The Life Cycle of
House Flies
- They have 75-150 eggs per batch and 5-6 batches in a lifetime.
- House flies have 4 life stages: eggs, larvae, pupae, adults.
- Their life cycles last an average of 15 to 25 days.
- Eggs hatch within 8 to 20 hours. They complete 3 instars in 3 to 7 days; pupae in 4 to 6 days; are adults in 7 to10 days.
- House flies can have as many as 10 – 20 generations per year depending on regional temperatures.
- Common breeding sources in commercial areas include moist organic matter such as rotten fruits and vegetables as well as in or near garbage receptacles.
- House flies normally stay within 0.5 – 2 miles of their point of origin but have been known to travel as far as 20 miles to find a breeding source.
Did you know house flies' taste with their feet and live on a liquid diet? They literally regurgitate digestive juices onto solid foods to dissolve it. Then they use their mouthparts which consist of a labella and proboscis to allow them to suck up the food. Almost every time a fly lands it’s eliminating waste. So, imagine how important it is to keep flies away from food and cooking utensils.
