Flies are the one kind of insect that you can never seem to get away from. Crane flies are large ones that are often confused for mosquitos. Wizzie Brown, an insect specialist with the Texas A&M Agrilife Extension Office says crane flies are worth knowing a bit more about.
On what crane flies are?
“The crane flies are the really long-legged insects and most people mistake them for mosquitos or call them mosquito hawks that eat the mosquitos but they don’t. They’re either non-feeding or they feed on nectar and they pretty much emerge and die the next day because all they do is mate, lay eggs, and then they’re done.”
On what happens to the crane fly eggs after the fly dies:
“The eggs will go through their life cycle throughout the rest of the year and they kind of hold themselves in the winter, and then you see their progeny emerge out in the spring. They hatch out in a number of weeks but the individual crane fly only lasts a few days.”
On why crane flies are important:
“In my opinion, they’re the insect that says spring is here. They’re just a nuisance because they do get into the house, but if you have cats they’re very entertaining for people’s cats. The cats can eat them, it’s not going to be a problem.”
