INCREDIBLE video footage shows a brave Scot standing in the middle of one of the thickest swarms of midges ever filmed.
The cloud of biting insects is so dense that even one of the world’s leading experts on midges described it as “severe”.
The mountain biker wears protective netting over his face but his exposed hands are coated by the mass of midges.
The clip was filmed last week in the Cairngorm mountains, where conditions have been ideal for midge breeding.
Midge numbers across the country in the past two-weeks have been up on the same period last year as a result of recent damp and warm conditions combined with still air and cloud cover.
The remarkable video was posted on the Falkirk Outdoors Facebook page and has been viewed nearly 100,000 times, attracting 1,500 comments and shares.
The caption reads: “We had an encounter with a few of the local inhabitants once we got back down to the bikes on Sunday’s High Tops outing to the Cairngorms.”
The unnamed man in a red jacket can be heard saying “It’s a little bit midgey” as the buzz and hum of the tiny beasts can be heard in the background.
The creepy crawlies can be seen wriggling around on his hood and darting around near him as he pans the camera around to show the full extent of the swarm.
He brings his hand up to the camera to reveal a vast collection of midges which have taken up residence on the skin of his hand.
His bike’s handlebar is also home to an army of the biting insects as a tornado of midges fly around his body.
Dr Alison Blackwell, Scotland’s leading midge expert, said: “It looks pretty severe. Midge numbers generally have been higher over for the past couple of weeks compared with the same time last year, with catches up 30%.
“This is probably a knock-on from the huge emergences seen at the beginning of the season I think.
“It’s quite odd since there was a drop in numbers in late July but that could have been the transition between the 1st & 2nd generation I think.
“Generally, the weather has been perfect for midges recently, with damp, overcast and still days.”
Facebook users were shocked and impressed in equal measure in some of the 400 comments.
Susie Susieskl said: “I’m itchy just watching.”
Tracy Beresford commented: “Ew! Never seen anything like that before.”
And photgrapher, Andrew Sanderson wrote: “I’ve had it bad, shooting at the side of a loch in the evening, but this is something else!”
The Cairngorms national park is twice the size of the Lake District and is home to the highest railway in Britain which is 1,097 m (3,599 ft) above sea level.
Earlier this year, experts warned Scots to expect a bumper number of midges over this summer which appears to have come to fruition.
