What Are Rods ?, page 5

So here again from the www.wikipedia.org:

Description

Rods gain their name from their rodlike shape. However, they have also been called "skyfish" and "solar entities". They appear to be anywhere from 5 inches to 3 feet in length (about 15 to 90 cm), and is thought to have a thin membrane across their axis that is used for propulsion through the air. Their behavior as captured on film leads studiers of the phenomenon to posit they are a kind of "air-fish", moving in a similar fashion to fish in water, and having a body like that of a jellyfish.
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Theories

Rods are not taken seriously even by most cryptozoologists, who tend to look on them as forteana. Much evidence points to the conclusion that they are mere tricks of light that affect the camera eye. In particular, the fast passage before the camera of an insect flapping its wings has been shown to produce rod-like effects, due to motion blur. Additional criticism points to the very speed of the film being physically unable to capture something that moves so fast. Their recent popularity seems to be a result of media exposure in television tabloids. Jose Escamilla, who runs the website RoswellRods.com, has appeared in numerous interviews and television "investigations".
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Flying Rod Mystery Solved

In the early autumn of 2005, news bulletins in China and Hong Kong reported on a story which debunked the flying rods. Surveillance cameras in a research facility in Jilin supposedly captured video footage of flying rods identical to those shown in Jose Escamilla's video. The curious research staff of the facility, being scientists, decided that they would attempt to catch one. Huge nets were set up and the same surveillance cameras captured rods flying into the trap. When the nets were inspected, the "rods" were no more than regular moths and other flying insects. Subsequent investigations proved that the appearance of flying rods on video was an optical illusion created by the slower recording speed of the camera (done to save video space).

This discovery has, however, been quietly ignored by those in the business of "researching" the flying rod phenomenon, as their wealth and fame could obviously be shattered with such a revelation. The myth is thus allowed to persist.
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Reproducing the "Flying Rod" Effect on Video

First, find a place with lots of flying insects. Then set your digital camera (on video mode) or camcorder to its slowest exposure speed (1/60 second is the slowest speed for an NTSC camcorder). Aim the camera to a fixed spot with insects flying left and right, and start recording. Lighting the target area with a light source will enhance the rod-like effect as light is reflected from the flying insect. The resulting video footage will have flying rod-like effects in place of the flying insects.