Shoo fly shoo
There are generally four common flies that we encounter here in Delta: the fruit fly, the house fly, the drain fly and flesh fly. Flies frequently come in contact with humans and some have the ability to spread disease-causing germs. There are about 100 pathogens that are connected to the common flies we see in our houses including: Salmonella, Staphylococcus, E. coli and Shigella. These pathogens can cause diseases such as: typhoid fever, cholera, bacillary dysentery, hepatitis and infantile diarrhea. Sanitation is critical to controlling these pests. Depending on the species, the life expectancy of a fly is eight days to a year. One pair of flies can produce a 1 million young in six weeks. Flies have to land often and can deposit thousands of bacteria each time. If you see just one fly there are upwards of 20 lurking around. Flies live close to their food and breeding grounds. Most flies feed and breed in warm, moist decaying organic matter. Filthy flies such as house flies, dung flies and flesh flies visit and breed in garbage, trash bins, piles of compost or manure, and the carcasses of animals. Flies are attracted to light gathering around windows when indoors. Flies complete their life cycle within a few weeks and live an additional few weeks or months as adults.
