Sand Flies

[KENNETH SCHMITT]

Are there sand flies in Belize? This is important to us. We had to leave Roatan because of them.
Ken Schmitt
kenschmitt@hawaii.rr.com

[COUNTRY EXPERT ANN KUFFNER]

Yes, there are sand flies in Belize, and mosquitoes. They seem worse to me on Roatan, for some reason. I had an awful experience with sand flies there during one visit at a dive resort. But sand flies are common in most sandy beach areas on the Caribbean. The resorts rake the beach each morning to break up the sand fly eggs, which keeps them from reproducing. IN the developed beach towns of Belize I have only noticed them at dusk and dawn at some times of year, at the same time the mosquitoes are active. So we tend to stay inside during those times, or to spray before going out. But in Roatan sand flies seem to be out and about at all times, depending on the time of year.

I used to be very sensitive to sand fly bites and would have welts for weeks. But after a while I built up an immunity or resistance to them. That’s what happens to most people. But if you or your wife are allergic to them, that could be a problem for you in the beach areas of Belize. I haven’t had any sand fly bites up in the higher elevations, such as in San Ignacio. You didn’t mention if your goal is to live on the beach.

[KENNETH SCHMITT]

Thanks for this information, Ann. I’ve noticed that after a few months in various locations I’ve acquired immunity to the local mosquitoes, but I haven’t been anywhere with sand flies long enough to have noticed that the same thing happens with them. That’s good to know. I believe that sand flies live only along the beach where there’s sand, and raking the sand every day does minimize them. Most likely there are fewer mosquitoes along the coast and more inland.

We need to explore Belize more to determine where our most desirable place might be. We’ve been to all the major areas, but only for a few days in each area. There’s a lot of diversity, which we like.

[COUNTRY EXPERT ANN KUFFNER]

Good luck, Ken, with your search.

IN terms of mosquitoes, they tend to live where there is standing water. So they can be inland and near the sea, especially by freshwater lagoons, during wet weather. There are few mosquitoes during the dry season on the coast. But during the rainy season, when we have standing freshwater ponds, we get our fair share of these pests.

My favorite season is the dry season, February through May, when there is hardly ever any rain, and the water table is low, so mosquitoes can’t hatch. The season is similar for sand flies. But in the remote cayes I’ve experienced sand flies at all times of year, but not sure why. That is why it is so important to live someplace before buying.

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