Early this summer I had some what look like larvae begin to grow and prosper in my metal compost can. It is one that I have drilled air holes in but the rodents can't get into it.

I noticed that I could put something like half a melon rind in there in the morning and by noon it was gone, completely! Everything that I put in there was disappearing faster than I had ever seen! It was amazing!

On the wall of the house right behind the can there seemed to be a bug that just sat there clinging to the wall and it never seemed to leave. To me it looked a bit like a beetle.

I had no idea what all of this was until I came across an article that mentioned that in Singapore they use a form of food waste composting called "soldier fly composting". So, I went to google it and I discovered that was what I had in my can----soldier flies.

I have never had them before, had never heard of them before and I don't know where they came from, but I hope they come back next year. What an efficient way to get rid of kitchen waste.

Apparently, after they have eaten all of the compost, the make an excellent food for chickens, being high in protein.

Why is is that we don't hear of them? Apparently there are some who cultivate them and they apparently have little downside to them. They don't land on things and leave the nasty things that house flies do.

I havn't figured out how the life cycle of the flies is playing out in my compost can and it looks like the one bug seems to be sitting sentry.

Has anyone else experienced the soldier flies? They have either slowed down now or they are dying out. I really don't know what is happening to them but the change of seasons to colder weather seems to be doing something.

These things are amazing and they will eat anything organic and that includes paper napkins. They seemed to be even eating some insulation material that was made from shredded denim.

Amazing, just amazing!!!!