House Fly and other flying insect populations increase dramatically during hot spells, they can be a real nuisance and they can transmit diseases, so it is important to get rid of them.
House Flies live for 1–3 months depending on temperature. The female produces 400-750 eggs. These are laid in moist, fermenting or putrefying matter such as rotten vegetation or it may be something simple like an uncovered rubbish bin or a bowl of raw meat. Hatching larvae tend to burrow into food, finally leaving it for a dryer area into which to pupate. Egg to adult stage generally takes 3 weeks in favourable conditions.
Follow these steps and you should be able reduce the number of House Flies.
- Good hygiene practice should be observed to reduce breeding sites.
- Cleaning and disinfection of waste bins should be carried out regularly.
- Food should not be left in a bowl uncovered.
- Waste should be sealed in water-proof bags.
- Application of residual insecticides on fly alighting surfaces (not to be used in food preparation areas) combined with fitting of fly screens and electric fly control units are recommended.
- Use sticky fly catchers coated with a special fly attractant to trap the flies, but not in food preparation areas.
- For outside areas use a “Rescue Fly Trap” (or other brand), these can trap up to 20,000 flies