House Fly

• House Fly Biology and Identification
• House Fly Image
• Inspecting for House Flies
• Eliminating House Flies
• Kill Flies in Restaurants, Pest Control in Restaurants
• Fly Elimination Products
• Summary of House Fly Elimination

House Fly Biology and Identification

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The common House fly is medium sized (1/6 to 1/4 inch long,) generally gray in color with  the female usually large than the male.   The thorax bears four narrow black stripes.  The female fly has a much wider space between the eyes than the male.  House flies are often confused with Face flies.

The house fly passes through four stages in its life cycle: egg, larva, pupa and adult.  The female of the species can be seen depositing their eggs on suitable breeding materials.  Often, the females can be seen in clusters of up to 50 individuals.  The female house fly lays individual eggs that pile up in masses of 75 to 150 eggs; in her lifetime, a single female house fly may lay up to 900 eggs.  The female fly begins laying her eggs anywhere from 4 to 12 days from emerging from her pupae.  She may lay 5 or 6 batches at intervals of several days between each.

In warm weather, the leg-less white pupae (or maggots) emerge from their eggs in 8 to 20 hours.  This larvae goes through three instars (or stages of development) in 1 week or less during warmer seasons, up to 8 weeks during cooler times.  The house fly maggot and eggs depend on damp organic material in which to develop and feed.  When it has completed its last instar, the fly maggot will move to a cool dry area in which to pupate.  These larvae have confused many people by showing up far away from any possible breeding site.  They have been known to travel over 100 feet to locate a suitable place to pupate.  The pupa transforms into an adult in as little as 3 days or as long as 5 weeks.  This pupation period varies with temperature and humidity.

House Fly Image

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Inspecting for House Flies

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Your inspection should begin outside the home or building; although house flies are known to breed in indoor dirty trash cans, they are usually found feeding and breeding in fresh manure, rotting fruits and vegetables, damp garbage and damp, decaying organic materials that are located outside of the structure.

After locating all possible breeding sites, look for areas where house flies enter a structure.  Cracks around windows, doors and vents are the usual culprits.

Eliminating House Flies

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House fly elimination is accomplished through good integrated pest management (IPM) procedures.  The following steps will rid your home of house flies:

• Sanitation
• Exclusion
• Sprays
• Baits

Sanitation for the House Fly

Sanitation procedures not only include the obvious (clean trash receptacles, etc.) but also doing the little things that can help reduce the number of house flies in and around a structure.  Indoors, make sure that all trash cans are thoroughly cleaned before trash bags are used.  All trash bags need to be secured before disposing in an outdoor container.

All outdoor receptacles (dumpsters, trash cans) need to be cleaned regularly; they also need to have properly operating covers -- what good is a trash can without a lid?  If possible, move dumpsters far away from structures.   This will help cut down the number of house flies inside homes and businesses.   Keep the areas around dumpsters as clean and dry as possible; house fly eggs and pupae need damp material to develop and survive.

Exclusion

House flies enter homes by several means: doors which do not close fast enough or that do not have a good fit; windows without screens or with screens in ill repair.  Flies also enter buildings through tiny cracks around windows and doors; seal or caulk these areas.

Sprays

Space sprays and pheromone traps can be helpful tools in eliminating indoor Blowflies, but the elimination of their breeding sources is the only guaranteed way to eliminate them.  Make certain that all possible sanitation measures have been implemented before relying on chemical sprays to eliminate flies.  Constant fly invasions in restaurants and other food handling areas are best controlled by using a space spray in dumpsters, exterior surfaces of buildings and by using a Professional Fly Trap in kitchens.  Discreet, low profile traps might also be needed in dining areas.  Space sprays can be used to knock down existing house fly infestations, but this is only a temporary fix.  If breeding sites have not been eliminated or altered, house flies will continue to be a problem. 

Surface sprays can be used around windows and doors and should also be used on dumpsters.  Any area where flies "rest" or enter an building can be treated with a good surface spray.  However, do not spray areas that humans constantly come into contact with or on surfaces where food is prepared or served.  The best product for surface spraying is Cyper WP.  Other sprays can be used but the active ingredient and wettable powder formulation combination pack a real punch in fly extermination.

Baits

Use baits inside dumpsters and the area around such trash containers, if there are no non-target animals (dogs or children) in the immediate area.  Are there homeless people going through the trash at night?  If so, do not bait inside the container, but bait the area surrounding the receptacle.   Fly baits should be re-applied after every cleaning or rainfall. 

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6920 Pine Forest Road
Pensacola, Florida   32526

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