Langmuir, recipient of the 1932 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, examined the claim in detail and refuted the estimate. Among his specific criticisms were: To maintain a velocity of 800 miles per hour, the 0.3-gram fly would have had to consume more than 150% of its body weight in food every second; The fly would have produced an audible sonic boom; The supersonic fly would have been invisible to the naked eye; and The impact trauma of such a fly colliding with a human body would resemble that of a gunshot wound. Using the original report as a basis, Langmuir estimated the deer botfly's true speed at a more plausible 25 mph/40 kmh. Time magazine published an article in 1938 debunking Townsend's calculations. References External links Cephenemyia- Throat or nose bot. Northern Land Use Institute @ University of Northern British Columbia - Prince George, BC, Canada. DNR - Deer Nose Bots. State of Michigan, Department of Natural Resources. Nasal Bots in Deer: Harmless but Irritating. Nan K. Huff, Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. The World Oestridae (Diptera), Mammals and Continental Drift Oestridae Parasitic flies Diptera of North America