I started a bucket of liquid compost for plants I don't want in the other composts. I haven't had a lid on it and now it's got these larvae/maggoty things living it. They're whitish, a couple of centimetres long when at their biggest, and they have thin tails maybe a cm long. They seem to swim around a bit. Kinda creepy but intriguing too. Any idea what they are, and what if anything I can do about them? I guess I should cover the bin... hot dry inland maritime climate, approaching summer.
There's also a couple of clusters of bright white elongated eggs today. I haven't been around so I don't know what's been flying there apart from blowflies.
Looks like it might be a rat-tailed maggot: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rat-tailed_maggot These turn into hover flies 8)
I reckon sunburn's right and you'll get hoverflies. I'd leave the (really hideous looking) maggots to do their thing. I never see honey bees around, bumblebees and hoverflies are my main pollinators.
The chooks and ducks will go NUTS when you give them a few handfuls of the lovely wriggly fellas..... What a bonus!
I haven't got any chooks and ducks, maybe I can give some to the seagulls ;-) I'm worried now because the grubs need to be able to crawl out onto something in order to do their next part of the cycle. I think I'll have to build some wee hoverfly ladders and maybe a jetty.
"I think I'll have to build some wee hoverfly ladders and maybe a jetty." A floating dock and ramp? Sue
If these are the same guys that freaked me out as a kid, they can heave themselves up the convex inside of a plastic drum, no sweat.
The insects I know as hoverflies don't have aquatic larvae. I have experienced these guys myself and yes they are very ugly I believe they are called drone flies, well in Australia anyway. They do pollinate, but they are largish and very much a fly, unlike the dainty little wasp like insect that is my understanding of a hoverfly. : )
Apparently droneflies are part of the hoverfly family. I've always called them hoverflies, but looks like the name could cover a few beasties. As for the fly in the link, it's familiar, but I've always filed it under 'random unnamed thing doing its thing'.
You're right Pippimac, There are over 6000 different species of hoverflies World wide. I was mainly thinking from my experience with our common Aussie hoverflies. : )