Often you notice tiny flies in your kitchen, which are sitting over fruits, vegetables, or trash bean. These are called fruit flies, which come in your home easily and create a risk of contamination over the veggies and fruits resting outside of the refrigerator.
From scary spiders to crawling ants, bugs are something you do not wish to have in your home. Fruit flies are very annoying and sit here and there in the kitchen. Keeping your kitchen clean can be a helpful idea without any leftover food, fruits openly.
The fruit fly is one of the common species of houseflies called a Drosophila melanogaster. It is characterized by red eyes, black abdomen, and the tan thorax. They are identified with their strong sense of attraction to rotting and ripening fruit, which becomes their source of food and a place to produce their eggs.
Adult fruit flies generally come in 3-4 mm in length and live till 40-50 days. While fruit flies are more active in the fall harvest, you can pests them in the home all year. As you think, fruit flies are calm and love to fly around garbage and dumpsters to seek their food.
Fruit flies manifest the typical 4-stage insect for reproduction, such as egg, larvae, pupae, and adult. The larvae start feeding over decomposing fruit after hatching. It takes the time of one to two weeks to finish the whole metamorphosis. As female fly lay around 500 eggs in their lifecycle, it is difficult to control them.
Fruit Fly Habitat
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There is a common fruit fly habitat, such as restaurants, grocery stores, fermenting, and rotting. They stay noticeable during summer to fall and nuisance all year.
As the name suggests, fruit flies are attracted to vegetables, fruits, store shelves, kitchen bowls, ripening in the garden. They also breed in garbage disposals, drains, empty beer, trash containers, soda cans, buckets, and soppy mops. They require fermenting fruit and moist in organic material to thrive and breed.
Fruit Fly Facts You Might Not Know
Fruit Fly Live and Die Quickly
The fruit fly has a fast life cycle. In one fertile mating pair, they generate 100 of genetically same versions within 10-12 days. They live at a temperature of 25 degrees C or higher.
You Can Be Thankful to Fruit Fly for A Higher Medical Breakthrough
As the fruit flies have short life spans, they are an ideal research subject. According to the research of genetic evolution, scientists have discovered that fruit flies have 30 years of study, which can be 200 years of mice.
Fruit Flies Helped in Basic Genetic Discovery
According to Thomas Hunt Morgan performed the first systematic study of fruit flies. He was first to confirm the chromosomal theory of inheritance, such as essence, that genes are present on chromosomes similar to beads over a string. They also found some genes are inherited or linked together. This research won the Nobel Prize in Medicine or physiology in 1933.
Fruit Flies Contain Multiple Genes
Fruit flies have 14000 genes, whereas a human has 24000.
Humans Genes and Fruit Flies Are Similar
Nearly 75% of genes trigger disease in humans from fruit fly as they also have similar genes.
Fruit Flies Spread Disease In Human
As the fruit flies have similar genes like a human, research tells that these flies stimulate and spread the diseases in human.
Fruit Flies Chromosomes Similar To Barcodes
Drosophila contains polytene chromosomes, which is similar to barcode patterns of dark or light. The barcode pattern becomes easy to detect genetic rearrangement or deletions of fruit flies.
The Female’s Fruit Flies Stay Busy
Female flies lay 30-50 eggs every day in their lifespan at the room temperature. In cold days, they produce fewer eggs.
Fruit Flies Have A Big Brain in A Tiny Head
The adult flies’ brain contains more than 100,000 neurons that form safe circuits and perform complex behaviors such as sleep, rhythms, circadian, memory, learning, feeding, aggression, courtship, flight navigation, and grooming.
Home Remedies for removing Fruit Flies
Here are ways to get rid of fruit flies.
Fruit Fly Trap
Setting up a trap is an easy method for removing fruit flies. You can buy fruit fly trap disposal. It requires to open the trap and keep near fly populated area. You will see a lot of flies dead in 24 hours.
Make A Vinegar Trap
You can get rid of fruit flies by using a vinegar trap. Take a cup or bowl and put some vinegar in the bottom. Do not use white vinegar, instead use cider variety like red wine, apple cider vinegar, and balsamic. Close the top tightly using a plastic wrap. You can also put a rubber band near it to make sure the wrap of plastic remains in one place. Make some holes in the plastic wrap. It will make flies fall in and difficult to crawl.
You can also create a trap by rolling a funnel out of the paper piece and keep it in the jar filled with some bit of cider vinegar. Keep the trap wherever you notice the fruit flies in the home.
Create A Banana Trap
Prepare a trap of banana using jar and funnel. You will need a ripened banana. Use vinegar, or you can also avoid vinegar in this trap to prevent fruit flies.
Apple Cider Vinegar Trap
Ingredient
- Apple cider vinegar – ¼ cup
- A bowl or cup
- A plastic wrap
- A rubber bands
Instructions
- Take one small bowl or a cup and add ¼ cup of apple cider vinegar.
- Wrap the cup mouth using a plastic sheet.
- Use one rubber band for holding the wrap in a place.
- Create some small holes in the wrap of plastic by safety pin or needle.
- Keep this trap in place of fruit flies.
- You can perform this remedy to remove fruit flies from home.
How does this work?
The fermented vinegar allures the fruit flies. These flies get in to trap easily and fall in bowl/cup from holes in plastic wrap and not crawl back.
Red Wine Trap
Ingredient
- Red wine – ¼ cup
- A bowl or cup
- One Plastic wrap
- One rubber band
- One drop of liquid soap
Instruction
- Include ¼ cup of red wine in one glass cup or bowl.
- Add one drop of liquid soap and mix it well.
- Cover the mouth of the cup/bowl with plastic wrap.
- Tie a rubber band around the plastic wrap to place properly.
- Here also make holes in the wrap and keep it in fruit flies infected area.
- Perform this one time in a week.
How does this work?
The fermented red wine helps to allure the flies in the bowl. They get trapped in wine and cannot crawl out.
Clean Your Drainage
Ingredient
- Bleach or bacterial digester
Instruction
Sprinkle some bacterial digester in the drains in the infested area of fruit flies.
You can also replace bacterial digest using bleach, but it will not work effectively for bleaching may not stick enough to kill the flies’ eggs.
Follow this remedy once in some months or whenever you find flies increasing in the home.
How does this work?
Cleaning flies’ infestation in drainage helps kill the eggs from hatching and reduce them.
Essential Oil Spray
Ingredient
- Coconut oil – 1 tbsp
- Witch hazel – 3 tbsp
- Cedarwood essential oil, cinnamon, lavender: 30 drops
- Clear spray bottle
- Water
Instructions
- Combine all components in a spray bottle and fill water in the rest space of the bottle.
- Close the bottle top and shake it.
- Spray this mix with help of spray in the areas of fruit flies infestation
- You can also utilize it over plant-filled areas of fruit flies.
- Use this remedy whenever fruit flies come in your kitchen or garden.
How does this work?
Witch hazel oil increases the effectiveness and coconut oil work as an emulsifier. Fruit flies do not like the scent of essential oils, so they stay away.
Apple Clove Trap
Ingredient
- 1-ripe apple
- 30-35 cloves
Instructions
- Use a ripe apple and stick some 30-35 cloves on it.
- Avoid removing apple peel.
- Keep this trap near doors, windows, and places you want to remove fruit flies.
- You can perform this remedy every day.
How does this work?
It is one of the best ways to remove fruit flies. You can repel fruit flies with a strong smell of cloves. However, they will not come to your home if you keep it near windows and doors. The flies staying in your home also fly out.
Banana Trap And Paper Cone
Ingredient
- A bowl or glass jar
- A paper
- One banana
- A tape
- One piece of paper
Instructions
- Take one piece of paper from one notebook.
- Make a cone by creating with paper.
- Keep the paper core in an upturned position on the jar.
- Add tape to the cone with the jar.
- Place this trap in one corner of your home and kitchen.
- Perform this when you have more fruit flies at home.
How does this work?
The ripe banana gets the attention of fruit flies to get in the jar from the paper cone. It makes flies unable to fly out of the jar from the paper cone.
Fruit Flies Prevention
Remove Damp Cloths
Avoid keeping damp dishrags or towels of the kitchen lying near after been used. Try to wash these clothes every day, which will help to prevent the breeding of fruit flies.
Avoid Keeping Ripe Fruits Out
As the fruit gets ripe, it begins to ferment and attract fruit. Keep the ripe fruit in the refrigerator and paper bag. The cold of refrigerator slows down the fruit ripening and flies growth. As the fruit gets ripe, it loses the quality, which attracts and hatches the flies.
Clean the Dishes
Make sure to wash your dishes to prevent fruit fly from breeding. They will not feel tempted to lay eggs from accumulated flies. Do not keep any water cups or liquids also. Try to remove possible breeding spaces, including dirty dishes.
Rinse Out the Drain
Cleaning and draining your sink of the kitchen with apple cider vinegar and ice helps to prevent fruit flies. It stops the breeding from rotting vegetables and fruits. Keeping a kitchen fan also helps to keep away the fruit flies.
Perform A Rotten Food Check
Keeping rotten food in your home attracts more flies. You need to check all the fruits and vegetables like onion and potatoes in your pantry. According to University-of-Kentucky-Entomology recommend that damaged or cracked fruits and vegetables should be removed and thrown away to prevent fruit fly eggs. One rotting onion or potato left in the closet can develop thousands of fruit flies. Regular check the food and remove the rotten thing.
Freeze Your Compost
Do you practice compost, try changing your habits? Some bugs are the best compost pile, but fruit flies may become devastated as flies rush over the garden, lay eggs in the growing produce. Freezing your vegetables and fruits helps to kill the flies’ infestation. Churn compost can be hanged over fruit flies to trap. It is important to freeze the food before it can get waste and throw out the rotten things.
Freeze Your Compost
Do you practice compost, then try changing your habits. Some bugs are the best compost pile, but fruit flies may become devastated as flies rush over the garden, lay eggs in the growing produce. Freezing your vegetables and fruits helps to kill the flies’ infestation. Churn compost can be hanged over fruit flies to trap. It is important to freeze the food before it can get waste and throw out the rotten things.
Why There Is Multiple Fruit Fly?
Female fruit flies lay their eggs over the surface rotten fruit. Every female fly lay nearly 500 eggs at one time. Therefore, it is important to do something as soon as you can. After hatching, the larva feast over their surroundings becomes similar to a ripe banana for some days before getting evolved in adulthood. They have a pretty quick cycle. Fruit flies become capable of mating after two days of reaching adult age.