Lake flies return to the shores of Winnebago

OSHKOSH, Wis (WISS) – They’re back! Every year around this time of spring, lake flies return to the area around the shores of Lake Winnebago. 

Lake flies are vital to the ecology of Lake Winnebago. They provide food for birds and fish and, in their immature stages, are an important part of sturgeons’ diets. 

“Many species eat lake fly larvae and adults are therefore very important for the food web in Lake Winnebago,” says an article on the pesky clouds of flying insects on the Fox Wolf Watershed Alliance website. “In fact, lake fly larvae help support the sturgeon population and contribute to our large self-sustaining lake sturgeon population. Other fish species eat the larvae stages, and birds, including purple martins and warblers, eat the flying adults.”

Lake flies are regarded as pungent, noisy and annoying, but they only live for a few days: they mate, lay eggs, and start the whole life cycle over. 

It may also be interesting to note that the Fox Wolf Watershed Alliance says the flies are midges that lack functional mouth parts, so they can’t bite or even eat.