MARCH FLIES
MARCH FLIES
March flies range
from fragile to sturdy insects with relatively short antennae and dark
bodies. Some species are marked with red or yellow spots. March flies are
1/4 to 1/2 inch long. March fly larvae are gray, leathery maggots with
well defined heads. The body has numerous small bumps and protrusions.
March fly maggots are 1/4 to 1 inch long.
March flies are
found throughout North America. Large flights of March flies occur primarily
in the southeastern United States. March fly maggots develop in decaying
organic matter. Adults visit flowers presumably for nectar. The principal
concern over March flies arises with the sudden appearance of swarms of
these flies over ornamental and fruit crops and around homes. When their
swarms cross roads and highways, large numbers splatter on trucks and automobiles.
Visibility may be reduced, and when the flies are especially abundant,
vehicles may overheat because the flies clog radiator fins. If left on
car finishes too long, the fatty tissue of the flies and their eggs may
pit or mar the paint.
After mating, female March flies enter the soil where they lay 200 to 300 eggs. The maggots hatch from the eggs and feed on leaf litter and sometimes among the roots of living plants. They have been reported from potatoes which had been previously damaged by wireworms. Their feeding hastens the breakdown of plant tissue into humus. March fly adults often emerge in early to late spring. (Sometimes there is a fall flight also.) These flies visit flowers and are sometimes effective pollinators.
The large scale control of immature or adult March flies by chemical means would place an undue pesticide load on the environment. The most troublesome species of March flies swarm during warm daylight hours, so driving at night may avoid the problem for travelers. A screen across the front of the radiator will protect the radiator from clogging. Temporarily smearing the front of the car with baby oil or spraying it with a no-stick cooking product will aid in the removal of splattered flies later.
Other Links:
Florida note
http://crawford.tardigrade.net/bugs/BugofMonth03.html
http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn7448.html
Tie a fly that mimics Bibio
Prepared by: James R. Baker & S. Bambara, Extension Entomologists
Published by North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service
Distributed in furtherance of the Acts of Congress of May 8 and June 30, 1914. Employment and program opportunities are offered to all people regardless of race, color, national origin, sex, age, or disability. North Carolina State University at Raleigh, North Carolina A&T State University, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and local governments cooperating.
ENT/ort-35
August 1994 (Revised)May 1997
Web page last reviewed January, 2011 by the webperson.