Confounding many visitors to the shores of Nkwichi are the exploding plumes of smoke which often appear on Lake Malawi, hovering above the water hinting at distant fires. It’s always a pleasure to see the look of surprise, mixed with either delight or disgust, when the guests are informed that the smoke is actually vast clouds of lake flies, known locally as Nkungo.

When this flabbergasting phenomenon occurs (it also happens on Lake Tanganyika, though to a smaller scale), it represents the largest gathering of any species in the world. That’s billions upon billions of tiny flies at one time. Procreating.

Yes, the explosion of flies into the air is the climax, for want of a better word, of their life cycle. They burst out form the water, find their mate(s!) enjoy a (re)productive time together, the female lays her eggs which they drop to the surface of the water and sink down to the depths of the lake to avoid the predatory fish eager for a snack. When they’re ready to hatch the larvae break free and rise to the surface, bursting out as flies to start the process all over again.

Sometimes however, the winds of Africa’s most tempestuous lake blow the clouds away from the water over terra firma and then not only do the lake flies have little chance to ensure the survival of their family name, but they stand to suffer the ignominious fate of ending up in the stomachs of the lakeshore inhabitants. Dried, mashed up and baked, the lake flies take on a slightly different transformation from above…in becoming Lake Malawi’s most famous local burger. Tasting much as you’d imagine a lot of mashed up flies would taste.