Why these spring bugs annoy Portlanders most
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Illustration: Maura Losch/Axios
Even in the nature-loving Pacific Northwest, some bugs are public enemy No. 1.
Why it matters: As spring temperatures climb past about 55 degrees, cold-blooded insects emerge from winter hiding spots seemingly all at once, which is why it can suddenly feel like they're everywhere.
- The good news? "Urban pests, for the most part, don't really harm humans," Levi Zahn, an entomologist with Multnomah County Vector Control, told Axios.
Yes, but: They're definitely a nuisance. When we asked Axios Portland readers which springtime pests they hate most last week, a select few villains emerged.
- Out of 94 responses, stink bugs and boxelder bugs (35%), ants (28%) and mosquitoes (17%) were among the most despised.
What you're saying: Perhaps the most horrifying experience came from reader B.G., who preferred to only use their initials: "I woke up one night with a boxelder bug strolling into my nostril, apparently having entered my CPAP machine through an intake, and making its way down the tube."
- For a long time, reader Jeremy Maxwell would stress about the "millions" of boxelder bugs clustering on his home each spring. Then, he said, "I began to respect their tenacity and politeness."
- "They just congregate and hang out in a big throng when the weather gets nice … just like we humans do at Edgefield."
- Dez Crawford said the bugs in Portland don't hold a candle to the flying roaches she grew up with in New Orleans. "I do admit that the ants here are quite annoying."
Even the most reviled bugs play an important role — from pollination to feeding other animals and breaking down organic matter.
- "Their disappearance would trigger a collapse of global agriculture and the animal ecosystems that rely on them for waste decomposition and food," Chad Ruffin, a Seattle-based physician and insect enthusiast, told Axios.
- Despite accounting for 90% of all animal biomass, insect populations have plummeted by 75% in less than three decades.
The bottom line: It's better to live with 'em than without 'em, Nicole Meyer, senior media officer for PETA, told Axios. "Bugs are just trying to make their way in the world like we are, so the least I can do is give them a little grace."