As we move from winter to spring and spring to summer, everyone's “favorite” insects are blackflies. So, where have they been for the past few months? Why do we even need flies in our world? Wouldn’t we be better off without them? We wouldn't be.  

During the winter, most flies take cover to protect from the freezing temperatures in warm, insulated places either in houses or underground, in tree bark, or leaf litter. While they protect themselves in their shelter, they enter a hibernation-like state called diapause. As the name suggests, this means they are literally putting their lives on hold. Their metabolism slows and they don't need as much food or oxygen to survive. In the winter, all stages of fly development can enter diapause. This includes adult flies, as well as flies in the egg, larvae, and pupae stages. In the spring, once the temperatures start rising and the flies feel it getting warm out, at about 50 degrees, they wake up and their metabolism returns to normal. They start flying around, feeding and mating.  

When you think of pollinators you probably think of bees, but fliesblackflies are also pollinators. As flies go to feed on the nectar or pollen, excess pollen gets stuck to their hairy outsides, they then unintentionally pollinate the next flower they land on. Along with being pollinators, flies are a food source to many animals such as birds, frogs, lizards, etc . . . Flies are not only food to others but consume organic material that is decomposing. Have you ever passed a dead fish on the beach and there's a swarm of flies around it, it's gross right? But without those flies, that carcass would just sit there.  

What can you do to help the flies? One thing people have done is “No Mow May”. The idea is to avoid mowing your lawn or clearing brush for the month of May. This allows flowers such as dandelions and clovers to bloom, providing the flies with sources of pollen and nectar to feed on when they awaken. Leaving brush also maintains the habitat that these insects use to over-winter, ensuring that they still have a place to go if there is a late frost. The taller grass also creates a good, moist habitat for fly larvae to develop, creating the next generation of flies. 

While most flies follow this pattern, not all do. For example, the Adirondack black fly, which is part of the Simuliidae family, does not follow traditional habits of black flies during the winter. Adirondack black flies are nasty, they are about 1mm to 5mm in length and bite! The life cycle of these flies is only about 40 days, but female flies lay up to 100 eggs during their lifespan. During the winter, the females lay their eggs near bodies of water, then the flies in their larvae stage submerge themselves into the cold water feeding on the organic matter at the bottom. This actually helps keep rivers and streams clean! They stay alive during the harsh winter in this stage then when the temperature rises again during early spring, the Adirondack Black Flies complete their transition to pupal stage and then become an adult. The female flies, as mentioned before, need to lay eggs before they die and they need protein found in blood to accomplish this task, that's why these Adirondack black flies bite you, they are just trying to get nutrients to lay their eggs. The male Adirondack black flies do not need blood to survive, they need nectar from flowers.  

Lastly, some fun facts about black flies. From Adirondack black fly larvae we can determine how clean the water is as these larvae thrive in clean, oxygen-rich water. A healthy amount of larvae indicates a clean water ecosystem. Because black flies can be a food source for many animals, clean water and healthy black fly populations also means plenty of food for other wildlife. Adirondack black fly larvae are an important food source for trout and salmon, while also feeding bats, swallows, dragonflies, and predatory beetles such as ground beetles.  

How do you protect yourselves from an Adirondack black fly bite? Long sleeves or pants will do the job, so will DEET bug spray, as well as a head net. These flies are most active during dawn and dusk, particularly near rivers, streams, or wetlands where they breed. Last, avoid wearing perfume or heavy scents as it may attract these flies. If camping overnight, ensure your tent has a good mosquito netting so you don’t get swarmed at night.