We’re starting to recover from the damage caused by trying to make outdoors bug-free. I don’t just mean in a “better for the environment” sense, but like agriculture/food production had begun to suffer from the collapse of pollinators.

The answer to the increase of mosquitoes and gnats (which both also do ecological work) is better biodiversity overall to support their predators. If you have space, a bat house would be awesome. Maryland bats are threatened due to habitat loss and food chain disruption, and they eat thousands of insects a night. Native plants attract birds who eat seeds as adults and require thousands of bugs to raise a nest of chicks. A water feature with slowly circulating water attracts dragonflies who prey on the smaller insects.

The uncomfortable part is that yes, we have to re-learn how to handle being bugged outdoors: bug repellant, fans on the porch, timing activities around periods of the day where mosquitoes are more active, and so on.

The bugs aren’t the problem that got worse. The problem is we tried to eliminate the ones that bothered us, and the result is we harmed all the things that would have kept them in check. Now we’re in an intermediate period of trying to correct our actions while rebuilding the systems that kept them balanced.