One of a large family of thin-bodied, long-legged, long-winged and generally
anorexic-looking insects of the genus
tipulidae. Very common in
England (can't vouch for the rest of the
world, although I don't remember ever seeing one whilst travelling).
Crane flies are often known as '
daddy-long-legs', and are, as far as I can make out, the only
insect species to earn this name (there are several varieties of
spiders and similar
creatures apparently also known by the
name, although not where I come from).
In the
contest for 'most bloody
irritating insect' the crane fly is a strong
contender. They are
harmless but, due presumably to their quite strong - unless you look properly and count legs -
resemblance to large flying spiders,
terrify many people, and are second only to the genus Things That
Sting in their capacity to throw an entire room into panic by appearing. They are both as stupidly blind to
windows and as impossible to catch as any
small flying thing and, once captured, tend to
shed legs at an
alarming rate, meaning that by the end of summer there are a great many two-legged ones staggering around lopsidedly.
Despite not making any noise themselves, these beasties are quite capable of making plenty by
artificial means. Their technique? They fly around whichever room they are currently occupying banging legs, wings and heads against walls,
furniture and
lampshades (and deity-of-choice help you if you have one of those
globular lampshades that
trap things) and make an amazingly loud
rattle. This, combined with their love of molesting the faces of
innocent humans, makes it almost impossible to
sleep in a room with one in.
Apart from that, they're
fine.