THAT WASN'T ME!!

Bluebottles and house flies get a bad press.

And probably quite rightly too. They feed on things that are so unsavoury I'm not going to mention them in case any of you haven't eaten yet, and they pick up and spread germs. It is believed they transmit over 65 disease to humans, including typhoid , dysentery, cholera, polio, yaws, anthrax, tularemia, leprosy and tuberculosis.

Given the chance, they lay their eggs in meat and other organic matter, which their maggots subsequently feed on as it rots. (Oops, sorry! Wasn't going to mention that...)

This one, however, would like to point out: He absolutely did NOT take a chunk out of this leaf. There are no matching tooth (sorry - mandible) marks. It was obviously done long before he got there. And he doesn't even like fresh vegetation. He was just passing through, sunning himself on the leaf for a few moments before flying on to lunch at the compost heap. The photo is a stitch-up! He's been framed!!!

(Worth seeing his innocent little face close up.)