We have discovered 2 new bugs today, well, new to us.

This morning, we were outside in the yard for a while. It was one of our first warm days and I was wearing shorts. After a little bit, I realized I was feeling several little bites on my legs, but kept ignoring them. After a bit longer, I looked down to discover a dozen or more little black spots on the back of my knee and scattered down my legs. They looked like mud spots, but mud spots that stung! I believe I was plagued by the famous Florida “no see ‘ums”. They sure were annoying! I slathered on traditional bug spray, but they just kept coming. Just last week, I had seen a post on the internet debating the possible deterrents to these pesky little pests. Many on that forum suggested using Skin So Soft from Avon. In fact, I spotted a selection of small and large bottles of SSS at the checkout counter at the local Ace Hardware earlier this week. I wish now that I had thrown a small bottle in with my order that day. For today, our time out in the yard was cut short; we retreated into the house.

Our second bug discovery for the day was at bookends to the first. After dinner, Mom, Dad, and I took a walk along the beach. The tide was low and so was the sun. We noticed as we walked along that there were dozens of tiny, white, jumping bugs in the hard, wet sand just above the surf. They jumped in all directions, a bit like the crickets that get trapped in our garage back home. You never know which way it will jump next. It was entertaining to watch them jump away from us as we walked. Mom had on capris, so I asked her if she felt any of them bumping against her bare legs. Sadly, she did not. I consulted my handy, dandy reference book “Florida’s Living Beaches, A Guide for the Curious Beachcomber” by Blair & Dawn Witherington when we got back inside and discovered that our little white jumpers are aptly named beachhoppers!