Garbage Fly

Category:

Actual Size: 1/8 to 1/4″

Characteristics: Gray bodies with four black stripes on the body. Covered in tiny hairs that are actually tasting organs.

Legs: 6

Antennae: Yes

Wings: Yes

Habitat: True to their name, these flies are usually found near dumps and garbage heaps.

Habits:

  • Also commonly called house flies. 
  • Reproduces by laying eggs in decaying organic matter, usually in garbage cans.
  • Usually dies within three weeks in the summer, but can survive longer in cold weather.

Garbage Flies in Anaheim

Garbage flies, also known as house flies, are easy to recognize because they have four long stripes on their middle part. Though they can’t bite, they have a special mouth that can soak up liquid food. Female garbage flies are usually bigger than males and have a noticeably wider distance between their red eyes. These flies have gray and slightly yellow-tinged bodies as well as an upward bend in one of their wing veins.

Garbage Fly Habitat

Garbage flies are most commonly seen in the hot summer months. The females lay their eggs in warm, damp, organic matter like trash, manure, compost piles, or lawn clippings. When the summer weather is just right, house flies can go from being an egg to an adult fly in as little as 7 days. Though garbage flies usually die within three weeks in summertime, they can live for up to two months if temperatures are a little lower.

Garbage Fly Behaviors, Threats, or Dangers

It’s never ideal to have bugs or flies in your space. Garbage flies can be particularly annoying because they often stay very close to human activity, largely because we produce the trash they need to breed in. Sometimes, these flies can carry diseases that can harm both humans and animals. Since they live and eat in waste, they can pick up germs like bacteria, viruses, and fungi. Then, they can spread these germs by touching food and water. In some bad situations, people have gotten sick, including cases of food poisoning and tuberculosis connected to garbage fly infestations. 

If you keep finding garbage flies or other pests in your home or business, call your local fly exterminators for assistance.