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Show 185 Brine Flies The only noxious insects that are produced in the saline water of the Great Salt Lake are two species of brine flies, Ephydra cinerea Jones ( gracilis Aldrich) which is the smallest and most abundant, and Ephydra hians Say. These species do not feed on man or other animals but become objectionable at times to those using the beaches because of their great numbers. The adults, living and dead, accumulate in the water and on the beaches in such great numbers that it is impossible to avoid and difficult to endure them. The pupae cases of these flies wash up on the beaches forming windrows of decaying animal matter which emits a replusive odor and in which other fly larvae develop. The brine flies are undoubtedly the most important single factor deterring people from using the beaches and waters of the Great Salt Lake. Mr. John Silver, proprietor of Silver Sands Beach, reports: Almost without exception during the heart of the tourist season, which is June, July and August, the brine fly is multitudinous and there are times when the entire beach and picnic areas are vacated by our patrons because of this obnoxious insect. . . . Not only do the bodies of the fallen insects we kill blacken our entire beach by the water's edge, but likewise the very much alive brine flies cover the Great Salt Lake waters for a good block or so out from the shore. ... On numerous occasions the air has been so thick with these insidious creatures that many of our patrons in their cars refuse to open their windows or doors and often leave our beach resort saying they will never return. ( Hansen, 1969) In a letter to the Utah Industrial Services Agency, the management of the Great Salt Lake Minerals and Chemicals Corporation claims that brine flies have interfered with work at their solar pond clearance because they plug up radiators of vehicle cooling systems, damaging equipment, and because " they occur in such abundance that they are occasionally inhaled, |