Creature Feature
Midge Flies Are Really Cool
by Gary Winans
Have you ever taken a walk alongside a pond or stream and noticed the variety of flying insects? In the summer, you may see dragonflies making their precision turns; damsel flies, bright blue versions of the dragonfly that hover more like a helicopter; small noisy gnats; and mosquitoes, of course. But you may also see a swarm of insects that seems to hover in a tall column over an object by the water. If these insects seem to resemble mosquitoes, they are probably midge flies. Fortunately for us, midge flies don't bite like mosquitoes.
What's so cool about all these insects, these masters of the air? They spend most of their life underwater! They start out as eggs plopped in slow-moving or still water in a stream, pond, puddle, and, in some cases, rain barrels. After hatching, these young critters, called larvae, spend weeks or months chewing on various things in the water until they mature and "hatch" out or emerge as flying adults. Midge fly larvae are cool in their own way. The larvae resemble worms and are bright red that’s why they're called bloodworms. Bloodworms are low in the food web and help convert plant material and the stuff growing on decaying plants in a pond to animal material. Over 120 kinds or species of midge flies live in our area, and they are a very important food item for fish.
Midge flies and bloodworms used to be more widespread in urban areas.
They grew up generation after generation of flies and worms in the wetlands that
have now been drained and covered with neighborhoods and parking lots. Still,
you can find them in green water habitats in your neighborhood-wherever you can
find standing water, partially tipped cans, discarded tires, an uncovered boat
parked behind a garage, and so on. Look for muddy, worm-like cases that the
bloodworms hide in. You'll find these cases attached to the side of their
temporary pond.
My family and I watch bloodworms that live in our rain barrel in the winter. Using a flashlight to peer into a night-time rain barrel can be entertaining. The bloodworms partially emerge from their muddy cases and twist and wiggle their blood-red heads in spooky feeding rituals. Midge Fly Sketch - with note on finding Midge Flies at Brandon Street Bridge, pond at Camp Long, and Roxhill Park.
One more cool fact about midges hummingbirds move their wings fast to hover, right? They beat their wings 75 times per second. But the midge beats its wings, get this, 950 times per second! Now that's moving! That's why they hover so well.
So, next time you're out for a walk in your neighborhood or along a creek, look for midge swarms. Better yet, look for those secret wet niches where you may find your first "blood worm".