Hurricane Rainfall Brings More Horseflies to Texas

Buckle up, Texas, because we are about to move on to the second plague following Hurricane Beryl. That's right. HORSEFLIES.

If you, somehow, are unfamiliar with these bundles of joy, horseflies are not your average fly.

What are horseflies?

You see, horseflies are much bigger than common flies, growing up to an inch long with large colorful eyes.

Just like your typical mosquito, only the females bite. Male horseflies usually stick to that sweet nectar rather than the blood of the living.

The females have specialized, knife-shaped mouth parts (gross) that they use to bite through skin, most often that of horse or human, and drink the blood that pools for egg production.

These bites are more annoying than anything, causing mild pain around the bite area for a few days at most.

To make them even more cool, horseflies are opportunistic feeders, meaning they aren't too picky when it comes to what blood they suck. They also are attracted to movement, dark colors and body odor.

So, as long as you shower, wear white and only stand in one place outside without moving, you should be good!

Why are horseflies emerging more in Texas?

Horseflies love wet environments and rain, especially mud that they use to lay their eggs.

The constant rainfall in parts of East Texas resulting from Hurricane Beryl have ramped up population expectations higher than what we've seen in years.