Black flies invasion: Breeding sources sited within La Nkwantanang-Madina

The Environmental Health and Sanitation Unit of the La Nkwantanang-Madina Municipal Assembly has launched an in-depth investigation into suspected black fly breeding sites in the Municipality.

This follows the invasion of the flies in some parts of the municipality and Dawhenya in the Greater Accra Region.

According to the Head of the Environmental Health and Sanitation Unit of the municipal assembly, Joseph Quarcoe, they received reports of the strange insect invasion on July 13.

Some of the affected communities are Kponkpo, Borga Town, Teiman, Oyarifa, Abokobi, Ayi Mensah, Danfa, Peduasi and Adenta.

An entomological and epidemiological investigation by the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIMR) has confirmed the presence of black fly larvae in the Dakubi Stream.

Dakubi is a fast-flowing water body from the Akuapem Ridge lying between Oyarifa-Teiman and Abokobi that runs into the Odaw River.

Although the Dakubi Stream has been established as a breeding source, authorities suspect that other streams and rivers may also be to blame.

Black flies, sometimes called buffalo gnats, are harmful insects that have a resemblance to a mosquito ranging in sizes from five to 15 millimetres, dark and relatively robust.

They have large compound eyes, short antennae, and a pair of large, fan-shaped wings. Adult black flies feed on blood from humans, livestock and pests by biting.

Their bites are painful, itchy and can cause severe allergic reactions.

With the ability to fly up to 20 miles and more to cause havoc, the insects are responsible for the transmission of river blindness or onchocerciasis when victims are exposed to their bites between one and two years.

The Greater Accra Region has recently begun to see an increase in the invasion of these insects, which are typically found in several areas of Ghana’s Northern and Eastern regions.