Moth Flies

ANNOYING LITTLE FLIES  (Clogmia albipunctata)

I love to read in bed. For the last week or so it has been  chore.

Turn on the light and  I am immediately joined by a crowd of tiny insects. Gnats? Moths? Flies?  

They are so tiny it is difficult to see what they are. Using a 10x magnifier I can just make out what looks to be tiny moths. But they move so quickly that it is hard to get any detail. They are certainly far too tiny for my camera to catch

So I did a bit of asking around. Fleas says one person, bed bugs says another, gnats, midges, fruit flies, and a few silly answers such as baby flies. I know all of those, and these don't fit my observations at all. 

I finally found the answer. I have a friend who is an entomologist. He knew straight away what they are. Moth flies; sometimes called drain flies, bathroom flies, sink flies, filter flies, mothmidge or sewer gnats. They are quite beautiful when they are seen close with their long segmented antennae.

MuseumVictoria gives the following description.

These dark grey flies are 2-4mm in length and have hairy moth-like wings. They have a jerky flight and are observed around bathrooms, in damp subfloors, in greenhouses and in other locations where moisture and the presence of decaying organic matter will support their presence. 

If you are seeing large numbers and you don’t regularly leave your windows open, the flies must be breeding inside your house or in your water pipes. You could have a drainage problem, such as slow-draining pipes, or water pooling in over-watered pot plants. Once you remove all permanent sources of water and fix any drainage issues, the flies should disappear. 

Bathroom flies are not harmful to people and will not damage clothes or linen. They are therefore considered to be of nuisance value only.

( https://museumvictoria.com.au/discoverycentre/discovery-centre-news/2009-archive/bathroom-flies/ )

My drains and bathroom plumbing are fine but the ground and garden all about, is very damp. Everything is damp in Kilmore so I suppose the moth flies are having a good year of it.