User:Zarchne/Mad/Ephemeron

An ephemeron is “one of the ephemeral flies,” “an insect that lives only for a day in its winged form.” (Obviously humans find it fascinating that they have only one day to mate before they die; what a great pick-up line, eh?) These flies are better known as May flies.

The word ephemera comes from Greek epi, over, on, attached to, and hemera, a day. The Greeks used a similar word ephemeris to refer to a kind of diary, and it is from this that the word for tables of the predicted dates of astronomical events is taken.

Maia, after whom May is named, was the daughter of Atlas and the mother of Mercury (by Jupiter).