A Bug Story

Besides mosquitoes that descend upon us in droves, and the odd black-fly that always manages to get under your glasses while your hands are dirty, preventing you from doing the whack-and-smack, we're reasonably critter-free when it comes to the bug department.

Or so I thought.

Eric took a little drive down to Lancaster, Ontario the other night.  We occasionally like to drive down the 401, partly because the roads are much better than the third-world potholed excuse for pavement we have here in Quebec, and partly because the gas is way cheaper.  It might also have something to do with a particular Dairy Queen, (make mine one mini Skor Blizzard, please!), but let's not go there for that.  Focus on the roads and the cheap gas.

Well, the other night, Eric had a passenger drive up with him.  Yup.  A bug so huge, that when Eric ran into the house and requested a flashlight and a pincher-type tool we use to reach things in out-of-the-way places, I thought he was over-exaggerating.  I mean, this is not the tropics, our bugs are pedestrian and ordinary.  This thing could have worn a seat-belt, it was so big.

Let that be a lesson.

I need to preface this by saying that I am not squeamish.  In fact, I enjoy digging and sleuthing and turning over rocks in search of creepy-crawlies.  Had I been in the car with Eric when this bug crawled in, suffice it to say I'd be hitch-hiking down the highway if I knew this baby was still in the car with me.

Without any further ado, let me introduce you to "Claws" the Giant Water Bug:

This baby was 4" long, and by that I mean the body.  I am not including his pincers.  That's pretty, well, impressive, for lack of a more appropriate term.  I had nightmares about this bug all night long, as I tossed and turned and itched myself in my slumber.

These bugs are attracted by bright lights (hello, Esso station?) and inflict a bite that is considered as "extremely painful" if I believe everything I read on Wikipedia. Thanks, but no thanks, I'll take my mosquitoes, my black flies, my deer flies and my horse flies any day over this Giant Water Bug.

Who needs Jaws when we've got Claws in the water?

And it goes without saying we didn't hurt the monster bug.  He terrorized us much more than we terrorized him.  He's probably taken up refuge in our ditch, or has made his way over to the Petro-Canada gas station by now, where he can surprise other unsuspecting drivers.