Lovebugs or Jack & Jills? Here’s What South Louisiana Calls Them (And Easy Ways to Get Rid of Them)

Love is in the air, and Acadiana residents are sick of it.

Plecia nearctica is a species of march fly found only in parts of Central America and in the southeastern United States—specifically along the Gulf Coast.

You may know them better as lovebugs.

Over the weekend, it was impossible to escape these pesky insects; and even though most lovebugs are only "in flight" for 3-5 days it feels like they all decided to show up at the same exact time.

Also known as the honeymoon fly or double-headed bug. During and after mating, matured pairs remain together, even in flight, for up to several days.

If it feels like these flies are exclusive to Louisiana, you're not far off because even though the species was first described in 1940, the lovebug was reportedly seen in Louisiana as early as 1911.

In addition to honeymoon flies, and double-headed bugs, these insects are also known as Jack & Jills—but according to the vast majority of our listeners in Acadiana, lovebugs is the most popular name for these annoying little flies (and it's not even close).

There were some people who actually never heard the bugs called "jack & jills."

There were a few other names that we had never heard of—like "airplane bugs" and "telephone bugs."

"Aggravating" was also a popular entry.

There were few people who said they did refer to the insects as Jack & Jills.

But the overwhelming majority of South Louisiana residents call them lovebugs."

Apparently, some people have more love than others.

By the way, if you were swarmed over the weekend there are a few ways to tame the "aggravation" of lovebugs, and it involves a few things that you likely have hanging around the house.

If it's too late to use the aforementioned remedy and the lovebugs have already smashed into your vehicle, there's always this clever hack to get them to wipe right off.

The good news is, these little buggers should be gone a lot sooner than later. In the meantime, good luck—and don't "bug out."