Filth Fly Management in Urban Environments - Urban Insect Pests: Sustainable Management Strategies - page 61

Table 4.1. Continued

Control

Pests Description Breeding habits Life cycle Non-chemical Chemical

Blue bottle fl y About 1/2 inch in length

with a dull thorax and
shiny blue abdomen

Dead animal
carcasses,
decomposing meat
and fi sh, rubbish,
over-ripe fruit,
decaying vegetable
matter and sores on
living humans

15-20 days Sanitation and

destruction of
breeding sites; tight-
fi tting rubbish
containers and
screens on windows
and doors

Larvicides;
residual
and space
sprays

Moth fl ies or
fi lter fl ies

1/16 to 1/8 inch in
length; light grey to
tan

Decomposing organic
material such as
moist plant litter,
rubbish, sewage,
around kitchen or
bathroom sinks and
water traps in
plumbing fi xtures

7-20 days Sanitation and

destruction of
breeding sites, tight-
fi tting rubbish
containers and
moisture control

Larvicides;
residual
and space
sprays

Eye gnats About 1/16 inch in

length, shiny black to
dull grey with yellow
or orange markings
on the legs and have
small mouthparts and
bare aristae on
antennae

Loose soil containing
considerable
organic material,
decaying vegetation
and animal
excrement

7-28 days Sanitation and

destruction of
breeding sites

Repellents;
residual
and space
sprays

Phorid (Hump-
backed)
fl ies

About 1/8 inch in length
with a small head
and large thorax
causing the fl y to
have a hump-backed
appearance

Decaying vegetation,
animal debris,
rubbish and in ant
and termite nests

10-25 days Sanitation, destruction

of breeding sites
and moisture control

Residual and
space
sprays

Blind
mosquitoes

3/16 to 1/2 inch in
length with a slender
body, large thorax,
small head, and
slender, 5- to
14-segmented
antennae

Lakes, ponds, rivers,
streams, reservoirs,
and tanks

8-21 days Moisture control No suitable

control

Black blow
fl ies

About 1/3 inch in length
with a shiny metallic
dark blue abdomen
and thorax

Dead animal
carcasses, rubbish,
and wounds in living
animals

8-10 days Sanitation and

destruction of
breeding sites; tight-
fi tting rubbish
containers

Larvicides;
residual
and space
sprays

Flesh fl ies 3/8 to 9/16 inch in

length, dull greyish-
black with three dark
stripes on the thorax

Decayed fl esh and
spoiling meat,
manure, wounds in
living animals, and
sometimes rubbish

8-21 days Sanitation and

destruction of
breeding sites

Residual and
space
sprays

Vinegar fl ies About 1/8 inch in length,

brownish-black to
brownish-yellow and
have a feathery
bristle on the
antennae

Fermenting or rotting
fruit and vegetable
material and in
rubbish bins

Sanitation and
destruction of
breeding sites; tight-
fi tting rubbish
containers

Residual and
space
sprays

Dump fl ies About 1/4 inch long,

black with a shiny
thorax and abdomen

Rubbish and fowl
excrement The
larvae are
predaceous on
larvae of other fl ies

Sanitation and
destruction of
breeding sites

Larvicides;
residual
and space
sprays

Secondary
screwworm
fl ies

About 1/4 inch long,
green, shiny abdo-
men and thorax with
thorax marked
lengthwise with three
dark stripes

Dead tissue surround-
ing wounds in
animals, fresh-cut
meats and rubbish

9-39 days Sanitation and

destruction of
breeding sites

Residual and
space
sprays