles (Kuitert and Short 1993).
The ecological factors that are responsible for the population explosion of this species in north central Florida are not known (Hetrick 1970). Love bugs occur in great numbers along the highways because the photochemical reaction of automobile exhaust fumes and UV radiation attract and hold them over the highway (Callahan and Denmark 1973)."
-How to deal with them-
"Love bugs are attracted to heat and exhaust fumes (gas and diesel fumes exposed to sunlight) at temperatures above 83 degrees F (usually between 10:00 a.m. and 4 p.m.). Hot engines and the vibrations of vehicles apparently contribute to the attraction of love bugs to highways.
Two flights occur each year - the spring flight occurs in late April and May and the second flight occurs in August and September. Active flights of love bugs will last for 4-5 weeks. Mating takes place almost immediately after emergence of the females. Adult females live only 2-3 days and feed on nectar.
Females may lay as many as 350 eggs on decaying plant material. Larvae feed on the decaying plant material and live on the soil surface just beneath organic materials. Larval love bugs can be found in pastures under cow manure. These larva can be considered somewhat beneficial because they are decomposers. Adults are another story. Their splat on windshields is one of the things the tourist bureaus don't talk about.
There isn't any practical way to control love bugs with insecticides in large open areas. However, smaller areas around a home could be sprayed with a registered knock-down insecticide. Love bug numbers have been reduced in recent years by predators such as birds and armadillos, and invertebrate organisms such as earwigs, beetle larvae and centipedes. There are a number of fungi which also can reduce larval populations. I don't know of any introductions of new parasites or predators.
There are several options available to reduce the problems facing motorists. By traveling at night, motorists can avoid the bugs - love bugs do not actively begin flight until mid morning temperatures rise to around 80 degrees F. and when bright sunlight is present. So one way to avoid them is to complete long distance or country driving before this time of day.
Special accessories can help reduce the impact of these bugs on your car: screens can be placed in front of the radiator to block incoming larvae. Deflector shields placed at the front of the hood helps reduce the number of love bugs impacting on the windshield and upper front finish. If traveling long distances during love bug seasons, a jug of water and a window squeegee in the trunk may be a good idea. Slowing down will also reduce the chances of splattering bugs on your car.
Splattered bugs should be washed off the car as soon as possible. Love bugs are more easily removed and the chance of damaging the finish on the car is reduced if the car has been waxed recently. When the love bug remains are left on the car for several days, the finish can be permanently damaged. Pre-soaking the bug splats for several minutes with water aids in their removal. When love bugs are numerous, some motorists spread a light film of baby oil over the front of the hood, above the windshield and on the grill and bumper. This practice will help make removal a simpler task.
anchasta for finding the info. It explains a lot, such as why they were attracted to my car. Seems the swarms can get so bad that they can mess up cars by clogging radiator cooling fins, making the engine overheat... as well as other problems. Here's a pic.
http://cricket.biol.sc.edu/love2.jpg
I must admit with the name, and some of the pics I've been looking at they seem rather harmless, but picture them in the hundreds all stuck together and getting into everything.
"despite the rumors, they are not a product of research gone wild, but have migrated into our state from tropical America some 50 years ago. These little pests are actually flies and were reported in Louisiana in the 1920's. By the 1940's love bugs had invaded Pensacola, and by 1975 love bugs had spread all over Florida, Georgia and South Carolina."
Does the Love Bug have natural enemies? (Phil Koehler, Ph.D., Staff Endowed Professor, Urban Entomology, Department of Entomology, University of Florida)...
"Yeah, as a matter of fact, one important natural enemy is a car. I always like to tell people the best way to kill Love Bugs is with a car."
Does the Bug cause any economic harm? (Koehler)
"Actually there's quite an industry of washing cars that would disappear if we didn't have Love Bugs. So its very important for a lot of people to earn their livings washing cars for the tourists as they go through the state."
To a question about the density of Love Bug swarms (Koehler)...
"How do you tell a happy motorcyclist? With the Love Bugs in his teeth."
And of course, observations about their flight (Koehler)...
"They'd be a very good advertisement for United Airlines: Fly United."
"Adult love bugs are harmless and do not sting or bite. They feed on nectar and pollen of various flowers, especially goldenrod, (Solidgo spp.), sweet clover (Melilotus spp.) and Brazilian pepper (Schinus terebinthifolius)."
"The love bug is a nuisance but not yet an environmental pest. However, its population has increased, and its range has spread in such proportions that some form of ecological imbalance may be expected (Peckham 1977). Love bugs spatter and stick to trucks and automobiles during daylight hours, often clog the cooling fins of the radiator, and may cause automobiles that travel at high speeds for extended time to overheat. Windshields that are covered with these insects obscure the driver's vision, and a cars finish may be damaged if the bugs are not cleaned off in a reasonable time (Kuitert and Short 1993).
At the present time, the chemical control of this species is impractical and environmentally unsound. The larval and adult stages of this species have many enemies, including birds, earwigs, centipedes, and two species of beetles (Kuitert and Short 1993).
The ecological factors that are responsible for the population explosion of this species in north central Florida are not known (Hetrick 1970). Love bugs occur in great numbers along the highways because the photochemical reaction of automobile exhaust fumes and UV radiation attract and hold them over the highway (Callahan and Denmark 1973)."
-How to deal with them-
"Love bugs are attracted to heat and exhaust fumes (gas and diesel fumes exposed to sunlight) at temperatures above 83 degrees F (usually between 10:00 a.m. and 4 p.m.). Hot engines and the vibrations of vehicles apparently contribute to the attraction of love bugs to highways.
Two flights occur each year - the spring flight occurs in late April and May and the second flight occurs in August and September. Active flights of love bugs will last for 4-5 weeks. Mating takes place almost immediately after emergence of the females. Adult females live only 2-3 days and feed on nectar.
Females may lay as many as 350 eggs on decaying plant material. Larvae feed on the decaying plant material and live on the soil surface just beneath organic materials. Larval love bugs can be found in pastures under cow manure. These larva can be considered somewhat beneficial because they are decomposers. Adults are another story. Their splat on windshields is one of the things the tourist bureaus don't talk about.
There isn't any practical way to control love bugs with insecticides in large open areas. However, smaller areas around a home could be sprayed with a registered knock-down insecticide. Love bug numbers have been reduced in recent years by predators such as birds and armadillos, and invertebrate organisms such as earwigs, beetle larvae and centipedes. There are a number of fungi which also can reduce larval populations. I don't know of any introductions of new parasites or predators.
There are several options available to reduce the problems facing motorists. By traveling at night, motorists can avoid the bugs - love bugs do not actively begin flight until mid morning temperatures rise to around 80 degrees F. and when bright sunlight is present. So one way to avoid them is to complete long distance or country driving before this time of day.
Special accessories can help reduce the impact of these bugs on your car: screens can be placed in front of the radiator to block incoming larvae. Deflector shields placed at the front of the hood helps reduce the number of love bugs impacting on the windshield and upper front finish. If traveling long distances during love bug seasons, a jug of water and a window squeegee in the trunk may be a good idea. Slowing down will also reduce the chances of splattering bugs on your car.
Splattered bugs should be washed off the car as soon as possible. Love bugs are more easily removed and the chance of damaging the finish on the car is reduced if the car has been waxed recently. When the love bug remains are left on the car for several days, the finish can be permanently damaged. Pre-soaking the bug splats for several minutes with water aids in their removal. When love bugs are numerous, some motorists spread a light film of baby oil over the front of the hood, above the windshield and on the grill and bumper. This practice will help make removal a simpler task.