Illustration for Atmos: The Inner Lives of Fruit Flies by Sofia Quaglia

“They buzz around ripe peaches on warm summer nights; they fly into our eyes as we bike along wooded trails; they land in our sweet alcoholic beverages as we watch the sun set on our porch chairs. To most, fruit flies are pests—targets of the vinegar-dish soap traps we jerry-rig and set on our kitchen counters. But to scientists, they’re so much more: Fruit flies are mirrors of the human experience. “