The abdomen of D . A much smaller second population peak for some species occurs from August through September. All tabanids go through an egg, larva, pupa and adult stage. Female flies typically lay their eggs in masses containing 50 to several hundred eggs. These egg masses sometimes resemble tar specks.
Most species deposit their eggs around ponds, streams, swamps, etc.
After 5-12 days the eggs hatch and the young larvae drop into the water or mud where they feed on organic debris or prey on other small aquatic organisms. Larvae have been collected from salt marshes, swamps, bogs and along the margins of heavily wooded ponds, lakes and streams. The larvae are creamy white in color with pale to brown markings. By comparison, these larvae appear similar to house fly maggots. The winter is gen-erally passed in the larval stage.