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 Cindy Burskey reported answering a call for help from a homeowner seeking help with masses of gray colored "worms" crawling across their driveway and sidewalks. The culprits were not true worms, but the larvae of one species or another of CRANE FLIES. Calls to Extension offices are common in the spring concerning writhing masses of maggots bubbling to the surface of lawns and spilling over to surrounding driveways and sidewalks. The disconcerting sight may prompt some desperate souls to seek the help of the Exorcist! The homeowner's children took a more direct approach to the problem by taking delight in stomping the maggots into oblivion … a one-way ticket to bug-Heaven.
Crane fly larvae are commonly referred to as leatherjackets because of the toughness of their body covering. Typically, these critters are found in landscape that are moist to wet and rich in organic matter. A build-up of dead turf (organic matter) in lawns that may have been impacted by disease, drought and/or insect damage may be host to large populations of leatherjackets. Crane fly larvae, along with the larvae of another fly, the March fly, are there to consume the decaying organic matter left behind after something else killed the turf.
When soaked by heavy rains in the fall and spring, this decaying organic matter is highly attractive to crane fly adults seeking egg-laying sites. The adults look like "giant mosquitoes;" however, they do not bite. They may lay many eggs into concentrated areas resulting in the development of rather large populations of maggots in those spots. It is important to note that our native species of crane flies cause no harm other than producing rapid heart palpitations in startled homeowners.
However, there is a possibility that turf could be damaged or killed by a couple of introduced species. These are the European species of crane flies that have caused major turf problems in the Pacific Northwest. The European species, Tipula paludosa and T. oleracea, feed directly on the living grass leaves and crowns and large populations can destroy well maintained turf. In the 1990's, these species were also detected in Ontario, Canada, and in 2004 they were discovered to have moved into the Buffalo, New York region. Fortunately, surveys in Ohio and surrounding states have not yet detected these foreign invaders, so any crane fly larvae found in Ohio are most likely native species.
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 10 April 2008 17:14 )
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BYGL 
