I was wondering where they were just last week. But as I discovered after 'Googling' them, their name was given not due to their birth month but rather due to when the Hawthorne (alias Mayflower) tree blooms. Go figure. The mayfly is actually one of the oldest living insects from many thousands of years ago, and are part of the same family as the dragonfly. Their lifespan is short, sometimes even polished off as nymphs and lucky to live a day after hatching as birds, frogs, etc... think they are a big fat yummy feast. So why the sudden interest in the mayfly you ask... Well because as far as I am concerned when you live near the Mississippi, G-d has created an 11th plague, the mayfly.
This week the mayflies are hatching and swarms of them abound. Everywhere you look you will see them filling the skies at night. It's obvious that they think lights are their tanning booths. The other night we unfortunately made the mistake and parked under a street light and we returned to the car’s hood being covered with Mayflies. YUCKOLA. Forget that photo, I got in the car as quickly as possible.
There have been occasions when the Mayflies have been so thick that they create havoc on local bridges which are then closed due to the slickness they cause. In Lansing I have seen homes by the Mississippi covered by this insect.
They love Kwik Trips, our area's brightly lit up convenience stores, and when I did frequent them in the past for gas (politically they are taboo to me now), you had to be under attack from the mayflies at the pump.
Well for right now I am super glad for my car wash contract because my car lights are helping those mayflies end their lives a bit faster before they make it to the End of the Rainbow Valley...
Did you know they have no mouth? Their entire purpose in life is to breed and die. I always found that fascinating. I loved the picture of the cars driving through a may fly storm.
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