Fishfly

6086   Hi, I’m Lorraine from North Vancouver BC. This flying bug showed up on the morning of July 21, and has been resting on an exterior brick wall all day long. I live in a forested area with many hemlock and cedar trees, as well as large maples. We also have some dead or decaying trees that woodpeckers peck away at in search of bugs. The weather today was cloudy and much cooler than usual for this time of year, with a bit of light rain. The only bugs that I see regularly are spiders, ants, including carpenter ants, hornets, wasps, leatherjackets, and mosquitoes. This bug is about 3 inches long. I have never seen a bug this large. It look like a boring insect, so I’m wondering if this bug is harmful to our beautiful trees. Hope not! Lorraine, North Vancouver, BC

This is a fishfly (Megaloptera: Corydalidae; subfamily Chauliodinae); it looks like Dysmicohermes disjunctus – see https://tinyurl.com/y7gjkpkk for an image. These insects are completely harmless.   Ed Saugstad, retired entomologist; Sinks Grove, WV.