Pest Control - Arthropod Control - Flies
Public Health Significance
Flies belong to the order Diptera.
There are many species, but the most important are: the house fly (Musca domestica: Muscidae) and the fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster: Drosophilidae).
As regards the house fly, it is a cosmopolitan species of enormous importance for public health. The adult feeds through a proboscis, which bears a terminal labellum that “sprays” solid foods with saliva. Then, the semi-liquid food sources are sucked up through the proboscis. It feeds with the same ease and without particular food preferences, both on human food and on filth. Its digestive system is full of microbes, which it transfers wherever it lands mechanically, with its legs, as well as through its feces and the liquid it releases from its mouthparts in order to feed. Its body has abundant fine hairs, to which microbes and dirt easily adhere.
It has been found that flies can become carriers of more than 100 pathogenic microorganisms and cause various diseases such as dysentery, salmonellosis, typhoid fever, cholera, anthrax, poliomyelitis, tetanus, etc.
House Fly
It is a holometabolous insect, meaning that it undergoes complete metamorphosis during its biological cycle, with four stages of development: egg, larva, pupa, and adult.
It can reproduce with exceptional ease, both due to its ability to lay eggs inside any decaying organic material and due to the speed at which the larvae develop and become adults (flies), which in turn reproduce very rapidly. The duration of the biological cycle of the house fly, in a favorable environment, is 25-30 days, often even shorter, during which it can lay up to 1000 eggs.
Flies are active during the day or when there is sufficient lighting, and at night they rest on various surfaces, e.g. room corners, ceilings, etc.
It feeds on sugary substances secreted by plants or living organisms, as well as on filth, while some species feed on the blood of animals and humans.
The fly prefers temperatures around 280°C. The closer the average temperature in the area where it is active is to this ideal temperature, the faster it completes its biological cycle and therefore the faster the population develops.
During the winter months, when temperatures are significantly below the ideal levels for its development, it survives in the form of a larva or pupa.
Air currents and odors attract the fly, which usually flies at a height of 1.5-2 meters.
It can travel several kilometers away, although it usually remains close to its breeding sites.
Fruit Fly
A small fly belongs to the family Drosophilidae: the fruit fly, vinegar fly, or must fly. The best-known species is Drosophila melanogaster, but there are also other related species that cause similar infestations.
It develops mainly in fruits and vegetables at the fermentation stage, as well as in other decomposing organic matter.
Treatment – Management Methods
The signs of a problem and the need for the treatment of Diptera are the detection of:
– Live or dead insects (adults or larvae)
– Spots and fly droppings
Prevention: All waste collection points should be kept clean. Waste should be placed in plastic bags before disposal in waste bins that close. Organic waste should be removed daily from health-interest premises. Particular attention should be paid to manure piles in equestrian clubs, animal breeding units, zoos, etc.
Monitoring: It is easy because they fly during the day. The use of traps is recommended to reduce the population.
Proofing: Screens on the windows of homes or food areas, air curtains or strip curtains at the entrances of food areas.
Treatment: For fly control in outdoor areas, a systematic pest control program is applied using odorless insecticides, environmentally friendly and approved by the Hellenic Ministry of Rural Development and Food. They have residual action and their duration of action depends on the weather conditions and the type of surface sprayed.
Spraying is carried out during periods when the problem is at its peak, mainly during the summer – autumn months, and aims to limit the adult population.
Applications with adulticide and larvicide products are carried out on organic materials that constitute breeding sites, such as manure piles and waste piles in urban and peri-urban environments. They are also carried out directly on exterior walls, waste bins, and other surfaces where adult insects rest, search for food, or remain during the night.
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