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Sat 02 Feb 2007Eye On NatureRecently I found a dead blackbird with two strange-looking flies on its body. They were bigger than a housefly but had much flatter bodies and easily darted in and out between the feathers.Brendan Dollard, Ashbourne, Co MeathThe flies were bird keds or louse flies, probably Ornithomyia avicularia, which live on blackbirds, thrushes, owls and pigeons. They are usually around from June to October.