Ask Fish and Game

Q. Did F&G really release gnat larvae in lakes and streams to feed fish? We're getting swarmed out here. I heard you put them out around the shore in the spring. A. Are you kidding? Absolutely, positively not! Fish and Game has not fed fish in streams and lakes in many years, and doesn't feed larvae of any kind when it feeds fish in hatcheries. The agency would never designate staff time to such a project. Actually, you are seeing a small variety of blackfly. Their population normally peaks every four to five years and some think that low flows in the Snake River have prolonged this peak for two-three years. In normal high-water years the larva would be more likely to be flushed away. Another drought impact, as was the outbreak of epizootic hemorrhagic disease spread by gnats last year in the Clearwater Region. Blackflies hurt because they bite and chew to get to blood.