What to Know
- While it may be hard to see the skyline amid the Central Park haze, it may be easier to see the latest thing to plague New York: bugs!
- The bugs went viral on social media, with users asking "can anyone explain what is happening in nyc right now with these bugs/gnats?" and "what's next?" when it comes to the peculiar sight.
- However, health officials say there is nothing to fear.
While it may be hard to see the skyline amid the Central Park haze, it may be easier to see the latest thing to plague New York: bugs!
“I wanted to dodge them. One of them flew in my nose and it was not pleasant," Martine Perez, from the Upper East Side, told News 4 New York.
The bugs went viral on social media, with users asking "can anyone explain what is happening in nyc right now with these bugs/gnats?" and "what's next?" when it comes to the peculiar sight.
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However, health officials say there is nothing to fear.
“While this may be annoying these insects do not present a known public health risk. We are looking into these bugs and will share any important health information," a spokeswoman for the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.
Professor David Lohman, an entomologist at the City University of New York, hadn't seen any of the insects himself, but he concluded from photos and videos circulating on social media that they were winged aphids — not gnats, as amateur bugologists assumed.
Aphids are common all over the United States, even in New York City. They are small, pear-shaped insects that come in a variety of colors, from green, red and yellow to black, brown and gray.
While he is not an aphid expert — there are very few — Lohman said the swarms are unusual, given that aphids don't usually come out in New York City until after summer. He theorized that warm winter temps might have contributed by causing the bug's biological clock to go off-kilter.
The bug experts say the swarms shouldn't last much longer, maybe a few days, or even a week.
This swarm of bugs, which has many New Yorkers on edge, comes amid the unhealthiest air of the week across the state brought on by the wildfires in Canada.
The infamous AQI — or Air Quality Index — reached above 150 Friday. If it hits 200 the state activates a text alert system advising people to avoid outdoor activity. Especially those with respiratory or heart issues.
The big question is twofold: just how long will the bad air quality -- and the bugs -- stick around?
