Who runs this project? The Snow Fly project is run by the Tuthill Lab, which is part of the Department of Physiology and Biophysics in the University of Washington School of Medicine.
Who funds this research? We are looking for sources of external funding to support our ongoing scientific endeavors. If you are interested in supporting us, get in touch (snowflyproject@uw.edu).
What if there is more than one snow fly at a given collection site? If they are within 1 km of a given collecting site, you can collect up to 5 snow flies into the same tube (and with the same GPS coordinates). If necessary, place additional flies in another tube, using the same GPS coordinates for both tubes.I live outside the USA, can I still participate? Yes, we are eager to collect snow fly specimens from across the globe.
How long can I keep the snow flies alive prior to shipping back to Snow Fly Project researchers? Snow flies can be safely kept for 1 week in the refrigerator and 2 days at room temperature.
The snow flies that I collected for the project died. Do you still want them? Yes! if possible, fill the collection tube with rubbing alcohol (you can purchase this for under a dollar at all drug/ grocery stores) or ethanol to prevent the specimens from rotting.
I cannot afford to ship the specimens, but I still want to participate. What can I do? Send us an email at snowflyproject@uw.edu. We will be happy to send you a prepaid shipping label.
Do snow flies bite or sting? Nope! Their mouth parts are modified for liquid uptake and not for piercing or crunching and they do not have a “stinger” at the end of their abdomen.
How do I pronounce Chionea? The ‘Ch’ is hard: ki-o’ne-a.
