Flies

Flies Habitat and Behavior

Flies feed on various decaying organic matter including excrement, fermenting fruits, vegetables, meat, carcasses and plant secretion. Some species suck nectar from flowers as well.

In human habitats, common sources of breeding materials include uncovered trash cans, pet food dishes, litter boxes with feces, dropped pieces of food, a dead rat behind the refrigerator, and even an unwashed dish in the sink that has bits of leftover food scrap.

Common Fly species in Singapore are :

• House Fly (Musca domestica)

• Flesh Fly (Sarcophaga spp.)

• Blow Fly (Calliphora spp.)

• Sewer Fly (Psychoda spp.)

• Fruit Fly (Drosophila spp.)

• Phorid Fly (Megaselia spp.)

• Small Dung Fly (Leptocera spp.)

The Presence of adult flies, maggots breeding around the sludge or animal carcasses usually indicate an infestation at your premises.

Flies are most active when it is warm, for such condition is when their larvae are most likely to hatch. They are attracted to buildings because of the heat and odors they emit. Hence, flies that are normally found outdoors may occasionally enter human establishments.

Damages

Although flies pose less of a health threat than mosquitoes, they carry disease-causing pathogens ranging from viruses and bacteria to parasitic worms. Filth flies had been reported to cause over 70 types of diseases including dysentery, poliomyelitis, infectious hepatitis, trachoma, conjunctivitis and salmonella.

Flies might have landed on waste, feces, and rotting matter prior to landing on human food. They can then contaminate the food by transferring the microbes from those surfaces by via their legs, through defecation or when regurgitating digestive liquid onto the food.

Recommendations

The presence of flies is actually a sign of a much more serious problem, which is ineffective sanitation and lack of flying insect management programs, especially in food handling establishments. Within the premises or nearby, food and breeding sources for flies may be available. If these are not addressed, flies will continue to enter and linger around, contaminating surfaces and causing a nuisance.

Businesses (especially in the restaurant, hospitality and food processing industries) should take measures in maintaining the sanitation of the environment. This way, there will be fewer opportunities for flies to thrive.

Routine cleaning, immediate cleaning up of food spills, scrubbing of floor traps and regularly removing food waste are examples of good housekeeping measures.

While the regular practice of proper sanitation yields amazing results, flies can still enter and contaminate food. This is where pest-proofing measures come in. The floors, walls and ceilings are to be properly sealed to prevent entry and breeding of flies.