Species Musca domestica - House Fly

MUSCA: a Latin word, meaning "a fly"

DOMESTICA: from the Latin "domesticus" (pertaining to the house), from "domus" (a house, home)

one of 3 species in this genus in North America, the others being autumnalis and cadaverum, listed at nearctica.com

adult body length 6-7 mm; female usually larger than male

larva 3-12 mm

pupa to 8 mm

Adult: eyes reddish; mouthparts sponging; dorsum of thorax with four narrow black stripes; sharp upward bend in fourth longitudinal wing vein (M1+2) which almost touches vein R4+5 at the wing margin [the shape of cell R5 resembles the blade of a scimitar]; abdomen gray or yellowish with dark midline and irregular dark markings on sides; underside of male yellowish

female eyes far apart, separated by broad ovoid frontal stripe that occupies more than half the distance between the eyes; male eyes close together, separated by narrow frontal stripe (distance between eyes in female almost 2x distance between eyes in male)

Larva: body whitish, cylindrical, tapering toward head; head with pair of dark hooks; posterior spiracles slightly raised, and spiracular openings are sinuous slits completely surrounded by oval black border

Pupa: color varies from yellow, red, brown, to black as pupa ages

[description of above 3 life stages adapted from text on U. of Florida "Featured Creatures" page]

cosmopolitan

common to abundant around homes, poultry & dairy farms, stables, garbage dumps, and other sources of rotting plant or animal matter; adults are inactive at night, often resting on ceilings in buildings, or on vegetation outdoors

spring through fall

adults feed on fresh and fermenting/rotting food, and garbage; adult mouthparts allow ingestion of liquid food only; solid materials are liquified by means of regurgitated saliva

larvae feed on moist material rich in organic matter where eggs were laid: manure, rotting plant or animal tissue, garbage

Overwinters as a larva or pupa under manure piles or in other protected locations. During summer, the life cycle can be completed in 7 to 10 days, and up to 12 generations may occur in one summer. Eggs are laid singly but pile up in small masses. Each female fly can lay up to 500 eggs in several batches of 75-150 eggs, each over a 3 to 4 day period. The larvae (maggots) emerge within 8 to 20 hours, and immediately feed on the material where the eggs were laid, developing through 3 instars. Full-grown larvae crawl up to 15 metres to a dried cool place near breeding material, and transform into the pupal stage. Adults usually live 15 to 25 days.

[adapted from text on U. of Florida "Featured Creatures" page]

More than 100 pathogens associated with the house fly may cause disease in humans and animals, including typhoid, cholera, bacillary dysentery, tuberculosis, anthrax ophthalmia and infantile diarrhea, as well as parasitic worms. Pathogenic organisms are picked up by flies from garbage, sewage and other sources of filth, and then transferred on their mouthparts and other body parts, through their vomitus, feces and contaminated external body parts to human and animal food.

[text from U. of Florida's "Featured Creatures" page]

In M. autumnalis (Face Fly) female, eyes are far apart, separated by black median stripe (with straight sides) that occupies about one-third of distance between eyes; male eyes nearly touch at midline; female thorax grayish, and abdomen gray on top with some yellow on sides; male thorax dark blue-gray, and abdomen orange with black dorsal stripe

(see photos and/or info on Musca autumnalis: 1, 2, 3)

No information on Musca cadaverum was found on the Internet as of 23 Dec 2005 (other than its name appearing on the nearctica list)

Muscina stabulans (False Stable Fly) has a yellow-tipped scutellum, and its M1+2 vein is gently curved (not sharply bent) and doesn't come close to touching vein R4+5 at the wing margin (see images and info for Muscina stabulans)

Stomoxys calcitrans (Stable Fly) has a different pattern on thorax and abdomen, has biting (not sponging) mouthparts, and its M1+2 vein is not sharply bent (see dorsal view and ventral view of both species)

Some Calliphoridae (Blow Flies) and some Sarcophagidae (Flesh Flies) have wings with a "scimitar-shaped" cell R5, but they lack 4 stripes on the thorax and/or an ovoid frontal stripe that occupies more than half the distance between the eyes

photos of all life stages plus distribution, description, biology, damage, control methods, references (U. of Florida "Featured Creatures")

adult image of female (U. of Pennsylvania)

illustration of wing venation in several "filth fly" species, plus labeled terminology (Novartis Animal Health, Switzerland)

adult illustration and transmitted diseases (Montana State U.)

adult image of female (U. of Nebraska)