Australian Fly bites
 

We just got back from 16 days in Australia and New Zealand. The trip was awesome; however, I was eaten alive in Melbourne I guess by the Australian fly. I noticed about 15 bites on my midsection our first evening there. We did see a lot of flies all over everyone while we were waiting for the Tram Car Restaurant, but I never felt anything. I put cortizone cream on them and took some Benedryl and thought that would be the end of it. The next day I did feel one bite me! We were on a tour to the Penguin Parade (which was great by the way) and I was covered with several shirts, jeans, etc. because it was cold. One bit me right through my blue jeans. That evening when we got back I found about 20 more bites. I looked like I had leprocy or something. I started wearing bug repellent after that and after about a week they started drying up. Then when we were almost home, I noticed that I started breaking out with hives. I have never done that before, and I had not come into contact with anything new at that point, so I am wondering if I am having a delayed reaction to the bites. I don't know what to think. I'm not itching much at all, but I still have small bumps all over my arms, hands and legs. Has anyone else had any similar experience? I just want to know that this is normal. Any advice would be appreciated.

Putting Cortizone cream on those bites would have been the worst thing to do. But for the life of me I cannot think what could have bitten you unless it was a sand fly ( midge). Whatever it was you surely are allergic to its bite and that is probably what you are going through right now. The best thing for any bite is a product called antitch or something like that. Also things like Calamine lotion or TeaTree oil would have been better - you could now have a topical reaction to the cortizone.

I guess I didn't say that right. I used hydrocortizone, which is an anti-itch cream. Part of the time when they looked infected I used Neosporin antibiotic cream. All of the bites look pretty good now, but I just can't figure out why I have hives.

Hydrocortizone just means that its soluble in water - sometimes you can get a reaction between cortizone cream and an antibiotic cream which 'could' produce a skin reaction.

The only real biting fly in Australia is the March fly and you know pretty darn quick when one of those heavy weights bite you. Although you saw lots of small bush flies I would suggest that these were most likely not the culprits. I would think that you probably fell prey to mosquitos or sand flies. If the bites were numerous and intensely itchy then it will have been sand flies and some people do have bad reactions to their bites including having them re-occur a few weeks later especially when the skin temperature has been raised by wearing warm clothing.

Cheers

Paul_S

Maybe that is what got me. Can they bite through clothing?

Sand flies are very small creatures, and if you are wearing loose clothing then they will find your skin, for that juicy bite, and unfortunately, the itchiness that comes later. Its best to scratch the bite area, if at all possible.
I remember being on Tangalooma Resort just off Brisbane, and because of my short haircut, they had bitten my scalp, which was terribly itchy.
Some of my mates reckon that you need to drink plenty of XXXX beer, which can stave off the most nasty of all sand flies.

Dr. Liz: Hydrocortisone is a different, albeit related, chemical compound to cortisol. Both, as corticosteroids, are powerful antiinflammatory and anti-itch agents and are widely prescribed topically to treat allegic skin diseases such as eczema and psoriasis, as well as insect bites. Hardly "the worst thing you could do" in this case.

A few years ago I went from Cairns (where we know all about sandfly and mozzie bites) to my old home in Sydney's northern beaches. In a few days was covered in about 80 of the most itchy lumpy bites which bled slightly. They lasted far longer than sandfly or mozzie bites and as they weren't healing went to chemist who told me there was a local plague of tiny grass ticks, almost invisible to eye. Forgotten what chemist gave me, it worked, but the bites took weeks to heal.

Trop, I've heard the XXXX story for mozzie and sandfly bites, apparently a course of Vitamin B or lashings of Vegemite will do the trick as well.

Thank you Ralph, I have told my husband, a Specialist Physician, what you said and he has now registered in a refresher course in dermatology.

Yes Pat a good old drink of Borocca will do the trick as well, not bad for a hang over either. :)

Cheers

Paul_S

Pat those tics are tic nymphs. Apparently there are 3 stages of a tic cycle when they are at their bitiest and the first are when they are at the larval stage - nymphs. Only problem is that they are still as potent as if they were adults and they are practically invisable to the naked eye. If you look at them through a microscope they are transparent and it is only when the red welt appears with a minute black bit in the middle do you realize that they are tics. Worse thing I have ever had actually.

Your're right Liz, I remember now that what the chemist said, ticks at larval stage.

Paul_S - thank you, had forgotten about Berocca - what a saviour it used to be in my younger days.

You never told me you were a 'lush' Pat.

Sandflies (midges) bite and once, when I was at the beach, I came up in hives which lasted for two weeks and were large, red bumps. You can get medication over the counter for allergies to these bites. A good way of cooling the itch and getting rid of the heat associated with these bites is to rub Aloe Vera gel on them. The common house fly in Australia does not bite.

All of the bumps are finally going away Thank Goodness. The hives only seemed to break out for about 3 days, then they started going away. I still have scars from whatever bit me originally in Melbourne. I'm hoping that they will fade too. Thanks for all of the input. Even though I had a bad experience with the bugs, I wouldn't trade the trip for anything. It was fantastic.

Loves to Travel:
We only allow our bugs to bite the very best people - the others get spat out.

Thanks Liz,
I feel special now.

Tropo - I heard that if you drink a lot of XXXX AFTER you've been bitten, it helps with the itching. You must keep drinking it for about two or three weeks until the bites go away though...((B))

And JohninMiami should know because he used that remedy for jet lag when he left Australia and he still hasn't had any - jet lag that is.

Perhaps a Bundaberg Black Rum, on ice would be more beneficial?

Only if that is OP trop.

LizF - I took some relatives to the Bundy Rum Factory the other day, as one of the relatives wanted so much to buy Black Bundy Rum, and when we arrived, we found out that it is now discontinued, as it was only a 10 year project. Apparently, every man & his dog found out, and purchased the remaining black rum they had at the factory. So now my relative is trying to buy some through a distributor, back home in Perth.
They have a new rum called, Distiller NO.3. in place of the black rum, but to a lot of lovers of Bundy Rum, is doesn't come up to the black label.
P.S. I don't drink rum, but I did enjoy the factory tour.

Tropo, I am pretty sure that I saw the Black Bundy Rum in the local bottle shop a couple of weeks ago so let me know if your rellies cannot get any and I will ask him where he got and let you know. I still prefer the Bundaberg Royal Rum Liqueur - I don't like spirits at all anyway myself. Always used to buy the OP as you only needed 4 drops in the Xmas cake to give it the flavour.

Come to think of it a bit of OP rum on the bites probably would have been quicker acting and taken away the itch.

Liz - I tried the OP and that stuff knocked me on my backside! I had two drinks, stood up and sat right back down!

Trop - I'm sorry to hear about the end of Bundy Black. I'm halfway through the bottle I brought home with me and will cherish every remaining drop!

When I lived in Texas, we used to take sulfur tablets every day. I'm one of those people that the bugs love to bite but once I was taking the sulfur, they left me alone. Don't know if they are available in Oz but in the US you can probably get them at any drug store (chemist) such as CVS or Walgreens. If memory serves me right, the cost was about $3 for a box of 30.

John I think we did away with sulphur tablets when antibiotics were discovered. No not quite, there are still some but you need a prescription for them.
Being a Queenslander I am now convinced that those bugs that bit loves to travel are called 'Mexican M....f....' a variety of Pediculosis Pubis which move steadly north and invades other areas and are particular nasty and antisocial little creatures.

LizF, thanks for the offer, re the bundy black, however, I have since found out that the relative returned to Perth, and found a distributor, with a few bottles. No doubt it will run out soon, bundy black that is, I believe the remaining bottle price is starting to skyrocket already.

After visiting friends in Bundaberg only a few days ago I can't vouch for the availability of Bundy Black as I didn't visit the distillery, but I CAN vouch for a locally produced Mozzie Repellant.
I wish I could remember the exact name(I didn't buy it- my friends in Bundaberg did), but it's a kind of candle, with a insertable part. It's produced by Mortein or a similar local brand. Available in most supermarkets. But it does REALLY work.
Far better than any citronella device or mozzie coil I've ever encountered.
Bundaberg mozzies are vicious critters. But I wasn't bitten once when we had the candle burning at night. We placed it at foot level and let the evening breeze do the rest.It worked a treat. I'm going to buy one tomorrow for an up-coming barbecue.

I have no idea what you were bitten by in Melbourne, loves_to_travel. Mozzies, sand and March flies are common, but you really know when you have been bitten by them. It hurts immediately and you can usually swat away the offending insect! You seem to have had an adverse reaction to something.

Possum

Bedbugs?