What the 'ell are they?

West Ender · 02-07-2005, 17:06

In a bucket with a bit of rain water in it, in my garden, there are some wriggling thingies. They are about half an inch long, thin and semi transparent but with white stripes down their sides. They also have a long, thin "tail", as long as they are or even longer.

I'm assuming they are the larvae of some insect but I've never seen anything like them before. Can anyone tell me what they are?

staggeringman · 02-07-2005, 17:08

can you not take a piccie of them?

West Ender · 02-07-2005, 17:51

Quote:

Originally Posted by staggeringman

can you not take a piccie of them?

No, my daughter's borrowed my camera - she's on holiday. Someone told me they could be mosquito larvae.

Whatever they are, they're revolting.

staggeringman · 02-07-2005, 19:29

do they look like shrimps/or prawns?

dont think i have tasted out like them things you are on about...lol

West Ender · 02-07-2005, 20:00

Eeewww!

They look a bit like tiny caterpillars (I think they've got sort of rudimentary legs - lots of them) but it's the long tails, like needles. Definitely look like fly larvae but obviously like water! They are a sort of mud colour but a bit transparent but there's this wiggly white stripe down their sides (intestines? Oh god!). It's the way they're wriggling that makes them so horrible. What they will turn into doesn't bear thinking about.

WillowTheWhisp · 02-07-2005, 20:43

ugh! they sound revolting. You're not going to let them hatch out are you? They might be lethal.

Margaret Pilkington · 02-07-2005, 21:11

Put them down the drain.......who knows what they will turn into....?

West Ender · 02-07-2005, 21:31

I thought I might cover the bucket with clingfilm as I'm really curious about what they are. If they hatch into something horrific they can, and will, be well sprayed with insecticide. I don't think I'll put them down the drain - they might like it down there.

Whatever laid them in the first place is obviously around, or has been. We've had the usual flies, bluebottles and midges, a few bees and the odd wasp but I haven't noticed anything unusual.

I will keep you posted.

Less · 02-07-2005, 21:33

They are probably midge larvae, similar to mosquitos in that they need stagnant water to breed (hence life in your bucket).

click here

for a picture.

West Ender · 02-07-2005, 22:07

They don't look like that, Less. Long, thin (needle-like) tails and only the suggestion of legs. Ugly little buggers!

West Ender · 02-07-2005, 22:19

I think I've cracked it!

After more searching on the net, I think they are drone-fly larvae. They are also known as rat-tailed larvae - allegedly!

Doug · 02-07-2005, 23:23

How about these little buggers West Ender. Sleep well hun........lol

http://www.ksfandpunkin.com/aquaticinsects.htm

lettie · 03-07-2005, 15:46

Quote:

Originally Posted by West Ender

I thought I might cover the bucket with clingfilm as I'm really curious about what they are. If they hatch into something horrific they can, and will, be well sprayed with insecticide.

Oooh, experimentation, I like it...

I once had some tiny larvae type things dossing around in my old watering can, which I had left out in the garden for a few weeks. Despite checking on them every day I never got to see what they became. I never covered the can and assume that the creatures they turned into flew away. I am watching my new watering can with interest, but so far....nothing.

West Ender · 03-07-2005, 15:55

They are still there. Most of them have got down into a bit of sludge in the bottom of the bucket and their tails are sticking up to the surface. They breathe through their bums! They're not wriggling as much now (thank goodness, it was 'orrible). Reading the thing on the net again I'm pretty sure they are drone-flies (hover flies that look like bees) and I don't mind them.

Thanks to everyone for your help.

John_Timmins · 03-07-2005, 17:04

This is what i found

Drone Flies
Drone flies are also called rat-tailed maggots due to their long breathing tubes. They are also called hover flies. I discovered drone flies in my tiny pond in the Fall of 1997. This pond can be seen here. Drone flies are readily identified by their long breathing tubes which look like a long string (1-2 inches) attached to their rear. They keep the tubes sticking out of the water to breath. Their bodies look like land maggots (the kind that make many female humans scream). They are only found in shallow water without predators (fishless ponds). Drone fly larvae are thus usually in polluted (nutrient rich) waters. They writhe from plants to pond bottom and back in my pond. Unlike other flies, these flies do not sting, bite, or otherwise cause problems for humans. In fact, adults look like honeybees and pollinate flowers. My batch was in the pond from about late September to mid-November. They were hardy, surviving a number of shallow freezes. One species of drone fly is Eristalis tenax whose adult is 0.5 inches and larvae 1.5 inches.

Drone-fly Larva

(Rat-tailed Maggot)

http://www.cornwallwildlifetrust.org...k/dronefly.jpg

Turns into one of these