this post was submitted on 01 Nov 2023
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Awwnverts

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Cutie pies, sans vertebrae.

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Original post on Macro Photography, by @[email protected]

edit realised that the username in the title and post had a bit chopped off

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[–] BigBlackCockroach 6 points 11 months ago (1 children)

What do these drain flies live off of? What was their habitat before they (I assume) lived in drains?

Just in general what can you tell me about these?

[–] [email protected] 7 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago) (1 children)

According to wikipedia

'....they feed on bacteria and can become problematic...In small numbers, the larvae are sometimes considered beneficial, as their strong jaws can cut through the hair and sludge waste in drains which might otherwise form clogs....'

As to habitat prior to humans building drains and shower stalls etc, probably stagnant water, but I'm just speculating

edit according to wikipedia '...live in aquatic to semi-terrestrial or sludge-based habitats...'

[–] BigBlackCockroach 3 points 11 months ago

thank you TIL! I always wondered about these

[–] [email protected] 4 points 11 months ago

What always surprises me about these things is how fragile they are. You just press on them with your finger and they turn to dust.

[–] PlantJam 3 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Amazing photo! The drain flies I see just look like overgrown Drosophila (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drosophila_melanogaster).

[–] [email protected] 2 points 11 months ago (1 children)

It is, @[email protected] has been posting some really nice macro photos recently, they're worth checking out. I have commented on their original post that I cross posted this here, so hopefully they may start posting on awwnverts too

[–] MyOtherUsername 2 points 11 months ago (1 children)

You'll see me there after subscribing! ;)

[–] [email protected] 2 points 11 months ago

Excellent to hear! I'm looking forward to seeing your photos all across lemmy...also don't know if you're aware but there's also wildlife photography too

[–] TallonMetroid 3 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Huh, didn't know they were so fuzzy. Interesting.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 11 months ago

Neither did I, they're really quite beautiful. Unfortunately my only experience of them has been a plague of them at work, and god they're fucking annoying, harmless but annoying