Three villages in the Scottish Highlands are to impose a wartime-style “blackout” in an attempt to stop swarms of millipedes from invading residents’ homes.
The inch-long European black millipede – otherwise known as Tachypodoiulus niger – may not look much of a foe but it has caused alarm in the villages of Droman, Balchrick and Blairmore, entering houses through tiny cracks before wriggling into baths, lavatories, beds and kitchens.
The millipedes, which are attracted by light and at their most active from just after sunset to just before dawn, are expected to appear in their thousands this month on the Sandwood Estate in northwest Scotland, home to about 100 residents. They are predicted to continue until at least August.
Although scientists have been unable to explain why they are appearing in such numbers, the invasions started about four years ago and have increased in intensity since. The local council says that it is powerless to help because the millipedes do not bite or sting and do not carry diseases. But the John Muir Trust, the conservation body that owns the estate, is now using the experience of similar problems in Australia to employ a wartime-style blackout to help to repel the invasion.
Bridget Graham, the local postmistress, who has lived on the estate for 37 years, is hoping that the new tactic will help her home to become less of a target. “They are horrible,” she said. “They start in April and last year they were still coming in October. It’s hard to believe how bad it gets unless you are here and see them.
“We have tried insect powders. Others constantly wash down their walls but nothing seems to work. We need help but really we have been told we just have to grin and bear it.”
The area’s calcium-rich soil provides an attractive habitat for the millipedes, which feed on rotting vegetation to help to form their exoskeletons. Millipede experts also believe that a succession of milder, wetter winters and a reduction in farming activity could be contributing factors in allowing more eggs to survive and hatch, increasing the numbers.
Cathel Morrison, the land manager for the John Muir Trust, said: “We have been taking advice from millipede experts about how best to combat the millipedes from swarming into private homes. They have told us that there have been big problems with swarming millipedes in other countries in recent years.”
One village in Germany resorted to building a low curved wall around the houses to keep the millipedes out. This is not feasible in this case because the communities are too spread out and the trust does not advocate the use of pesticides.
Mr Morrison said: “Experience in Australia has found that blacking out homes has helped deter these nocturnal visitors as millipedes are drawn to light at night. We will be advising a wartime blackout for residents of Droman, Balchrick and Blairmore this spring. Simple measures such as switching off outside lights, drawing all the curtains and putting draft excluders on the external doors could make all the difference.”
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