What's biting in United Kingdom right now
Bite activity in United Kingdom peaks April to August. July is the busiest month of the year at 22% of all records. Narrow yours down below, then confirm it with a photo in the app.
This page tells you what's around. The app tells you what bit you — photo in, likely species, severity read and a day-by-day care plan out.
Download free for iPhoneNarrow it down in three taps
Free · nothing to install to get a shortlistMost recorded in September
Answer 2 more for a sharper shortlist-
Mosquito bite Strongest match · 92%Single bumps scattered over exposed skin. Usually 1 to 3 days, sometimes a week in children.
Read the full profile → -
Deer tick bite Also possible · 79%Single, usually in a skin fold or hairline. Usually bump a few days; untreated rash weeks.
Read the full profile → - Chigger bite Also possible · 73%
Clusters concentrated where clothing is tight. Usually 1 to 2 weeks of itch.
Read the full profile →
Photograph the bite in the app and it picks between these for you — with a severity read and what to do today. This page narrows the field; it does not diagnose you.
Confirm with a photoFree download · iPhone The year, month by month
Share of all recorded sightings in United Kingdom. Pick a month to re-run the shortlist above for that time of year.
From GBIF biodiversity records, snapshot 2026-09-14. Records track when people observe and report specimens — close to activity, not identical to how often anyone gets bitten. Methodology.
What actually bites you in United Kingdom
Honey bees top records like these because they are the most photographed insect on earth — read this as "definitely present here", not as a ranking of risk.
What is different about United Kingdom
One risk that matters (ticks), a lot of nuisance biting (midges, mosquitoes, horseflies), and essentially no venomous species. Scottish midges are a genuine seasonal phenomenon rather than a joke.
Bed bugs, scabies and head lice ignore weather entirely — a bite pattern in the middle of United Kingdom's quiet season points there first, see what is biting me at night.
- Breathing trouble, or swelling of the lips, tongue or throat after a sting
- A red area that is spreading, hot and painful — especially with a red streak
- Fever, chills or feeling generally unwell in the days or weeks after a bite
- An expanding rash appearing 3 to 30 days after a tick bite
- A bite getting worse rather than better after 72 hours
NHS 111 for advice, 999 for emergencies. Pharmacists can advise on bites and antihistamines without an appointment.
The seasonal data behind this
Across 95,990 verified records for the United Kingdom, biting and stinging activity concentrates in April to August — July alone accounts for 22% of sightings, and December is the quietest month of the year.
Britain is a low-risk country for bites in the sense that almost nothing here is dangerous — and one clear exception. Ticks carrying Lyme borreliosis are present across the country, with the New Forest, the Scottish Highlands, Exmoor and Thetford Forest among the better-known areas. There are no medically significant spiders or scorpions, and the false widow, which appears in the press every autumn, causes local pain rather than serious harm.
| Month | Activity | Share | Mostly |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 0% | Bed bug, Head lice bites, Aedes mosquito | |
| February | 2% | Bed bug, Head lice bites, Aedes mosquito | |
| March | 4% | Castor bean tick, Honey bee, Bed bug | |
| April | 10% | Castor bean tick, Honey bee, Mosquito | |
| May | 12% | Castor bean tick, Honey bee, Mosquito | |
| June | 19% | Castor bean tick, Honey bee, Yellowjacket | |
| July | 22% | Castor bean tick, Honey bee, Yellowjacket | |
| August | 17% | Castor bean tick, Honey bee, Yellowjacket | |
| September | 8% | Castor bean tick, Honey bee, Yellowjacket | |
| October | 3% | Castor bean tick, Honey bee, Yellowjacket | |
| November | 1% | Bed bug, Head lice bites, Flea | |
| December | 0% | Bed bug, Head lice bites, Aedes mosquito |
Calculated from GBIF biodiversity records for the United Kingdom, snapshot 2026-09-14. Records reflect when people observe and report specimens, which tracks activity closely but is not the same as how often anyone gets bitten. See our methodology.
Year-round regardless of season
Weather does not affect everything. Bed bugs, scabies and head lice depend on people rather than temperature, so a bite pattern in the middle of United Kingdom's quiet season points to those first — see what is biting me at night.
Species linked to illness here
- Castor bean tick bite — Lyme borreliosis, tick-borne encephalitis (central and eastern Europe, not the UK), anaplasmosis
- Mosquito bite — West Nile virus, La Crosse encephalitis, dengue (Gulf Coast and Southwest, local cases), chikungunya (rare, travel-linked)
- Flea bite — murine typhus (Gulf Coast, California, Hawaii), cat scratch disease bacteria carried between cats, flea tapeworm (mainly in children who swallow a flea)
- Aedes mosquito bite — dengue, Zika, chikungunya, yellow fever
- Scabies rash — secondary bacterial skin infection is common from scratching
- Deer tick bite — Lyme disease, anaplasmosis, babesiosis, Powassan virus (rare)
Most bites transmit nothing. What matters is the follow-up: note the date, and report any fever or expanding rash in the weeks afterwards to a clinician, mentioning the bite and where you were.
Stings rather than bites
Honey bee, Yellowjacket, Paper wasp are recorded in United Kingdom. Stings differ from bites in one way that matters: they can cause anaphylaxis in sensitised people, and that risk does not depend on how mild previous stings looked. Anyone who has had a severe reaction should carry an adrenaline auto-injector.
Common questions
When are insect bites most common in United Kingdom?
Sighting records for United Kingdom concentrate in April to August, with July the single busiest month at 22% of all records. December is the quietest.
What bites people most often in United Kingdom?
By verified records the most frequently reported biting and stinging species are castor bean tick, honey bee, yellowjacket, mosquito, bed bug.
Do bites stop completely in winter in United Kingdom?
No. Bed bugs, scabies and head lice depend on people rather than weather and continue year-round. What stops is the outdoor season — mosquitoes, ticks, wasps and biting flies.
Stop guessing from a table.
One photo → likely species, severity, and a care plan you can re-check as it heals.