Lovebugs

Written By Michelle Jamesson

Plecia nearctica

 
 

Also known as march flies, double-headed bugs, honeymoon flies, and other word combinations that are not repeatable.

Chapter 1 Lovebug Season

 

Florida isn’t known for having seasons.

 
 

But it totally does!

They just look different here. There’s the wet season, dry season, tourist season, hurricane season, and the squished lovebug guts on your car season.

 
 

Twice a year lovebugs appear all over Florida in huge numbers. For a few weeks in April - May and then again in
August - September, you can find them everywhere. 
On your car, your dog, your hair, your freshly painted house,
and probably on the Publix sub you just unwrapped too.

 
 

Bug bodies literally mark the
change of early and late summer.

 
 

Chapter 2 Lifestages

 

Most people only see lovebugs when they’re in their adult form, as small, winged bugs doing it on your sandwich.

They’re entirely black except for their thoraxes, which appear to be throbbing red, perhaps with the passion they have for each other.

 
 

But they're only in that sexy fly stage for a few days.

Before that, they spend 4 - 8 months as blind, worm-like larvae on the ground, wriggling around looking for decaying vegetation to gorge on.

 
 

Eventually, they pupate for about a week and then 
emerge from the dirt together as hundreds of
shagadelic superflies looking for love. 

 
 

From egg to adult, the lovebug life cycle takes between four and nine months, depending on when they're born. (More yummy decay to grow on in the Summer than the Winter.)  

Then the love fest starts all over again. 

 
 

Chapter 3 The Swarm

 

Males start the swarm first.

When the air temp warms up close to 69 F they take flight,
competing with each other to be closer to the
ground where the females are watching.

When a female joins the swarm she often gets
grabbed immediately by an enthusiastic male who might
get pushed off by an even bigger, more enthusiastic male.

 
 

This push-and-shove frenzy continues until all are
paired or too tired to care anymore.

The newly formed couples stay attached for the next several days. Or at least for the 12.5 hours it takes for sperm to transfer. During this time they walk together, fly together, eat together, rest together, and fly onto your sandwich together.

 
 

When they disperse the male often dies.
The female lays her 100 - 300 eggs and then dies.
Or sometimes they find another mate and do it all over again. And then die.


All this happens over a period of 3 - 4 days.
Then the cycle starts all over again. 2 generations a year.

There are worse ways to live. 

 

Chapter 4 The Myths

 

There are a lot of myths surrounding lovebugs.
Here are a few: 

Myth # 1- Lovebugs escaped from labs at the University of Florida where they were being bred for mosquito control.

Nope. They are a naturally occurring species native to South and Central America. Thanks to highways, pastures and lawns, they expanded their range into Texas in the 1940s and then continued to push east.

By the 1970s they were established in Florida.

 
 

And mosquito control? Lovebugs would be a terrible choice.

They are small, slow, eat pollen and nectar and are only active during the day, not at night like mosquitos. They don’t have jaws, grasping legs, or anything else that makes them predatory. Except for the sex drive they have for each other. UF labs would have to work real hard to make these lovers into mosquito fighters. 

 
 

Myth #2 - Lovebugs are attracted to automobiles
and their guts are acidic.

Not technically. But they are attracted to exhaust fumes.
They confuse exhaust chemical odors with decaying organic matter odors, which is what they follow to lay their eggs.

They are also attracted to heat. So the warm, humid,
sunny areas of highways plus the enticing exhaust aroma
are super seductive to lovebugs.

 
 

That explains why so many end up squished on cars.
Their squished body guts are not acidic but they can
damage paint if left to bake in the sun for several days. 

 
 
 

Myth #3 - Insecticides work on lovebugs.

Insecticides will kill lovebugs, but not enough to make a big difference. There are just too many of them. Spraying also kills other beneficial insects too and adds health risks for humans and pets.

Why bother trying to kill lovebugs anyway?

They are not poisonous, they don’t bite, sting, or transmit diseases. They don’t threaten human health or the environment. Some could say they are actually helpful to the environment, considering they turn decaying vegetation into fresh, new soil in their larval stage and are pollinators in their adult stage. Plus, their population is already in decline, along with bees, butterflies, fireflies, and so many other insects.

 
 

It’s hard to know if it is pollution, insecticides, development, loss of habitat, pathogens, changes in climate, too many run-ins with cars, or a combination of all that’s bringing their numbers down. But hopefully, we can find a way to bring all of our insects back. Even if that means washing bug guts off our cars twice a year. We can only hope to be that lucky. 

 
 
 
Michelle Jamesson
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