Mayfly invasion! It’s a good thing?

by Marianne Gasaway

Clear Project Coordinator Jim Sholly freely admits he’s “an oddball.”  He likes Mayflies

Right now, he might be the only one.

Mayflies, also known as “midges,” have invaded Clear Lake.  They are plastered on houses.  They splatter on cars like tiny rounds of buckshot. They are visible swarms in the air and seem to have a strange magnetic attraction to people.   They litter the ground when their short lives come to an end, blowing into visible drifts like the fallout of a January blizzard.   In short, they are annoying.  Harmless, but annoying.

But not to Sholly.

“It’s a great thing— a positive sign that our lake is clean,” he explained.  “I know I’m the oddball here, but I know their life history.  This species is one of the first to die when lakes or streams are polluted.  When there is sediment, pollution, acidity and toxins come

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in, this will be one of the first species lost.  If you have clean water, you will have mayflies.”

Mayflies spend most of their life as aquatic larvae or nymphs.  Ironically, Sholly said they make his water quality testing a bit of a challenge at this time of year because they are literally rising up out of the water and pelting him.

“They cocoon at the bottom of the lake, metamorph to adult form, rise up, fly away and live two days,” said Sholly.  In their short life span midges, which have no mouth, reproduce and die.

Those living on the south shore of Clear Lake usually experience the worst of the mayfly hatch.  That can be attributed to the prevailing north winds.   On the plus side to the mayfly madness, a healthy batch of midges provides food for fish, dragonfly nymphs, and birds.  In fact, Sholly notes that fish go into a bit of a feeding frenzy during this time of the year.  It’s typically a great time to land a big one.

“They ramp up and it’s horrible for about two weeks.  We should be on the downhill side of things now,” he said. “There will be a second round later in the year, but it won’t be as bad.  It’s springtime around the lake.”

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