Residents of Jacumba, a high desert community on the eastern side of San Diego County. turned to UC Cooperative Extension advisor Jim Bethke to figure out why they were being pestered by a high number of eye gnats.
In a San Diego Union Tribune article, residents reported that they couldn't enjoy outdoor activities during warm months because of the gnats, which are naturally attracted to human and animal eyes to get protein for egg production. The Jacumba Elementary School set up fans so children could eat lunch outside without bugs flying in their faces.
Bethke's research confirmed many residents' suspicions -- the gnats are coming from an organic spinach and lettuce farm on the edge of town, according to the article.
Bethke declined to tell reporter Ann Krueger how many gnats he found in traps on the farm because the information was "too inflammatory."
“The number of flies produced per acre in the farm is exceptionally high,” Bethke was quoted.
Bethke said his research was cut short when grant funding became unavailable, but initial results show that the farm is indeed the main cause of the community gnat problem. He will present his results to Jacumba residents at a meeting tonight, the article said.
Bethke told the reporter he will recommend that a row of trees be placed between the farm and the town to cut down on the number of gnats flying into the community. The organic farm cannot use chemical pesticides, but Bethke said his colleagues at UC Riverside have developed an organic pesticide that they will test at the farm.
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