Scathophaga stercoraria is one of the most recognizable flies throughout the northern hemisphere. While they are drawn to the feces of many large animals, they really enjoy a good cow-pie. The males seek out some fresh droppings and wait for females to show up, there’s a lot of tussling and competition and eventually fertilized eggs are laid. The larvae hatch after a couple days and burrow into their new food source, they quickly grow and head down into the soil to pupate and emerge as adults and start the cycle over again.
