The larvae, which are scattered in the soil, cannot be eradicated. Insecticides cannot effectively control the adult flies, flying around, either. Adult horse flies can be trapped in traps, which consist of a rather large, dark object, which can be seen and is heated by the sun. Carbon dioxide (from dry ice) may increase the […]
Fruit flies
Latin: Drosophila spp. Also called vinegar flies. Fruit flies are quite rich on species. We know more than 6000 different species, but only a few of them are found indoors. Adult fruit flies are 3-4 mm long, yellowish brown. They typically fly quietly. The larvae are yellowish-white maggots. Pupae almost look like small brown seeds. […]
The cheese skipper
Latin: Piophila casei. Also called the meat skipper. The small dark cheese skippers lay their eggs in dairy products, meat products and in excrements. Each female lays up to 500 eggs, which are placed in crevices directly in food or in the vicinity of food. At 27-32 ° C the eggs hatch in one day […]
The grey flesh fly
Latin: Sarcophaga carnaria. 11-13 mm long, gray striped chest and typically chequered abdomen. Just as the blowfly, the female grey flesh fly also seeks out dead animals to lays her eggs in. Grey flesh fly eggs hatch as soon as they are placed so in principle they give birth to live offspring.
Blowflies
The many species of blowflies normally live in the wild. Inside you can meet the heavy, blue-black blowfly, for example the species Calliphora erythrocephala and the slightly smaller, green-metallic shiny gold flies of the genus Lucilia. Blowflies lay their eggs, the so-called flyblow, in dead animals and other decaying organic materials (excrement, cheese, etc.). The […]
The lesser house fly
Latin: Fannia canicularis. The lesser house fly is the typical house fly. It is 5 -7 mm. The males of this species can be seen in a tireless bouncing dance around lamps or other things hanging down from the ceiling. The lesser house fly lays its eggs one by one in very moist, decaying substances, […]
The common house fly
Latin: Musca domestica. Originates from warm climates, but is now widely spread everywhere. An adult house fly is 8-9 mm long, with a wingspan of 13 – 14 mm. Females seek fresh manure or rotting or fermenting plant material and lay eggs there. The eggs are laid in clumps with approximately 100 eggs and a […]
Flies
( Latin: Order Diptera) Flies belong to the two-winged superfamily that with more than 80,000 different species includes all flies and mosquitoes. The two-winged family have one pair of wings. Almost all other insects have two pairs. The small, club-shaped bodies behind the wings of flies and mosquitoes are during escape very active. The wings […]
Prevention and control
One should not refrain from having birds on the house out of fear for louse flies. The risk of them getting inside the house is, after all, very little. If they show up, they are easily eradicated with one of the usual pesticide sprays with pyrethrin. Treating nest environments with an insect powder will usually […]
Life cycle
When louse flies breed, the larvae develop inside the mother, before being deposited to pupate. Louse flies are mostly found on birds, and sucks blood through a short proboscis. However, the flies are also found in nests where you can also find the overwintering pupae, while the birds have migrated south during the winter. From […]
Horse-fly bites
Only the female horse flies suck blood. The males feed on nectar. A horse fly, which is about to suck blood, is almost impossible to get off, and is therefore easy to kill. Their eyes are well developed, and they often use their eyesight when finding their hosts. They move towards dark silhouettes in the […]
Life cycle
Horse-flies lay their eggs on the plants that grow in damp places. When the larvae hatch, they crawl down into the moist earth or into the water where they live as voracious predators of the prey they can overpower. The adult horse-flies are active and fast fliers, and they can fly far away from their […]
Horse-flies
In Denmark, there are a dozen different horse-fly species of the family Tabanidae. The biggest fly in Denmark is a horse-fly, namely the 3 cm long pale giant horse-fly, Tabanus bovinus. However, it is mainly the smaller species which can become so numerous that they become troublesome: deer flies of the genus Chrysops, which has […]
Control
Stable fly control in stables follows the same procedures and is performed with the same insecticides as used against house flies. They are not resistant to the insecticides. Large numbers of stable flies, which have made their way into the living room, can be killed with an Aerosol-spray with pyrethrin I and II + piperonyl […]
Life cycle
The stable flies generally stay indoor and they are particularly fond of stables. From the stables, they can spread to nearby residential houses, but you never see them in real urban areas. The eggs are laid in the manure, preferably when it is wet, for example in stalls and in cattle yards under dripping faucets. […]
The stable fly
In late summer, people often say that now flies have started to bite. It is not the common house fly, which has suddenly become aggressive, but its close relative the stable fly, Stomoxys calcitrans. It is mostly common in the fall, but can also be a nuisance during spring and summer. A stable fly looks […]
Prevention and control
Mosquito repellents have some effect against black flies, but the effect will rarely last for more than a few hours. In the countries where black flies transmit serious diseases, the streams in which the larvae hatch are treated with insecticide. This, however, is not an approach that will be used in Denmark, where the black […]
Life cycle
Black flies lay their eggs on aquatic plants or rocks. The larvae, which are almost bottle-shaped, stick to the ground sticking the body out in the water. On the head they have a special ‘brush-like’ mouth part that collects tiny organisms out of the water. Pupation occurs in a cocoon that is open at one […]
Black flies
The black fly (Simuliidae) is approx. 2 mm long, powerfully built flies. They are black and often have whitish markings on the body and legs. There are fifty different species of black flies in Denmark. They all need running water. Some species mate in streams, others in brooks and ditches.
Mosquitoes and flies
Mosquitoes and flies make up the insect order, which is called dipterans (Diptera). They have, in contrast to most other insects, only one pair of wings. The second pair of wings is small, knobbed structures modified from the hind wings. These are called halteres and are help the insect balance during flight. The larvae are […]
Life cycle (Thrips)
Thrips live on plants. They suck the sap out of the leaves, and the affected areas often appear to be shimmering because air enters into the empty cells. Some thrips are considered pests. The thrip eggs are laid within the plant tissue with a saw-like ovipositor. The male thrips are very rare; therefore, the eggs […]
Thrips
Thrips (Thysanoptera) are also known as thunder flies, thunder bugs, storm flies, thunder blights, storm bugs, corn flies and corn lice. Their legs usually end in two tarsal segments with a bladder-like structure and their four very wings have ciliated fringes on the edges. In Denmark, there are more than 100 different thrips species and […]
Crane fly
(Latin: Tipula paludosa) Crane flies are among the animals which can cause panic in the bedroom when – attracted by the light – then fly in from outside and flap against the lampshades. Crane flies are merely large flies. They do not feed as adults, nor do they bite or sting. The female lays eggs […]
Hoverfly
(Latin: Syrphus ribesii) During the late summer of some years the house may be swarming with enormous numbers of rather attractive insects, resembling small wasps. These are hoverflies which on a sunny day can be seen hovering almost motionless in the air, and suddenly darting off so quickly that it is very difficult to follow them […]
Thrips
(Latin: Order Thysanoptera) These are very small, often dark insects, forming a quite distinct order. Each of the legs ends in a protrusible vesicle, and the two pairs of very narrow wings have hairy edges. In Denmark they are sometimes known as cholera flies. This is because they occurred in enormous numbers in Copenhagen during […]
Thrips
These are very small, often dark insects, forming a quite distinct order. Each of the legs ends in a protrusible vesicle, and the two pairs of very narrow wings have hairy edges. In Denmark they are sometimes known as cholera flies. This is because they occurred in enormous numbers in Copenhagen during the cholera year […]
Cheese fly
Latin: Piophila casei This fly lays its eggs not only on cheese but also on other milk products, on meat as well as offal and faeces. The larvae, known as cheese skippers, have a fantastic ability to hop. They do this by bending themselves in the middle so that they can grasp the hind part […]
Vinegar fly
Latin: Drosophila funebris These small yellowish-brown flies can sometimes be seen when a peeled banana or a cut tomato is left on the kitchen table. Vinegar flies frequently settle on bottles with drops of wine, milk or beer on the outside and they also visit jams, ketchup and vinegar. The female lays eggs directly in such […]
Grey flesh fly
( Latin: Sarcophaga carnaria) This large grey fly is occasionally seen indoors. Like the true blowflies it lays on dead animals, so all meats and meat products must be kept out of its reach. The eggs hatch just before they are laid so the flesh fly can be said to produce live young.
Blowflies
Latin: Calliphoridae Long ago, before the months were named after Roman emperors, the month we now call July was called worm month in certain parts of northern Europe. The worms concerned were blowfly larvae or maggots and it reminds us of what a problem it must have been to keep meat fit for human consumption […]