THE VILLAGE IDIOT: In a bad mood

By John Hopkins

We generally live in a world of trade offs in this part of the country. The price we pay for beautiful summer weather is the aggravation of a wide assortment of pesky bugs. On the other hand, while we deal with the cold, ice and snow of winter, traditionally we have the advantage of an absence of insects.

This delicate balance is one of the most maddening, but also strangely beautiful aspects of nature. It is the great give-and-take, ying-and-yang, or ebb and flow of the natural world. When this balance is upset, however, it can lead to all sorts of problems, and this summer we may come face to face with the downside of this imbalance.

It has been, I think we can agree, a relatively mild winter. While we have had some cold days, we have also had periods of unusually mild weather. And I certainly feel that we have not had the days of sustained cold that really make you appreciate a summer’s day sitting on the deck.

I have also seen evidence of this in the natural world. The Canada Geese, for example, will usually stick around here for a while as autumn rolls along. But even they reach the point where enough is enough and they bail out and fly off to (presumably) warmer climes. Not so this year, however. Through January and into February there were days when I would see a flock of them poking around our shoreline, looking for a bite to eat or a quiet place to nap.

To add to this, joy of joys, I have also found one or two mosquitoes floating around the house in the warmer stretches of the winter. When we have insects bugging us in the winter it is a violation of our agreement with the earth, and it is not fair to us.

I’m afraid I don’t know who to complain to about this, but then again, I doubt I would get a very sympathetic hearing based upon the treatment my species has inflicted upon the planet. However, I can pretty much assure you that the mosquito I squashed one February morning was none too pleased with the imbalance in the trade off as well.

I also understand that a mild winter can also cause bears to come out of hibernation early. I have not seen evidence of that yet, and I certainly hope I don’t.

These examples of the Canada Geese, insects and bears have impacts that are very soundly grounded in science. But to really appreciate the gravity of the problem, I think we need to study the psychological aspects as well. I cannot help with the science, but I think I can provide some insight into the psychology. 

Take the insects, for example. According to livescience.com, because the winter temperatures haven’t been consistently cold enough to kill off many insects, we will have to deal with even more of the pesky things this summer. Think about it, you may not like shivering through -30 degree temperatures on a dark January day, but the payoff is sitting on your dock six months later without buzzing filling your ears and welts developing on any exposed flesh.

However, let’s go beyond the science. Have you ever tried to get a table at your favourite restaurant only to find that it’s overbooked? Or have you stood in line for over an hour waiting for that ice cream cone? How about ordering take-out only to find it won’t be delivered in over an hour because of a high volume of orders? Did it make you mad? Now pretend you’re a mosquito, one of an overpopulation of mosquitoes that are trying to dine out on the same number of humans that were around last summer. Think you’ll be in a good mood? I don’t. So, we won’t simply be dealing with hungry mosquitoes this summer. We’ll be dealing with hungry mosquitoes that can’t get a table. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.

The same website also points out that a mild winter can lead to conflicts with the bear population as well, but I don’t need a scientist to tell me that. I know what sort of mood I’m in after I’ve had a rough night’s sleep, so I can just imagine the foul temper of a black bear that was repeatedly woken up during the winter because his den was getting uncomfortably warm. My watchword to hikers – stay away from any bears, but especially those that haven’t had their third cup of coffee.

As for the geese, the website geesepeace.com explains that Canada Geese will hang around an area as long as there is open water, and the water along our stretch of the river has remained pretty much open all winter. This is not always the case. Usually we have been able to count on a stretch of four or five days of sustained cold that freezes up the water, making it unappealing to the geese, so they head south. No need to this winter.

I don’t know about any scientific ramifications of the geese not migrating, but I do know of people that are very disagreeable if they do not get at least a week of winter vacation in Florida. Great. 

So enjoy your summer everyone. All you have to worry about are insects that have to wait for their food order, grumpy bears that didn’t sleep well, and Canada Geese that are miffed they didn’t get their vacation down south. That’s the ebb and flow of the natural world for you. We always pay for it in the end – or wherever that mosquito lands.