CALUMET COUNTY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – Lake Winnebago is buzzing yet again.
“There’s this buzzing, like there’s a beehive or something!” said Cheryl Hauswirth of Grafton, Wis.
No, it’s not a swarm of bees you hear at Calumet County Park, it’s that time of year – the invasion of our pesky little friends, the lake flies, and they are all over the shorelines and campgrounds.
“In my experience, they’re not too bad this year, yet,” Calumet County Parks Department office and program manager Lindsay Meyer said. “We saw the hatch begin this Sunday, so it kinda started with a few flies showing up.”
This year, there was a little hope that the flies just might’ve taken the year off at being a nuisance for once, but that was not to be. Their arrival was simply delayed.
“With the weather being a little odd this spring – going from cool weather to really, really warm, they seemed to be delayed about a week/week and a half, or so,” said Meyer.
Parks department officials are thinking now, with warmer temps, they may see an increase in numbers.
Cheryl Hauswirth has already experienced the uptick, seeing the little insects coating part of her and her husband’s RV.
“The roof of it and the sides, just full of them, ‘cause they must’ve been attracted to the warmth, I suppose, of that canvas,” she said.
The Calumet County Parks Department sent out an email to campers, letting them know that they just don’t know how bad these lake flies are going to get and that they can cancel their reservations without any fee.
“’If anyone would like to move or cancel their reservation, please respond to the park office,’” Hauswirth said, reading the email on her phone aloud. “So, they’re offering that; you have the option, and you won’t lose your fee, or anything, ‘cause they’re just worried about people coming in, and then just complaining!”
“About twice as big as the ones we’ve got here!” he said. “Some guy forgot and parked his convertible under a street light, and when he woke up the next morning, there were six inches of dead May flies in it.”
As pesky as lake flies might be, there are some who crave seeing them around.
Experts say the fly emergence typically happens on Mother’s Day, so they’re a bit late this year. But the flies only stick around for about a week or so.
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