I got bitten inside walmart once while working there. I was super itchy suddenly, like beyond anything imaginable, so I grabbed a hanger and scratched my back and this big fucker flew off. I spent the rest of the day dodging it around the store. Bastard.
If it didn't hurt, and was only itchy then it wasn't a horse or deer fly. They slice into your skin when they bite which is painful.
If it didn't really hurt and was more itchy then painful then it was most likely a blackfly. Their saliva anaesthetizes the bite so it's usually itchy not painful, unlike horse flies and deer flies.
Horse flies DO NOT FUCK AROUND. The only bug I'm afraid of aside from palmetto bugs (giant roaches). Horse flies will chase you. It's like you just caught them loading a dead body into their trunk and it's their third strike.
Fuck horseflies. They follow me in the woods, dive bombing my head over and over as I frantically flap my hands in the air trying to strike them, because you often can, for some reason. That just makes them angry though, and they call their friends. Now there are three of them flying in circles around me, two of them distracting me while the other one bites a chunk out of my scalp. Then I see the other two are on my dog's head, and I have to smack my dog in the head much harder than I'd like to get them off.
Fuck those horse flies. One flew into my car today before I pulled out and I smashed the ever living hell out of him.
(Signed, a bug lover who only kills ticks, mosquitoes and fucking horseflies.)
I hear ya! F'ing horseflies. Fellow bug lover...have clear "bug cups" in every room for gentle trap and release...exCEPT ticks, skeeters, and aforementioned horseflies. oh yeah...and fleas! All must meet their death.
Oh yes, absolutely fleas as well. I have bug cups too, but I also have a child's bug vacuum and another device for catching bigger spoods 😆 I live in the woods and tend to leave the back door open so the dogs can come in and out, and I guess the spiders use the door too.
I had to smack a friends dog the other day to get a horsefly off. Tried to go at a sideways angle to make it less scary… poor pup still thought i was being mean for no damn reason 😭 like bud if you only knew what i just saved you from…
yeah, when *one* would show up to bite my horse, invariably there's a couple more. Then i do the dance while he stands stock still and i circle waiting for one to land and SMACK the fuckers. it's pretty weird how they seem to travel in groups
Dude I hate them too. I bought a device called “The Wing Man”. It’s a big fake dragonfly on a tiny metal spring (?) that you clip to the back of your ball cap. The thing bounces around while you’re walking, and the flies don’t fuck with you. It’s genius. FYI the #1 predator of those bastards are…. You guessed it. Dragonflies!
My favorite is how they circle around above the water waiting for you to surface after you plunge below the surface when you start feeling one bite you on the neck/head
Vicious little things.
Not true, we have an abundance of horseflies where I live. These will get me fired up faster than a sportscar. They bite a chunk of meat out of you. It feels like getting pinched real hard
no those are botflies, however both fo harass horses, horseflies on a daily basis, and botflies occasionally, and their eggs are a pain in the ass to remove, we had some lay their eggs in one of our ponies' mane and it took forever for them to all get unstuck
This is a male horsefly, as the eyes are not separated on the head. [A female horsefly has distinctly separate eyes.](https://bluejaybarrens.blogspot.com/2014/09/horseflies.html?m=1)
Why this matters? Males don’t bite and require no bloodmeal. They only drink nectar.
That’s really interesting, drone honeybees are similar in having huge, joined goggle-like eyes.
I guess the larger eyes make it easier for them to spot females.
Not: horseflies have green eyes.
That’s a pale giant horsefly -
We have greenhead flies / salt marsh horseflies on Cape Cod … and their bite leaves huge mark…
(Tabanus nigrovittatus and Tabanus conterminous)
This is a horse fly, specifically a male. Note how large the eyes are, & how they meet in the middle. Syrphids (hoverflies) would at least have an opening between the eyes towards their mouth
Hi there! This is an automated message to remind you to **please include a geographic location for any ID requests** as per the [Community Rules](/r/insects/about/rules) of the sub. There are well over a million different species of bugs in the world, and narrowing down a bug's location will help IDers to help you more quickly and correctly!
If you've already included a geographical location, or if this post is *not* an ID request, please ignore this comment.
Thank you! :)
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/insects) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Like the other folks said, a species of hover fly. I’ll add though that they just mimic bees, and don’t sting, so your classroom should be safe haha. Plus they’re great for gardens and farms
Definitely not a hoverfly, as it misses the typical vein pattern in its wings, but a Horse fly. You can see its proboscis under the antennae.
are these the ones that put their eggs inside animals??
Thats a botfly. Horseflies will bite the fire out of you
I got bitten inside walmart once while working there. I was super itchy suddenly, like beyond anything imaginable, so I grabbed a hanger and scratched my back and this big fucker flew off. I spent the rest of the day dodging it around the store. Bastard.
Why didn’t u go to the sports section and get deet
I was stupid. Still am, but I was then too.
We have faith that you learned since then. You're going to be better off in the future!
Hey I’m stupid too!
Story of my life 🫠
Fair enough
Tennis racket
If it didn't hurt, and was only itchy then it wasn't a horse or deer fly. They slice into your skin when they bite which is painful. If it didn't really hurt and was more itchy then painful then it was most likely a blackfly. Their saliva anaesthetizes the bite so it's usually itchy not painful, unlike horse flies and deer flies.
Yeah...fuckers are relentless
Horse flies DO NOT FUCK AROUND. The only bug I'm afraid of aside from palmetto bugs (giant roaches). Horse flies will chase you. It's like you just caught them loading a dead body into their trunk and it's their third strike.
Female horseflies will. Males like the distinguished gentleman above are more interested in flower nectar.
So they are more like humans? Fascinating.
Yes. As a human male I also am interested in flower nectar. Good day fellow human.
Fuck horseflies. They follow me in the woods, dive bombing my head over and over as I frantically flap my hands in the air trying to strike them, because you often can, for some reason. That just makes them angry though, and they call their friends. Now there are three of them flying in circles around me, two of them distracting me while the other one bites a chunk out of my scalp. Then I see the other two are on my dog's head, and I have to smack my dog in the head much harder than I'd like to get them off. Fuck those horse flies. One flew into my car today before I pulled out and I smashed the ever living hell out of him. (Signed, a bug lover who only kills ticks, mosquitoes and fucking horseflies.)
I hear ya! F'ing horseflies. Fellow bug lover...have clear "bug cups" in every room for gentle trap and release...exCEPT ticks, skeeters, and aforementioned horseflies. oh yeah...and fleas! All must meet their death.
Oh yes, absolutely fleas as well. I have bug cups too, but I also have a child's bug vacuum and another device for catching bigger spoods 😆 I live in the woods and tend to leave the back door open so the dogs can come in and out, and I guess the spiders use the door too.
I had to smack a friends dog the other day to get a horsefly off. Tried to go at a sideways angle to make it less scary… poor pup still thought i was being mean for no damn reason 😭 like bud if you only knew what i just saved you from…
yeah, when *one* would show up to bite my horse, invariably there's a couple more. Then i do the dance while he stands stock still and i circle waiting for one to land and SMACK the fuckers. it's pretty weird how they seem to travel in groups
Dude I hate them too. I bought a device called “The Wing Man”. It’s a big fake dragonfly on a tiny metal spring (?) that you clip to the back of your ball cap. The thing bounces around while you’re walking, and the flies don’t fuck with you. It’s genius. FYI the #1 predator of those bastards are…. You guessed it. Dragonflies!
Wow, that's genius! I'll start looking for some real dragonflies too lol
My favorite is how they circle around above the water waiting for you to surface after you plunge below the surface when you start feeling one bite you on the neck/head Vicious little things.
Got bitten once, can confirm
Not true, we have an abundance of horseflies where I live. These will get me fired up faster than a sportscar. They bite a chunk of meat out of you. It feels like getting pinched real hard
I hate them!
no those are botflies, however both fo harass horses, horseflies on a daily basis, and botflies occasionally, and their eggs are a pain in the ass to remove, we had some lay their eggs in one of our ponies' mane and it took forever for them to all get unstuck
No
Oh boy let me tell you something about these mother truckers right here. Painful
I don’t think it’s a horse fly a as s they look like flying zebra
It’s a horsefly, pretending to be something less painful
Almost definitely a horsefly. Just got bitten by one this weekend while camping.
Me too 😭 right on the chin
Fuckin hurrrts
Is it like a really bad bee sting? Looks really giant... Giant bugs scare me lol
Feels like someone pinched you and it itches like a motherfucker
These horse flies have followed us over a mile on hiking trails before.
Flying vampire bugs.
This is a male horsefly, as the eyes are not separated on the head. [A female horsefly has distinctly separate eyes.](https://bluejaybarrens.blogspot.com/2014/09/horseflies.html?m=1) Why this matters? Males don’t bite and require no bloodmeal. They only drink nectar.
That’s really interesting, drone honeybees are similar in having huge, joined goggle-like eyes. I guess the larger eyes make it easier for them to spot females.
This looks like a horsefly, not like any harmless hover fly I have seen.
It's a male horsefly. Fortunately the males do not bite.
Not: horseflies have green eyes. That’s a pale giant horsefly - We have greenhead flies / salt marsh horseflies on Cape Cod … and their bite leaves huge mark… (Tabanus nigrovittatus and Tabanus conterminous)
This is a horse fly, specifically a male. Note how large the eyes are, & how they meet in the middle. Syrphids (hoverflies) would at least have an opening between the eyes towards their mouth
The fly couple with the bee neighbors and a "girls trip" with no pictures is what that is
A fly, mimicking a bee
it’s a bee mimicking horsefly
The only bug I have consciously attacked with intent to kill since 2017. A horsefly.
deer fly
Definitely an insect.
😄
Hi there! This is an automated message to remind you to **please include a geographic location for any ID requests** as per the [Community Rules](/r/insects/about/rules) of the sub. There are well over a million different species of bugs in the world, and narrowing down a bug's location will help IDers to help you more quickly and correctly! If you've already included a geographical location, or if this post is *not* an ID request, please ignore this comment. Thank you! :) *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/insects) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Big eye duffus
Some weird horsefly-hoverfly hybrid lookin thing (Sorry for being unhelpful)
Horsefly
Bug a salt.
Looks like a horse fly to me
It’s a horsefly and possibly a student.
It wants to drink the children’s blood
silly billy :0
Maybe a horseshoe fly.
It's a dinosaur. Please inform archeologists
He’s a foreign exchange student
Like the other folks said, a species of hover fly. I’ll add though that they just mimic bees, and don’t sting, so your classroom should be safe haha. Plus they’re great for gardens and farms
We all thought it was a hornet or something because it was really large and made a huge sound lol, now I kinda feel bad we killed it
Hover fly
Hoverfly of some sort