Size:
Approximately 1/4-inch in length.

Behavior:
The House fly is a well-known pest of both indoors and out, and is always found in association with humans or human activity. House flies have a complete metamorphosis with distinct egg, larvae or maggot, pupal and adult stages. Warm summer conditions are key for its development, and it can complete its life cycle in as little as 7-10 days. More than 20 generations may occur in subtropical and tropical regions, including Florida.

The female house fly can lay up to 500 eggs in multiple batches over a 3-4 day period, and it is common for several flies to deposit their eggs close together, leading to large masses of maggots and pupae. Moisture is required for eggs to hatch; wet, nutrient-rich substances such as fresh animal manure provide excellent breeding grounds for maggots. The greasy, cream-colored larvae emerge from the egg within 8-20 hours and immediately begin feeding on and developing in the material in which the egg was laid.

Adults tend to live 15 to 25 days, and their longevity is enhanced by the availability of suitable food, especially sugar. Females need access to suitable proteins in order to produce eggs, and manure alone is not adequate. House flies have sponging mouthparts so they cannot eat solid food. Instead, they regurgitate digestive fluids onto food and then sponge up the digested liquid meal.

Habitat:
The House fly is the most common species on farms and ranches, as it is commonly associated with animal feces. However, it has adapted well to feeding on garbage, so it is abundant almost anywhere people live.

House flies are inactive at night, and often rest in ceilings, beams, trees, shrubs and grasses. During the day, house flies favor especially filthy conditions to feed and breed; the most common being in animal manure, fermenting vegetable and kitchen waste, garbage piles, semi-composted manure piles, and rotting or decaying organic materials. They tend to be a major nuisance on farms due to their proximity to manure and debris.

Interesting Fact:
The potential reproductive capacity of flies is mind-boggling. Scientists have calculated that a pair of flies beginning reproduction in April may be progenitors, under optiminal conditions and if all were to live, of 191,010,000,000,000,000,000 flies by August!

Health Concerns:
Although the house fly does not bite, their control is vital to human health and comfort all over the world. Due to their attraction to bacteria-laden areas, the potential transmission of pathogens is a major concern. Pathogenic organisms are picked up by flies from garbage, sewage and other sources of filth, and then transferred on their mouthparts, through their vomit, feces and contaminated external body parts to human and animal food.

Among the pathogens commonly transmitted by house flies are Salmonella, Shigella, Campylobacter, Escherichia, Enterococcus, and many other species that cause illness. These flies are most commonly linked to outbreaks of diarrhea and shigellosis, but are also involved in transmission of food poisoning, typhoid fever, dysentery, tuberculosis, anthrax, ophthalmia, and parasitic worms.

The movement of house flies from animal feces to food that will be eaten uncooked by humans is of particular concern. Also, when consumed by flies, some pathogens can be harbored in the mouthparts or internal organs for several days, and are then transmitted when flies defecate or regurgitate. In areas where plumbing is lacking, serious health problems can develop, especially if there are outdoor food markets, hospitals, or slaughterhouses nearby.

Control:
Proper sanitation is the basic step in any fly management practices. Food and materials on which flies can lay eggs must be removed or destroyed as an egg-laying medium. Pet manure should be disposed of often, and garbage should be placed in bags and sealed in receptacles with tight-fitting lids.

Around homes and businesses, screening or covering of doors, windows, and trash containers is useful in denying access of flies to breeding sites. Fly traps may be useful if enough traps are used, if they are placed correctly, and if they are used both indoors and outdoors.

House flies are attracted to white surfaces and to baits that give off odors. Indoors, ultraviolet light traps collect the flies inside an inverted cone or kill them with an electrocuting grid. One trap should be placed for every 30 feet of wall inside buildings, but not placed over or within five feet of food preparation areas.

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