Cupid seems to have taken a spring break this year as Gainesville's population of lovebugs dwindled to a comparatively below-average measure.

“This year's season was shorter for sure," said Norman Leppla, professor of entomology and nematology at the University of Florida. “One reporter called me wanting to know what happened to all the lovebugs."

In past years, lovebugs have always been sure to make their presence known during their two mating seasons: one from April through May and another from August through September, according to Leppla's Living With Lovebugs article on the website for the Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences. Central Florida locations such as Gainesville set the mood for these affectionate insects due to the warm, damp weather in which larvae can thrive.

Leppla said that the lovebug population in Gainesville varies from year to year, but there has been a trend of a general decrease in quantity throughout recent decades.

“In the '70s, you couldn't drive on the interstate without having to stop and clean your windshield," Leppla recalled. “I recently drove to Tampa and back and got some but nowhere near as many as past years."

UF students are not heartbroken over the loss of love in the air, especially since trips to Gainesville during the summer and fall semesters were characterized by the not-so-decorative design of splattered lovebugs left on the hood of their cars.

Jordenn Wagner, a sophomore at UF, can relate due to her frequent highway driving to and from her home in Tampa.

“I usually spend more on car washes during lovebug season because I don't want my car paint to chip off," Wagner said.

Though the bugs are a nuisance pest, Leppla emphasizes that lovebugs are harmless, especially when compared to more dangerous insects, like mosquitoes.

“They are beneficial to the environment due to their aide in breaking down vegetation that is rotting on the ground," Leppla said. “If they were the size of a puppy, you might even think they are cute."