Talk:Eristalis tenax

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[edit] Human intestinal myiasis of the Rat-tailed maggot???

This "human intestinal myiasis of the Rat-tailed maggot" sound like nonsense to me. Intestinal parasites are specifically adapted to that environment, but here we're expected to believe that an insect that has a larval form that is optimized for a waterborne existence will somehow survive in the intestine "as long as the breathing tube reaches towards the anus". I've looked at the web references, and they're not detailed enough to give a proper idea of what's going on.

But my guess is this: I assume that drone flies could easily find their way down a toilet's vent pipe and lay their eggs at the back of the U-bend. The maggots would stay at the back of the U-bend, feeding on the goop there, and floating just below the surface of the water as they normally do. However, if a stool hits the water in the pan, some maggots might get sloshed around the U-bend into the pan. Person looks in water, jumps to wrong conclusion, fishes the maggot out and takes it to their doctor.--Farry (talk) 14:25, 18 February 2008 (UTC)