What are crane flies?
Crane flies are not spiders but as the name suggests a re a fly.
Why do they appear in autumn?
Commonly known as ‘daddy-longlegs’ in the UK, crane fly adults bump clumsily around our homes after being attracted to lit windows at night.
Their sudden appearance, usually in autumn, is due to a mass hatch of maggots. Called leatherjackets, the larvae have passed their time munching roots in damp soil, and look fairly ordinary save for, as Erica McAlister puts it in The Secret Life of Flies, “their most exquisite anal breathing tubules”. Sadly, due to pesticides, huge swarms of crane flies are mostly a thing of the past.
Their delicate, gangly limbs seem too fragile to be much use – almost a liability. In fact, fragility is a secret weapon. As McAlister’s book explains, a bird that attacks a crane fly will often end up with a leggy mouthful, enabling the insect to escape (albeit with fewer limbs, as they don’t grow back). Their legs are also an adaptation for perching on blades of grass.
What do crane flies eat?
Eating is not a primary concern for crane flies as they are too busy mating and laying eggs, but when they do get hungry they are partial to nectar and pollen
Main image © Getty Images
