Crane Flies

Information about these harmless flies

Table of Contents

• General Information
• Life Cycles
• Craneflies are NOT mosquitoes!

Crane Flies are harmless valley residents that tend to come out in large numbers in the early summertime. Craneflies cannot sting or bite you, in fact most adult craneflies don’t even eat!

Facts:
Craneflies vary from 1/4’’ - 1 1/2’’ long
Craneflies cannot sting or bite
Cranefly larvae eat grass roots and are called “leatherjackets”

The larvae of craneflies live in soil and along streambanks and tend to eat grassroots and may eat some small insects. They are also called daddy long legs and mosquito hawks, but they are neither a spider nor do they eat mosquitoes as adults.

Craneflies differ from mosquitoes in that they are typically larger (around this area), they cannot bite or sting, they have no scales on their wings, and they have halteres (small knobs behind their wings). If you have craneflies around your home, DON’T WORRY, they will not hurt you and will die out in several weeks!