Mayflies (I think?) on the Susquehanna River

Gretchen said "I hear something" as we checked out the Riverwalk in the dark. I didn't hear anything. Maybe something, or maybe I only thought I did because she said she heard something. So we walked down the steps to the surface of the river and against the lights on the bridge we could see the "something." Mayflies. I guess they were mayflies. Millions and millions and millions of mayflies, swarming along the river. Not just darting over the surface, but moving steadily upstream like a snowcloud. It was amazing. When we got up to the street, they had arrived there as well.



People were coming out to look -- just as if it WERE a snowfall in July. And of course you had to have the pretty thing screaming loudly in fake fright as they got tangled in her very pretty hair when she got out of the car with her buddies under a streetlight. But you can't really blame her. There were a lot of flies out there. Gretchen and I didn't scream but we did run pretty fast crossing the bridge street where they were pouring in off the river.

Amazing. I wish there had been a way to take a photo of the masses moving up the river. Even so, I don't think a photograph could have captured the vastness.

Fascinating stuff about mayflies here.