The Mass Mating of the Tisza Mayflies! |
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Between the end of spring and the
beginning of a new summer, the Tisza River in Hungary is host to one of
the most incredible natural phenomena, as millions of long tailed
mayflies form huge masses and rise from the water, flutter and dance
above the surface, mate, flutter and perish, all in a few hours.
In addition to stunning photos, you can jump to a video of this amazing creature.
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This amazing event may last for 3-4
days, and is commonly known as the "Blooming of the Tisza". The Tisza
mayfly was named after the river it is found in, and is the largest
species of mayfly in Europe. Their average length is about 12 cm (4.7
inches) from head to long tail. However, most of their lives - 3 years -
they spend as larva living in the mud at the bottom of the river. After
hatching, they are pressed for time; the males have only hours to find
females and mate with them before they die.
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As a result, the males swarm and
dance above the river, trying to mate with the females on the surface.
After mating, the females will fly upstream (because their eggs will
drift with the current of the river) and deposit their eggs along the
way. The eggs will drift and after 45 days, hatch into the larva. The
larva then create tunnels in the mud, creating crude and densely
populated colonies. 3 years later, the cycle begins anew.
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With the males having barely 3 hours
to carry out the biggest mission of their lives and all of the hatching
happening at once, the sight of the synchronized dancing of these
millions of insects is astounding. As you will see in the photos below,
their numbers are so great that at times it is impossible to drive on
nearby bridges and roads! Also, after mating, most of these mayflies
die, which means huge piles of them need to be cleared off the roads.
They are harmless to people and so many gather to watch this incredible
display - a mass mating dance.
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From a
biological point of view, the advantages of this huge, synchronized
hatch are obvious: as insects can only mate in their adult stage, by
synchronizing the hatch, the chance of finding a partner is maximized,
which is very important for species with such a short adult life stage.
Furthermore, predators like bats or birds are surprised by this sudden
appearance of clouds of prey, and so can hunt only a small fraction of
the population.
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samedi 27 septembre 2014
The Mass Mating of the Tisza Mayflies!
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