That’s a lot of mayflies!

Posted by Les on Monday, July 10, 2006 at 11:43 AM. Read 649 times. Tags:
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Take a look at this weather radar image:

Bad rainstorm, right? Or perhaps snow? No, that image is the result of a gigantic hatch of mayflies:

The bugs were so thick that they showed up as a rainstorm of mayflies on National Weather Service radar.

For about 1 1/2 hours starting at 9 p.m., the insects drifted north, with the radar showing them blanketing areas along the Mississippi River.

“They were dive-bombing in the root beer floats,” said Gary Rudy, owner of Rudy’s Drive-In, whose family has been slinging burgers and soft drinks since 1966.

“It hasn’t been that bad in a long time.”

We get swarms of mayflies in the Detroit area around this time of year as well, mainly in the Downriver areas, and it appears it can get bad enough around these parts for local radar to pick them up as well as shown in this NOAA radar sequence from 2001. Which is just one more reason I’m glad I don’t live in the Downriver area.

Link via Boing Boing.

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Mrs SEB United States Posted on 07/10/2006 at 01:43 PM

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zewwww

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if it does not include the freedom to make mistakes.
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Dustin United States Posted on 07/10/2006 at 11:33 PM

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“zewwww”
Lol, you have no idea.  It was mild here last year, but as you can see the bugs are in full force.  I’ve already forgotten the feeling of walking on the sidewalk and not hearing “crunch crunch” with every step....

LuckyJohn19 Australia Posted on 07/10/2006 at 11:54 PM

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Well all I can say is: thank god they’re not locusts.
The xians would be having a ‘field’ day. LOL

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I’ve discovered that it all boils down to brain wiring: your brain is wired to worship magic or it isn’t, either it’s wired to utilize logic or it isn’t, either it’s analytical of myths or it isn’t.

BeefStew United States Posted on 07/11/2006 at 06:15 PM

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Good thing there’s no such thing as ‘global warming’.

If there was, then the winters would be sufficiently cold to kill off many of these bugs, thereby reducing their numbers during the summer months.

Oh, wait…

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