Flies: They Really Bug Me; Rank Among Our Most Feared Animals
June 7, 2021 at 7:26 p.m.
By Max [email protected]
On the other hand, I despise or should say loath house flies. If one happens to come inside I become enraged and ardently chase after it with my trusty fly swatter without a moment of hesitation.
According to a new book “Super Fly” written by Jonathan Balcombe, flies do not win popularity contests with us. Among our most feared animals, flies are vastly outranked by the likes of spiders, snakes, lions and crocodiles. But if one were to survey humankind for animals we most dislike, flies would make many top-ten lists.
“Of all the major groups of insects, the flies are the least understood and most detested,” writes entomologist Mark Deyrup in his 1999 book “Florida’s Fabulous Insects.” “There are no apologists for flies, there are no lobbyists or hobbyists for flies, there are no fly-watchers, no fly-gardens, no picture guides to flies.”
For sheer repugnance to humans, an adult fly may only be trumped by its fellow insect the cockroach.
Benefits
Balcombe also describes flies in a different light as well, he is an advocate and explains their good features as well as the bad. For example, like bees, flower flies are vital pollinators, fruit flies are indispensible to the analysis of genetics and have been used in more than 100,000 scientific studies. Certain fly species that infiltrate human corpses have helped scientists determine a murder victim’s time of death, thus assisting homicide detectives to convict or exonerate criminals.
Fly maggots can help heal wounds on humans because they eat only infected tissue and their tissue work is far less expensive than conventional wound healing therapies. Some people even enjoy eating cheese maggots, but the maggots can survive the digestive process and wreak havoc in the intestines. Even the devilish bites of certain flies have hidden benefits. Biting flies have kept humans out of ecologically sensitive areas, preventing habitat and biodiversity loss.
Case in point: the lush Okavango Delta of Botswana — a seasonal floodplain spanning some 16,800 square kilometers (6,500 square miles) — is a paradise for wildlife and a stronghold of the tsetse fly, whose bite can sicken both humans and their cattle.
Presence
Some researchers estimate that there are 17 quadrillion flies on the planet. (A quadrillion is a 1 with 15 zeros after it or 1000 times a trillion.) For each human, there are about 17 million flies and there are at least 100,000 known species of flies. These insects have been around as long as humans, exist on every continent, including Antarctica. A handful have even colonized the oceans, a habitat otherwise unreached by insects.
Senses And Color
Flies have an acute sense of smell, and certain carrion flies can detect a rotting carcass from at least 10 miles. Mr. Balcombe believes that flies possibly feel pain, have personalities and even possess consciousness. (I have no idea how he acquired such information.) Flies are also master aerialists that can hover, fly backward and land upside down. Some flies, like the blowfly feature a gleaming metallic color said to rank among nature’s most beautiful works of art.
Hazards
Some species of flies cause harm to humans, livestock and plants. They are the most common carriers of insect-transmitted diseases. One species (biting midges) are known to transmit at least 60 viruses and 15 protozoans. Sand flies spread oroya fevers, which killed 25% of Pizarro’s army in the 16th century in South America.
Tsetse flies transmit sleeping sickness. Tropical black flies can carry roundworm that causes river blindness, primarily in Africa. Biting flies combine to make up the most damaging arthropod pests of cattle worldwide.
Mosquitoes, considered flies by many entomologists, outrank humans for causing human deaths. Some researchers speculate that mosquitoes have caused almost half of human deaths in history, they impart 15 kinds of diseases to humans via viruses, worms and protozoans. Among the diseases are malaria, yellow fever, dengue, chikungunya, Zika, six kinds of encephalitis, West Nile virus, filariasis, and elephantiasis. One in six humans alive today is infected by an insect-borne illness, and more often than not, the footprint left at the crime scene is that of a fly.
Classification
The so-called true flies are one of the utmost important groups of insects in the order Diptera. The name Diptera, is derived from the Greek words “di” meaning two and “ptera” hereby meaning wings, which refers to the fact that true flies have only a single pair of wings (two wings).
Final Thoughts
Perhaps the world famous scientist, E. O. Wilson said it best: “If all mankind were to disappear, the world would regenerate back to the rich state of equilibrium that existed ten thousand years ago. If insects were to vanish, the environment would collapse into chaos.” Comforting words, but I still plan on using my fly swatter.
Max Sherman is a medical writer and pharmacist retired from the medical device industry. His new book “Science Snippets” is available from Amazon and other book sellers. It contains a number of previously published columns. He can be reached by email at [email protected].
On the other hand, I despise or should say loath house flies. If one happens to come inside I become enraged and ardently chase after it with my trusty fly swatter without a moment of hesitation.
According to a new book “Super Fly” written by Jonathan Balcombe, flies do not win popularity contests with us. Among our most feared animals, flies are vastly outranked by the likes of spiders, snakes, lions and crocodiles. But if one were to survey humankind for animals we most dislike, flies would make many top-ten lists.
“Of all the major groups of insects, the flies are the least understood and most detested,” writes entomologist Mark Deyrup in his 1999 book “Florida’s Fabulous Insects.” “There are no apologists for flies, there are no lobbyists or hobbyists for flies, there are no fly-watchers, no fly-gardens, no picture guides to flies.”
For sheer repugnance to humans, an adult fly may only be trumped by its fellow insect the cockroach.
Benefits
Balcombe also describes flies in a different light as well, he is an advocate and explains their good features as well as the bad. For example, like bees, flower flies are vital pollinators, fruit flies are indispensible to the analysis of genetics and have been used in more than 100,000 scientific studies. Certain fly species that infiltrate human corpses have helped scientists determine a murder victim’s time of death, thus assisting homicide detectives to convict or exonerate criminals.
Fly maggots can help heal wounds on humans because they eat only infected tissue and their tissue work is far less expensive than conventional wound healing therapies. Some people even enjoy eating cheese maggots, but the maggots can survive the digestive process and wreak havoc in the intestines. Even the devilish bites of certain flies have hidden benefits. Biting flies have kept humans out of ecologically sensitive areas, preventing habitat and biodiversity loss.
Case in point: the lush Okavango Delta of Botswana — a seasonal floodplain spanning some 16,800 square kilometers (6,500 square miles) — is a paradise for wildlife and a stronghold of the tsetse fly, whose bite can sicken both humans and their cattle.
Presence
Some researchers estimate that there are 17 quadrillion flies on the planet. (A quadrillion is a 1 with 15 zeros after it or 1000 times a trillion.) For each human, there are about 17 million flies and there are at least 100,000 known species of flies. These insects have been around as long as humans, exist on every continent, including Antarctica. A handful have even colonized the oceans, a habitat otherwise unreached by insects.
Senses And Color
Flies have an acute sense of smell, and certain carrion flies can detect a rotting carcass from at least 10 miles. Mr. Balcombe believes that flies possibly feel pain, have personalities and even possess consciousness. (I have no idea how he acquired such information.) Flies are also master aerialists that can hover, fly backward and land upside down. Some flies, like the blowfly feature a gleaming metallic color said to rank among nature’s most beautiful works of art.
Hazards
Some species of flies cause harm to humans, livestock and plants. They are the most common carriers of insect-transmitted diseases. One species (biting midges) are known to transmit at least 60 viruses and 15 protozoans. Sand flies spread oroya fevers, which killed 25% of Pizarro’s army in the 16th century in South America.
Tsetse flies transmit sleeping sickness. Tropical black flies can carry roundworm that causes river blindness, primarily in Africa. Biting flies combine to make up the most damaging arthropod pests of cattle worldwide.
Mosquitoes, considered flies by many entomologists, outrank humans for causing human deaths. Some researchers speculate that mosquitoes have caused almost half of human deaths in history, they impart 15 kinds of diseases to humans via viruses, worms and protozoans. Among the diseases are malaria, yellow fever, dengue, chikungunya, Zika, six kinds of encephalitis, West Nile virus, filariasis, and elephantiasis. One in six humans alive today is infected by an insect-borne illness, and more often than not, the footprint left at the crime scene is that of a fly.
Classification
The so-called true flies are one of the utmost important groups of insects in the order Diptera. The name Diptera, is derived from the Greek words “di” meaning two and “ptera” hereby meaning wings, which refers to the fact that true flies have only a single pair of wings (two wings).
Final Thoughts
Perhaps the world famous scientist, E. O. Wilson said it best: “If all mankind were to disappear, the world would regenerate back to the rich state of equilibrium that existed ten thousand years ago. If insects were to vanish, the environment would collapse into chaos.” Comforting words, but I still plan on using my fly swatter.
Max Sherman is a medical writer and pharmacist retired from the medical device industry. His new book “Science Snippets” is available from Amazon and other book sellers. It contains a number of previously published columns. He can be reached by email at [email protected].
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