Have you noticed “mosquitoes” around your home even though it’s winter? While certain species of mosquitoes do overwinter as adults, what you’re most likely seeing are winter crane flies. Like mosquitoes, winter crane flies are members of the order Diptera, or true flies. They look similar to mosquitoes but lack a proboscis, which is the piercing mouthpart mosquitoes use to take a bloodmeal. They are attracted to light and often end up around or inside people’s homes, but they do not bite or carry diseases. They lay eggs in moist soil and leaf litter and have been present here in large numbers this winter, likely due to high precipitation in October and November combined with mild temperatures.