I love flies. There, I said it. I can remember when I was younger and a blowfly would come inside the house and mum would lose her mind saying it was going to start laying maggots if we didn't get rid of it but she had totally missed the point because that was the BEST bit. Carefully scrunching a tissue up and under her as she buzzed around on her back, the fly that is, not my mother, and I would watch fascinated as the little larvae would wiggle and squirm from her. And no, I was not allowed to keep the babies 🤣
The more time I spending taking macro photos, the more I fall in love with these beautiful creatures. I mean, look at this member of the Nose Fly family, those eyes in particular, with their wavy, multicoloured patterns. Look closely and you'll also see all the tiny grains of pollen scattered along its hairy abdomen, stuck fast to its legs and dotted around its 'nose' and it's clear why flies are important pollinators alongside bees.
And so to all the flies I hadn't appreciated in the past, apologies. I'm all about that fly life now.
Nose Fly
Wollongong Botanic Garden
