Stable or Biting housefly

( Latin: Stomoxys calcitrans )

In late summer one often hears people saying that the flies have started to bite. This is not because the ordinary houseflies have suddenly changed their habits. It refers to the activities of the stable fly, which is very similar in appearance to the housefly. It can, however, be distinguished by its prominent proboscis, which is hard and pointed and well adapted for piercing skin, unlike the soft suctorial proboscis with broad tips of a housefly.

Stable flies appear in cowsheds and similar places, where the larvae live in and on manure. The adults prefer the blood of cattle and pigs and very rarely attack humans, although they are sometimes found in houses.