Want to Avoid Scotland's Pesky Insect Hordes? There's an App for That

Midges are tiny biting flies that congregate in huge clouds and cover passersby with horrible trenchcoats of stabbing proboscises. Although they thrive all over the world, they are a particularly nasty problem in Scotland where 30-plus species of midges keep so many tourists at bay that the annual economy loses about £286 million.

Up to 40,000 of the little monsters can land on an unprotected person in an hour to deliver as many as 3,000 bites, which are said to be more painful and itchy than mosquito bumps. Because of the threat, more than half of Scotland's tourists vow never to come back, according to research from Edinburgh University. Just as bad, 86 percent tell their friends never to visit in the summer, when the flies are really popping.