Super Fly

to the rank odor of sweaty clothing I had hung up to dry, the mother fly had laid her eggs on the unclean garments, and when I had re-donned them thinking I could get away with a second wearing, the maggots, stirred by my body heat, had emerged to tunnel through my skin. Burrowed headfirst into my flesh, the hungry grubs breathed through a miniscule hole at the surface. My four tiny wounds were painless, but itchy.

 

I should say that while the label man-eater is technically true, this was not the sort of consumption that has given certain sharks and tigers their ill-deserved reputations. I wasn't about to lose a limb or spill blood. Nevertheless, it is disconcerting to discover another creature gnawing away at your flesh, however small. Suddenly, my own lunch was displaced by a new priority concerning someone else's: I wanted them out!

 

An hour later, while I posed for photos at our campsite along the Luvuvhu River, Braack instructed me on how to remove the maggots:

 

"Just rub a little Vaseline over the opening, and you'll be able to squeeze them out in about 30 minutes."

 

"That's comforting," I thought. "Easy for you to say."

 

I retired to a shady spot with a tube of Vaseline and a good book. An hour later I had expressed three pearly-white, rice-grain-size maggots. The fourth one held out until the next day.

 

Not only was I the only human on the trip to host African skin maggots, but I was at that time the only person in history to host them at our location, according to a delighted Braack. Common though they are, African skin maggots had not been recorded that far south on the African continent. I was soon being lovingly referred to as "the ecosystem" by my comrades, and I became the butt of hygiene humor for the remainder of the trip. Apparently, none of them caught the irony that I, the only vegetarian in the whole group, should be the one whose flesh was deemed most suitable for consumption by a f

reasons for not reaching automatically for the swatter or bug spray at the first sign of buzzing. Without flies, crimes would go unsolved, flowers unpollinated, and garbage unremoved. Indeed, flies are clearly so vital to life on earth that a world without flies would quickly experience ecological collapse. Tim Flannery, The New York Review of Books

Biologist Balcombe (What a Fish Knows: The Inner Lives of Our Underwater Cousins) fascinates with this deep dive into the world of flies In often humorous prose, starting with a depiction of his own discovery that his body had been infiltrated by maggots on a research trip to South Africa, Balcombe reveals the intricate hidden world of these insects, generally dismissed as buzzing, biting pests In vivid prose, Balcombe perfectly illustrates the complexity of the natural world. Armchair naturalists will find this a stunning and welcome complement to similar volumes such as The Lives of Bees: The Untold Story of the Honey Bee in the Wild or The Soul of an Octopus. Publisher's Weekly (Starred review)

With thorough research and a knack for witty turns of phrase, Balcombe achieves his aim of inspiring, wonder at the diversity, complexity, and success, of a largely disliked group of animals. He also succeeds in highlighting the vital role they play in the ecosystem. Spectrum Culture

Written with infectious passion and a large dose of empathy, Super Fly is bound to astonish and delight you. Combining science with story-telling, and clarity with grace and humor, Balcombe shows a willingness to go where others have been hesitant to venture. I cannot recommend this book highly enough." Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson, Ph.D., author of When Elephants Weep

Just when you thought humans were the dominant animal on the planet, Jonathan Balcombe swoops in with his characteristically entertaining prose to remind us that for each one of us, there are actually 17 million flies. Yet how much do we know about these ubiquitous and important creatures? After reading their riveting story here, you'll not only cure yourself of Diptera ignorance, but you'll have the most interesting stories to tell at any party you attend." Paul Shapiro, author of Clean Meat: How Growing Meat Without Animals Will Revolutionize Dinner and the World.
 
"Read this engaging and well researched book and learn why we can't live without flies and other insects: Then understand and respect their "ecological services" and wonder about what and how they may feel with many senses and abilities far more developed than our own." Michael W. Fox, veterinarian, ethologist and author of Animals and Nature First.
 
True to form, Jonathan Balcombe's deep interest in flies nicely follows his work on the behavior and cognitive and emotional lives of fishes, nonhumans who numerous people think as merely edible streams of protein. In Super Fly, Balcombe clearly shows that flies are complex and wonderful beings not disposable or swattable pests who are dumb and unfeeling but rather individuals whose lives matter to them and whose existence should and must matter to us. I can only hope that when people get done reading this highly unique, important, and fact-filled book they will show flies and other marginalized animals the respect they truly deserve. We can learn a lot about ourselves by peering into the remarkable lives of these remarkable insects."
Marc Bekoff, author of The Animals' Agenda and A Dog's World: Imagining the Lives of Dogs in a World Without Humans (both with Jessica Pierce).

Our planet is home to over 160,000 species of flies, from microscopic midges to giant robber flies that can take down a hummingbird wingless flies, flies that swim underwater, blood-sucking flies, flies that live in rhinoceros stomachs. Combining meticulous research with superb story-telling, Super Fly covers every aspect of the behavior, biology, and impact on humanity of creatures that are annoying, deadly, and fascinating. This book cements Jonathan Balcombe s status as one of today s best science writers, and it will make you think twice the next time you pick up a fly-swatter." Hal Herzog, author of Some We Love, Some We Hate, Some We Eat: Why It s So Hard To Think Straight About Animals.
 
About any topic at all, Jonathan Balcombe is a fluid and engaging writer, and I have devoured his previous books. This one does not disappoint, offering an entertaining tour of a highly accomplished group of mini-beasts. Read it, learn, and maybe find yourself empathizing in ways you would have thought impossible." Bruce Friedrich, Founder & Executive Director, The Good Food Institute

"Jonathan Balcombe has long been a respected voice for the "other animals", providing us with insightful and empathetic views of the inner lives of mostly misunderstood corners of the animal kingdom. In Super Fly he again combines his skills as a researcher with his mastery of the narrative to expose the inner workings of the most ubiquitous order of animals, the true flies."
Stephen A. Marshall, Ph.D., University of Guelph, author of FLIES: The Natural History and Diversity of Diptera
 
"Imagine a talented writer who learns almost everything there is to know about flies.  Now envision the writer organizing those learnings into a readable and digestible summary, into something that renders flies not only relevant but fascinating, and that, in the end, inspires thoughts that go far beyond the book s stated topic.  And with this you have Jonathan Balcombe s Super Fly, a celebration of life viewed through a group of insects as delightfully complex as anyone could hope to encounter." Bill Streever, biologist and bestselling author of Cold and In Oceans Deep
 
Super Fly weaves together a remarkable story of the lives of flies. Against a backdrop where most people find flies disgusting and harmful, Balcombe shows how noxious species are but a tiny sector in an otherwise vastly diverse and interesting group. He presents an intriguing tale of their remarkable behaviours, their ecological importance and nearly ubiquitous presence on our planet. And perhaps most important, his delightful writing reveals the wonder and beauty present in the world of these small creatures." Art Borkent, Ph.D., Research Associate of the Royal British Columbia Museum and the American Museum of Natural History

"I envy a non-biologist reading Super Fly. I've been studying zoology for almost half a century, and still learned a lot of really cool stuff from this book. For a non-specialist, it will be a magic portal into the world of arguably Nature's most diverse, colorful and overall fascinating creatures. The book has everything we've come to expect of Jonathan Balcombe's work: it is amazingly well-researched, beautifully written, and, so rarely in our times, 100% scientifically accurate. I am really happy I'm receiving a free copy for writing this review because I have two small kids who I'm sure will enjoy it immensely as soon as they grow up a bit." Vladimir Dinets, Ph.D., author of Dragon Songs and Peterson's Guide to Finding Mammals
 
"Jonathan Balcombe's Super Fly is an unexpected and utterly fascinating journey into the world of these little understood and largely diminutive creatures that most of us never give a second thought to. The beauty, diversity, lifestyles, astonishing adaptations and, dare I say it, the intelligence and emotions of flies, are all comprehensively and eloquently presented in Super Fly. Just as Balcombe did in What A Fish Knows, a book that changed the way many of us view our aquatic cousins, Super Fly should do the same for our far more distant insect relations. And, perhaps most importantly, Super Fly persuasively suggests that perhaps there shouldn't be any limits to our circle of compassion. I will never think the same way about flies again." Rob Laidlaw, Executive Director, Zoocheck Inc.

"We go through life unaware of the incredibly diverse and abundant world of insects that surround us. Too often, insects are vilified.  Flies especially get a bad rap. Think flies and we tend to focus on malaria, yellow fever, and cholera. And yet, we could not survive without flies. In Super Fly, animal behaviorist Jonathan Balcombe zooms in on the fascinating world of flies like no one else has.  Jonathan writes in such an engaging and often humorous manner, I never thought I would say this about a book on flies: But I loved this book! Aysha Akhtar, MD, MPH, author of Our Symphony with Animals: On Health, Empathy and Our Shared Destinies.
 
"Super Fly consists of fascinating facts about flies interspersed with the author's interesting anecdotes relating to these rarely remarked upon creatures. Dr. Balcombe succeeds in inspiring wonder at the diversity and complexity of flies and showing the vital role they play on our planet." Sonia Faruqi, author of Project Animal Farm and The Oyster Thief
 
"Balcombe is back with his continuing project to make all animals matter. With Superfly, we learn not only that flies are foundational to life on earth but that they are themselves wondrous beings. With his life-long love of and devotion to all living beings, Balcombe combines the scientific and the personal and, as well, the microscopic and the telescopic. It is no exaggeration to claim that we have here a new genre which allows us to appreciate both the gravitas and the lightness of all being. Move over, Goodall and Bekoff." Kenneth Shapiro, PhD, Board President, Animals and Society Institute

A lively, lucid exploration everything you ever wanted to know about flies and then some. Kirkus reviews