Post: #1

The bug apocalypse cometh in central Wisconsin:

Quote:TOWN OF NEENAH - When Kristen Schulz returned home early Monday afternoon, there was a cloud in her driveway.

It wasn't a rain cloud, but something a little more sinister. A dark, buzzing mass of lake flies had invaded her Town of Neenah driveway, yard and the front of her home.

The small insects, whirling around in all directions and landing everywhere in sight, had made her property look like the set of a horror film.

"Last year they weren't nearly as bad," said Schulz, who lives along the west shore of Lake Winnebago. "We've been dealing with them for years."

She said the insects have previously inundated her home, burrowed in light fixtures, mail, clothes and even human hair.

"You have to power wash your house on a bad year to get rid of them," she said.

They also leave a stench — and a green mess. To put it mildly, Schulz said the fly is a "nuisance."

Scott Koehnke, a water management specialist with the Department of Natural Resources, said the non-biting midge has a singular purpose in its short adult life — to mate and lay eggs.

Each spring, warm water temperatures bring the flies up from Lake Winnebago's muddy surface, usually around Mother's Day weekend. That's when the fly emerges from the larval stage.

"As larvae and adults, they're the bottom of the food chain, the bottom of the food pyramid," Koehnke said. "They're plentiful."

Along Lake Winnebago, there can be trillions — yes, trillions — of flies, or "gobs and gobs" of them, as Koehnke thinks of it. It's intense enough for the flies to show up on radar.

As adults, lake flies usually live seven to 14 days. They'll hang out in shrubs or grassy areas to stay cool during the day before they mate at dusk.

But fear not: they're good for the lake and the local ecosystem. They feed the lake's sturgeon and perch and fill the bellies of hungry bats and birds.

"They are the main driving force as far as energy dynamics go on the Lake Winnebago system from a fisheries standpoint," Koehnke said. "If we don't have lake flies, we won't have lake sturgeon."

They're found throughout the Northern Hemisphere, especially in large, shallow and productive lakes. Koehnke said a female fly can lay up to 10,000 eggs.

This year, swarms of flies are being spotted along the western side of Lake Winnebago due to southeasterly winds. High Cliff State Park has also been a popular spot for lake fly sightings in the past, but it depends each year on wind direction, Koehnke said.

Looks like this might be a common occurrence (pics and video from 2014):







Interesting short video on mayflies and their mating behavior:

Post: #2

Are they edible?

Post: #3

Coming up: Mayflower, WI data sheet?

Post: #4

That's what they get for voting for Lyin Ted. With the rats come the fleas.

Post: #5

(05-15-2016 11:04 PM)Quintus Curtius Wrote:  Are they edible?

Great question.

If they can be made into protein bars and some slick marketer figures out how to convince the American public to eat them, these people could be sitting on a goldmine.

Beyond All Seas

"The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe.
To be your own man is a hard business. If you try it, you'll be lonely often, and sometimes
frightened. But no price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning yourself." - Kipling

Post: #6

Fucking immigrants coming to our countries, shagging in public and leaving green shit everywhere.

Post: #7

Looks like Zanesville has some competition

Post: #8

Fun fact: once a Mayfly has grown into a full adult they don't have any mouths to feed themselves so they can only fly around and mate. When they run out of energy, that's it!

Post: #9

@TheBeast1, it's a blighted existence really. You stop eating, you start fucking around, then you die.

Post: #10

You see so many people freak out about eating insects. I don't have a problem with it. As long as they are cooked and seasoned with spices, it's fine.
I envy some of you guys who live in SE Asia (e.g., Beyond Borders). I've heard you can find a lot of edible insect dishes there...

Post: #11

^ Yeah, I love them, man. Really no different than eating small shellfish if you think about it. Actually I believe people with shellfish allergies are allergic to them if that tells you anything.

I mean, certain species I could take it or leave it but there are a few I really like. When I'm out with the locals they often order them to the table and eat them like bar nuts while drinking beer and shooting the shit.

My Cambodian live in always came back from the market snacking on them, and one time I partied at this Cambodian guy's house and we were just sitting on his front porch zapping them out of the air with this little electric lamp gadget and cooking piles of them up on the spot.

That's fresh meat right out of the sky! Lol

I was listening to a Rogan Experience podcast a while back where he interviews the guy from Mark's Daily Apple and sound like he is heavily invested in a company grinding them down into powder to make protein bars. Apparently it's super clean protein too (not that I know if that actually means anything haha).

I'd say if they can change the public's mind they'll rake it in big time. Maybe a good company to invest in at some point based on what your research tells you. Seems like only a matter of time for someone to break the stigma down a bit.

Beyond All Seas

"The individual has always had to struggle to keep from being overwhelmed by the tribe.
To be your own man is a hard business. If you try it, you'll be lonely often, and sometimes
frightened. But no price is too high to pay for the privilege of owning yourself." - Kipling

Post: #12

(05-16-2016 10:59 AM)Beyond Borders Wrote:  ^ Yeah, I love them, man. Really no different than eating small shellfish if you think about it. Actually I believe people with shellfish allergies are allergic to them if that tells you anything.

I mean, certain species I could take it or leave it but there are a few I really like. When I'm out with the locals they often order them to the table and eat them like bar nuts while drinking beer and shooting the shit.

My Cambodian live in always came back from the market snacking on them, and one time I partied at this Cambodian guy's house and we were just sitting on his front porch zapping them out of the air with this little electric lamp gadget and cooking piles of them up on the spot.

That's fresh meat right out of the sky! Lol

I was listening to a Rogan Experience podcast a while back where he interviews the guy from Mark's Daily Apple and sound like he is heavily invested in a company grinding them down into powder to make protein bars. Apparently it's super clean protein too (not that I know if that actually means anything haha).

I'd say if they can change the public's mind they'll rake it in big time. Maybe a good company to invest in at some point based on what your research tells you. Seems like only a matter of time for someone to break the stigma down a bit.

The bars in question are call Exo bars. Here their website: https://www.exoprotein.com

I try about two of their bars, it was pretty good and edible. At the moment, they are expensive for me as poor student to get 30 bar pack is around $30. The crickets are the insect of choice for the bars and farm to produce the protein flour used in the bars. For the western countries, eating insects are unheard due to easy access to animal meats. Exo bars seem to good first step to slowly convince people to eat insect for a protein source.

Post: #13

I thought this thread was going to be about muslim immigrants. To my relief it's not.

Post: #14

(05-15-2016 11:04 PM)Quintus Curtius Wrote:  Are they edible?

Post: #15

Bug protein BeyondBorders?

The world has enough insects without the Misc wanting fresh insect protein!

Post: #16

Side story: A guy I know used to work for a company contracted out by LA County to do pest control. They filled canisters with sterilized male fruit flies and dropped them from aircraft. It created what was essentially a massive sausage fest with short living males, eradicating the population by causing extreme competition for mates. Kind of like the Western bar scene.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sterile_insect_technique