Flies are some of the peskiest and most notorious creatures. They contaminate our homes with germs and diseases, and it seems that flies come back to life and have a never-ending life cycle.
It can be frustrating when you think you’ve finally killed them off, only for them to come back to life and continue the problem.
Flies can appear to be dead when they are playing possum. This is known as death feigning, a survival technique that allows them to avoid being eaten. Let’s bust the myths and discuss the facts about the fly’s life cycle in this guide.
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How do flies come back to life?
Flies do not come back to life after death, but their ability to play dead helps them stay alive longer. Flies go through a life process called metamorphosis, making us think they do not die. This process is triggered by the soldier fly larvae feeding on rotting matter or other insects.
The larvae will then pupate and emerge as adult flies. Flesh flies are parasitic and attack other insects to trigger the life cycle.
Flesh fly larvae continue their life cycles by laying eggs on rotting matter and flesh. This fly development can be extremely unsanitary and cause several diseases.
Where do flies come from?
Flies come from various places, but all of these can be classified into one of two categories: indoor or outdoor.
Indoor fly sources include dumpsters, trash cans, compost piles, pet, and human waste, open dumping grounds, sewers, culvert systems, food processing facilities, and decaying organic matter.
Outdoor fly sources include rotting vegetation, for example, leaves, stagnant water like puddles, warm temperature conditions, manure piles, and lagoons; feedlots; slaughterhouses, landfills, and dumpsites.
If a fly lives less than 100 feet away from the places mentioned above, it has a coping mechanism and reinfests your house.
How long do flies live in a house?
Flies generally live for 15 to 30 days, but this can vary depending on the environment they are living in. Flies dwelling in warm homes and laboratories develop faster and live longer than their counterparts in the wild.
The housefly has a very brief life cycle that allows for it to multiply quickly if left uncontrolled. In just 21 days, a single housefly can produce up to 1,000 offspring.
This fast reproduction rate and growth conditions are part of what makes them so difficult to get rid of.
The unknown facts about indoor flies
Flies cannot come back to life after they die. This is because they do not have an immune system that allows them to regenerate tissue. Additionally, flies cannot reproduce after they die. Here are some unknown facts that resolve your doubts.
It’s most likely new flies that you have mistaken for dead flies.
Flies continue to come back because they are attracted to something. This could be food, a certain smell, or even other flies.
Houseflies have a very short life cycle, and their larvae take a short time to develop into adults. So, if something attracts flies, then more flies will come back.
Female flies lay eggs as soon as they reach adulthood; depending on the species, many flies might buzz around your house. While you can exterminate them, the problem will likely come back later.
The flies are playing possum.
When threatened, flies often play dead to avoid being harmed or eaten. This process is called thanatosis and is seen in various animals, including insects like flies.
In response to a threat, flies will enter into a state of thanatosis when they lose mobility and go into a stupor.
This is usually a temporary reaction or a fake death, but sometimes the fly will stay in this state for an extended period. However, the fly can come back to life if conditions are right.
They are not completely dead, to begin with.
Flies are some of the most resilient insects and don’t die easily. They can survive being frozen for days. This is because flies have a high resistance to cold and winter temperatures. They can enter into a state of suspended animation, also known as stunting.
This means that the fly’s body functions slow down in response to insect growth regulators to the point where they appear dead. However, the flies will return to life once it warms up again.
How do you know if a fly is completely dead?
When it comes to determining whether or not a fly is dead, there are a few telltale signs.
- One is that flies become limp and unresponsive when they die.
- Another is that their eyes may become cloudy or sunken in.
- Additionally, you can use a needle or fine pin to move a fly’s maxillary or labial palps. If the fly moves in response to being poked, it is alive.
Can frozen flies come back to life?
Insects, including flies, are known to enter a state of suspended animation when their body temperatures drop below a certain point.
This happens in response to either extreme cold or hot weather conditions. The insects will resume their normal growth rates when the weather becomes more hospitable.
However, no fly species can survive an hour in a freezer box due to the extreme temperatures. When a fly is completely frozen, the water bound by the cell membranes in its cells turns to ice.
This process destroys most of the biological systems within the flies. The salts and ions essential for life are also expelled from the cell during freezing and can damage them.
Do salt ions bring flies back to life?
Insects, such as flies, can often be found near salt. This is because the salt helps them come back to life. The salt dissolves the mucus on their bodies that builds up when they are dead.
Salt is often used to revive cluster flies that have been killed. It helps to absorb the water from the spiracles, which are tiny breathing holes on the insects’ bodies. This allows the flies to breathe again and come back to life.
Do flies hibernate?
To withstand the icy conditions, most insects hibernate during the winter. However, hibernation does not include sleeping for months in the case of flies and other insects. In other words, flies don’t hibernate in the traditional sense.
They don’t sleep through the winter; instead, they enter into a state of suspended animation where their metabolic rate slows significantly. This allows them to survive in cold weather without having to eat or drink and to conserve energy until the weather warms up again.
What should I do if I find a bunch of dead flies around?
Dead flies can be found indoors, outdoors, and around dead bodies. If you find a cluster of dead flies, there is likely an infestation. Blowflies are attracted to decaying flesh and drinking straws as they spread putrefying bacteria, creating a soupy environment for other flies.
Carrion breeding flies will lay eggs on dead animals or humans. Reproducing indoors can lead to an increase in the fly population.
Why Does Killing a Fly Attract Other Flies?
When you kill a fly, it releases pheromones that attract other flies. This is because the fly or animal carcasses send out a signal that says, “there’s food here” or “I’m vulnerable.”
Killing one fly can result in an influx of flies, so it’s important to take care when trying to get rid of them.
Interestingly, flies have an interesting habit that farmers have learned to use to their advantage. When a fly is killed, other flies are attracted to the carcass.
Farmers who understand the fly factor use it as bait to attract other flies so that they can trap them without using harmful insecticide sprays in their fields.
How Can I Prevent Fly Infestation and Their Activity in the House?
- First, use organic repellents such as essential oils to eliminate the housefly problem.
- Keep garbage containers closed and clean so that the flies have no food source. You can also use a vacuum cleaner to help remove the excess dust.
- Cover the entry points to your home so the flies cannot enter.
- You should also ensure that surfaces are clean and dry, as flies prefer moist environments.
- Finally, you can use traps or sprays to kill flies in your home.
Where do fly species go at night?
Flies seek shelter as day gives way to night in the form of leaves and branches, twigs, tree trunks, tall grass, and other plants.
They normally will not stay overnight on the ground due to shooting death statistics in the dark. They are more vulnerable during the night. Flying periods are primarily determined by light and dark cycles.
Final Thoughts
When we see a fly buzzing around in the summer, it’s hard to imagine that it was just born. But that’s exactly what happens; flies reproduce so quickly that they appear to have returned from the dead.
Flies cannot come back to life, even if they are frozen. This is because they cannot produce new cells, which is necessary for them to live. In reality, these are new flies, but they look and behave like the ones that died.
