Cheese Skipper vs Rain Fly

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Cheese Skipper Rain Fly
Scientific Name Piophila casei Haematopota crassicornis
Order Diptera Diptera
Family Piophilidae Tabanidae
Size 3-5 mm 9-12 mm
Habitat Caves Rivers & Streams
Diet Omnivores Blood Feeders
Regions Cosmopolitan Europe, Central Asia
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Cheese Skipper

A small fly whose larvae infest stored cheese, cured meats, and other protein-rich foods. Larvae can leap up to 15 cm by curling and snapping their bodies.

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Did You Know?

Sardinian casu marzu cheese is deliberately infested with its larvae as a delicacy.

Rain Fly

A medium-sized cleg with mottled grey wings and iridescent green eyes. It is most active in humid overcast weather before thunderstorms.

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Did You Know?

Its activity increases dramatically before rainstorms, hence the common name 'rain fly'.