Waiter, there is a fly in my soup!

Alec C. Gerry, Ph.D.

UCR Entomology

Man: What’s this fly doing in my soup?

Waiter: Looks like the backstroke!
 Why do we care about flies?
• Nuisance Pests
– Annoyance
– Attracted to human foods
– Associated with feces
– Spotting (discoloring) of walls and structures
– Public perception of cleanliness

• Disease carriers (house/garbage flies)

– Known to carry bacteria/viruses
– Implicated in the transmission of disease
– May affect Health Department rating
 Disease Transmission
• Biological Vector – insect that carries pathogen
internally, pathogen undergoes replication inside
insect and is transmitted at much later time.

• Mechanical Vector – insect that carries pathogen on

body surface or mouthparts, pathogen does not
replicate inside insect.

 House and Garbage Flies can be both!

Gerry A, Zhang D. Behavioral resistance of house flies, Musca domestica (Diptera:
Muscidae) to Imidacloprid. Army Med Dept J. July-September 2009: 54-59.
 Solving Fly Problems
• Identify fly species
– taxonomy, behavior, location
• Sanitation
– Find and remove breeding sites (if possible)
• May not be on the client’s property
– Find and remove attractants
• garbage, animal (dog) feces, food, kitchen waste
• Exclusion
– Reduce access points to home/business
• open doors, torn screens, wall cracks, etc…
• Control using Traps and Chemicals
Flies Typically Found in Restaurants
• House Fly (Musca domestica)
• Garbage Flies (Calliphoridae)
• Moth/Drain Flies (Psychodidae)

Dead Fly Art

Find it on the web
Collecting Flies for Identification
 Nuisance Fly Identification

Musca, Fannia

Stomoxys, Muscina

Hydrotaea, Phaenicia
 Garbage Flies

Greenburg, B. 1971. Flies and Disease

 House Fly

Four dark thoracic stripes

Greenburg, B. 1971. Flies and Disease

Wing veins converging

Drain/Moth Flies

• Small flies up to 1/8 inch

• Dark colored
• Parallel wing veins
• Hairy wings
 Developmental Habitat
• OK – the pest is identified, now where are they
coming from?

• Outside Restaurant
– House Flies - Garbage, animal feces, rotting fruit
– Garbage Flies - Garbage, carrion, animal feces

• Inside Restaurant
– Moth/Drain Flies - Sink and floor drains, wet organic
detritus, sewer pipes
 Solving Fly Problems
• Identify fly species
– taxonomy, behavior, location
• Sanitation
– Find and remove breeding sites (if possible)
• May not be on the client’s property
– Find and remove attractants
• garbage, animal (dog) feces, food, kitchen waste
• Exclusion
– Reduce access points to home/business
• open doors, torn screens, wall cracks, etc…
• Control using Traps and Chemicals
 House fly stages
Basic Fly Life Cycle

Moth fly larvae

Note “D” shaped spiracles of house fly

Posterior Spiracles
 Garbage Flies
• Most common residential/commercial pests
– Commonly breed in waste containers
– Pupate in dry locations (outside trash cans)
• Very quick life cycle (< 7 days in summer)
• Short dispersal flights
• Adults rest on the ground or on food source
• Will enter through doors and windows
 House Flies
• Also common residential/commercial pest
– Commonly breed in animal manures
– Pupate in dry locations (outside trash cans)
• Very quick life cycle (< 7 days in summer)
• Long range dispersal to >15 Km
– Will stop near attractants and vertical structure
• Adults rest on vertical surfaces
– Attracted to white surfaces
– Fecal & regurgitation spots left at resting sites
• Will enter through doors and windows
 Drain/Moth Flies
• Common indoor pests
• Not implicated in disease transmission
• “Drain Fly” – breed in clogged drains
– Any wet organic matter
– Indoors – drains, refrigerator pans, mop buckets
• More common in undisturbed areas
– Outdoors – in septic systems, sewers
• Life cycle 10-14 days in summer
• Poor dispersers
– Short hopping flights
 Sanitation Measures
• Place waste in sealed plastic bags
– Clean trash cans periodically (may need power wash)
• Store waste/compost far from building access points
• Minimize inside attractants
– Trash, dirty dishes, old food…
• Remove breeding habitat regularly
– Trash, manure, carcasses, drain waste, etc…
• Clear slow running drains regularly
– Drain cleaner will control moth flies
– Scrub recurring problem drains
 Solving Fly Problems
• Identify fly species
– taxonomy, behavior, location
• Sanitation
– Find and remove breeding sites (if possible)
• May not be on the client’s property
– Find and remove attractants
• garbage, animal (dog) feces, food, kitchen waste
• Exclusion
– Reduce access points to home/business
• open doors, torn screens, wall cracks, etc…
• Control using Traps and Chemicals
 Exclusion Techniques
• Screen entrances / windows
– May use air curtains and fans
– Never prop doors open

• Positive pressure air system

• Seal cracks in building structure

• Place fans near building openings

– Flies will avoid moving air
 Solving Fly Problems
• Identify fly species

• Sanitation

• Exclusion

• Control using Traps and Chemicals

– Sell an IPM program
– Recommend use of attractant traps
– Chemicals for use in restaurants are limited
– Chemical resistance is a factor for house flies
 Attractant Traps
• Attractant traps
– Muscalure (house fly pheromone)
– UV light
• Can’t compete with sunlight
– Sticky surface to capture resting flies
• Do not use electrocution traps near food

 Traps can remove small numbers of flies in

restricted areas.
 Generally can be used indoors, even in food
preparation areas.
 Chemical Control
• Fly Baits (house flies only!)
– House flies are resistant to many baits
• Methomyl, imidacloprid
– Place bait away from building access points
• Broadcast on the ground near trash bins
– Place spot indoors in upper window corners

• Non-residual sprays / aerosols (pyrethrins)

– Use to treat enclosed commercial locations
• Use in accordance with the label

• Residual Sprays (synthetic pyrethroids)

– Controls adult flies at outdoor resting sites
– However, preach sanitation!
 Fly Resistance

• Over reliance on chemical control of flies

has resulted in widespread resistance to:
– organophosphates
– synthetic pyrethroids
– methomyl
– AND imidacloprid in southern California
 Recent Resistance Research
• Imidacloprid
– Scott, Gerry, et al. (2008) - some evidence for resistance
in CA
– Gerry, Zhang (2009) – resistance to imidacloprid is both
physiological and behavioral
– Mullens, Gerry, Diniz (2010) – significant evidence for
resistance in field populations
• Spinosad
– Scott, Gerry, et al. (2007) – no resistance after 1 yr use
– Scott – resistance in lab after 10 selected generations
Resistance Management
• IPM
– Focus on non-chemical options
• Sanitation, exclusion
• Limit Applications
– Targeted applications with non-persistent chemical
– Remove baits when no longer needed
• Insecticide Rotation
– Rotate insecticides or use in combination
• Use products at concentration >> LC99
 Sustainable Control
• Education of restaurant manager
– Most important measure for lasting control
– Many breeding sites easily removed
• Scheduled cleaning
– Periodic drain cleaning
– Examination of common breeding sites
– Regular cleaning of trash bins
• Surveillance
– UV light traps
– Part of program for commercial accounts