With so many species of insects flying around, it’s hard to know which ones are which, let alone whether they are dangerous or not! Here are some basic facts about the most common flies found throughout Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Arizona, and Arkansas.

Face flies, also known as stable flies, can usually be found around agricultural animals such as horses and cattle during the warm summer months, mainly July and August. As their name indicates, these flies like to fly around these animals faces and feed on the secreted mucus around their eyes, mouth, and nostrils. Face flies look very similar to ordinary house flies; they grow to be about ½” in length and are gray with dark stripes down their thorax. These flies can irritate animals to the point where they will not eat as much which, in turn, may cause them to become sick or experience malnutrition. Face flies secrete their saliva into their food and then sponge it up and they lay their eggs in manure; both of these habits can cause contamination of both human and animal food sources and transmit dangerous pathogens and diseases.

Filth flies come in a variety of species, the most common being the house fly. These flies grow to about ¼” in length and are dull gray color with black lines on the top of their bodies. Filth flies do not bite, but can contaminate food, spread diseases to humans, and are extremely annoying to have flying around indoors. They prefer to live in areas where they have access to manure, garbage, compost, and dead animal carcasses. While looking for food, these flies often enter homes through doors, windows, torn screens, and other cracks and crevices which means that, after these flies have spent time outside in disgusting piles of filth have picked up bacteria, they can enter your home, and land on food and food preparation surfaces, and cause contamination that can make you and your family members become very sick.

Small flies are less than ¼” long and are attracted to food and drains. Although they are small and don’t carry as many diseases as filth flies, small flies are still considered nuisance pests and can become very problematic once they invade your home. Some of the most common small flies include the fruit fly, phorid fly, moth fly, and the fungus gnat; of these small flies, the only one that can carry dangerous bacteria is the phorid fly. Phorid flies tend to be especially problematic in morgues, mortuaries, and hospitals. Small flies lay their eggs in moist and decaying organic materials and can usually be found flying around fruit bowls, wine glasses, drains, and garbage cans.

One of the biggest problems with a fly infestation is the potential health hazards that these pests present. In addition, a large fly infestation can indicate other pest problems as cockroaches, spiders, and many other pests are attracted to the same living conditions as flies.

At Schendel Pest Services, we offer complete pest protection for your home and property. If you are dealing with a current fly problem or want to prevent an infestation by being proactive, contact us today; we can help eliminate and prevent fly infestations!