This is how you successfully fight the pests

the essentials in brief

• Fruit flies can be combated with agents containing alcohol or vinegar. A screw jar can be quickly converted into a trap.
• The use of chemical agents is unnecessary. Instead, preventive measures such as hygiene and control help to prevent it from spreading.
• Fruit flies reproduce en masse in a short time because their life expectancy is not very high.
• The fruit flies belong to different species, one of which prefers to stay in the vicinity of humans. Some types of flies are often confused with fruit flies.

What can be done against fruit flies?

The vacuum cleaner is an effective way to get rid of fruit flies. A steady and at the same time quick hand is required here. Once the insects have been frightened up, sucking them in turns into an endless game of catching. Patience is required until the flies settle again. It is a little easier with various food and household items.

Home remedies for fruit flies

A fruit fly trap is easy to build yourself

The question “What helps against fruit flies?” Can be answered easily: with fermented or vinegar-containing substances. Do not use chemical agents against fruit flies. Home remedies prove not only to be ecological but also to be inexpensive and gentle on health. Take advantage of the insects' preferences by luring the annoying pests with the help of smells. Many of these substances are present in every household.

House recipe for the fruit fly cocktail:

• a sip of fruit juice
• sprinkles of vinegar, for example apple cider vinegar
• some sugar
• a few drops of detergent

The trick is that the detergent reduces surface tension. As soon as the fruit flies start landing, they sink into the liquid and drown. Since yellow is particularly attractive to insects, you should use light-colored fruit juices. To further enhance the effect, you can pour the mixture against fruit flies into a yellow container.

Fruit fly trap: gentle variant

If the fruit flies have not yet become a nuisance, a life trap made of a glass and a piece of paper will help. Shape the paper into one funnel,(€ 4.58 at Amazon *) that fits exactly into the glass opening. For more stability, you can fix the funnel with a strip of adhesive tape. Such a fly trap has proven to be the best way to catch fruit flies without killing them.

Put fermenting fruit slices or old banana peels in the jar and place the construction next to the fruit plate. The insects are attracted by the smell and fly into the trap, from which they can no longer find their way out. If necessary, empty the trap next to the compost in the garden. Here the insects find an optimal habitat and can take on useful functions in the recycling of leftovers.

Fruit fly trap: radical variant

If the expansion of the fruit fly population can hardly be stopped, several fly traps can help. Fill a bowl with a fruit fly cocktail and cover the container with cling film. Poke a few holes in the foil. These serve as entry openings. If the fruit flies have lost their way into the trap, you will not find your way out. An old screw cap jar provides a more stable variant that you can use on the balcony and terrace. Use a nail to drill several holes in the lid.

Carnivorous Plants

Carnivorous plants are a supportive solution to keeping the fruit fly plague at bay. These exotic plants have developed special mechanisms with which they hunt insects. Fruit flies are also attracted by sweet smells and seductive colors. If they get caught in the trap, there is no way out. Digestive enzymes break down and slowly kill the prey.

You should avoid that

During the summer months you can Vinegar flies become particularly annoying. Many of those affected seek help and trust tips from like-minded people. Lots of these advices should be consumed with caution, as they are harmful or dangerous and often do not bring any visible success. If you want to get rid of fruit flies, you should take gentler measures.

Chemical club

Various sprays use the active ingredient pyrethrin to destroy fruit flies and other insects. Such funds act as a contact poison. If the two-winged birds are sprayed, the nervous system is excited, coordination disorders and ultimately death. The effect sets in within a few minutes, so that such destroyers effectively and quickly eliminate the plague. However, the active ingredient remains in the room air for up to six weeks. If food comes into contact with the poison, consumption can be harmful to health.

Deodorant

Spraying the insects with deodorant spray does not lead to any visible results. At most, the measure causes the wings to stick together or some animals to suffocate if they have inhaled sufficient amounts of spray. Due to the low efficiency, you should not take this measure. In great desperation, attempts are made to eliminate the insects with a burning deodorant spray flame. This method is not only ineffective but also dangerous.

Prevent fruit fly infestation

Tomato plants keep fruit flies away

A few measures are sufficient to curb the spread of the fruit flies. The insects are often brought into the home with the fruit. Design the environment so that it is hostile to vinegar flies. If they are deprived of their livelihood, they can no longer multiply on a massive scale.

Expel with plants

There are some smells that fruit flies don't like. These include the essential oils of plants and aromas of various spices. These fragrances keep the flies away from fridges, bins and fruit plates. As soon as the smell has dissipated, the effect is lost. Therefore, you should also set up traps.

Tips to keep things safe:

• tomatoes: lay out fresh leaves in the kitchen
• basil: Grind leaves to release essential oils
• Cloves: lightly crumble and sprinkle over the fruit plate
• Eucalyptus oil: evaporate a few drops in an aroma lamp
• Bay oil: with a water sprayer on Organic waste spray

Take hygiene measures

In addition to regular ventilation, the immediate cleaning of dirty dishes is important in order not to provide the fruit flies with a livelihood. The two-winged birds not only nest in drains but also find optimal conditions in a full dishwasher. Be vigilant and remove any leftover food or drink immediately.

How to prevent fruit flies:

• Check the fruit for bruises and use this fruit immediately
• Store fruits in a cool place and cover
• Do not leave organic waste to stand for longer than two days
• Thoroughly clean the trash can after emptying it
• Clean and disinfect drains

How do fruit flies come about?

Fruit flies reproduce surprisingly quickly

Fruit flies can multiply explosively if the conditions in their environment are optimal. Warm temperatures, increased humidity and organic waste guarantee an ideal basis for life.

Multi-stage courtship

In many species of fruit flies, courtship can be divided into several phases. In the first phase, the male touches the potential partner with his forefeet. The females secrete a sexual attractant through which they can be identified. If the male identifies an alien female, it withdraws.

If the chemical detection is successful, an optical orientation occurs in the second phase. The male goes around his partner. Nocturnal species skip this step and immediately move on to the third phase. Both sexes open and close their wings slowly.

In the fourth step, the male vibrates with his wings, which are turned towards the female. It continues to circle around the partner, creating a stream of air. Females can sense these air movements and also respond by vibrating their wings. The male quickly starts a first attempt at mating. This courtship ritual is repeated several times if the female opposes mating.

Egg laying and larval food

After successful mating, a female lays up to 400 eggs. It prefers fermenting plant substances or substrates as a place to lay eggs, which serve as food for the larvae. The food spectrum of the fruit flies is broad. The diet of many larvae consists of bacteria and yeast, which decompose the fruit. These species are considered to be cultural followers and occur in the vicinity of humans.

Larvae of other species feed on plant tissue in leaves and stems or on fungi. Some fruit fly larvae show a predatory behavior and prey on plant-sucking insects or use the nectar and pollen stores of bees.

development

We know the larvae of the fruit flies as maggots

The newly hatched larvae of the widespread black-bellied fruit fly have a pointed front end that they can stretch out and pull in. This chitin pen contains stunted mouthparts. The maggots crawl around in the pulp and ingest the food. In the next few days they shed their skin twice before pupating. The pupa is reminiscent of a dried-up maggot because the shell is formed when the larval skin dries out. It takes less than a week for the lid to pop open and the full-grown fruit fly to crawl outside.

Lifespan and overwintering

Fruit flies have a life expectancy of two to eight weeks, with males dying after ten days. The aging process of the insects is controlled by hormones. Adult insects do not survive the cold season. Fruit flies hibernate in sheltered niches when they are pupae. The fact that the flies also appear in the kitchen in winter is due to the favorable living conditions. Here vinegar flies can reproduce continuously and produce eggs in large numbers.

What are fruit flies?

Fruit flies owe their name to their preference for rotting and overripe fruit. Other common names are fruit or vinegar fly and fermentation or cider fly. To avoid confusion with species of bored flies, which are also known as fruit flies, the term fruit fly was introduced. The insects represent a family and belong to the order of the two-winged animals. In Germany there are 50 different species that are between two and six millimeters in size.

Digression

Interesting behaviors

Where do fruit flies occur?

The Drosophila melanogaster is common in our country

Their original range are moist deciduous forests and forest edges. There are some game species that are strongly tied to trees. Other representatives of this family turn out to be cultural followers and colonize habitats in human surroundings. This includes Drosophila melanogaster, which is a widespread fruit fly in the home. If you spot small fruit flies everywhere, it is this species.

Prefer fruit flies:

• Compost heap
• fermenting fruit juices and leftover drinks
• overripe fruit and rotting fruit

Fruit flies without fruit? Beware of confusion

Many fruit flies in the apartment cause disgust and despair. If the methods used to control it don't work against the small flies in the kitchen, it is likely not fruit flies. Often fruit flies are confused with similar insects whose origins lie in completely different directions. It is therefore important that you identify the species before controlling it.

Flies in the flower pot

If there are numerous flies in the Potting soil frolic, it is not about fruit flies. Behind the black insects are fungus gnats, the females of which lay eggs on the bare substrate. As soon as the larvae hatch, they dig into the protected soil. A humid and warm environment offers these pests optimal conditions. Their larval stages eat plant roots, while adult sciarid gnats prefer to stay in plants and only drink liquid.

Alleged fruit flies in the bathroom

It is quite possible that fruit flies will settle in the bathroom. The insects lay their eggs in drains that have not been cleaned thoroughly. If such nesting opportunities have been eliminated without the flies disappearing, it is most likely butterfly flies. These very hairy insects resemble tiny butterflies in shape. Psychoda phalaenoides is a species known as the release mosquito. She is attracted by feces and urine and places her eggs near such odor sources. Butterfly mosquitoes can get into the bathroom from dry drains or through air shafts.

Drill flies and fruit flies

The bored fly causes great damage in fruit growing

Drill flies are also called fruit flies, but they have little in common with fruit flies. They have a laying stinger with which they can lay their eggs in parts of plants and fruit. Adult flies are significantly larger than vinegar flies and are characterized by their strikingly patterned wings. While they can cause damage in agriculture and horticulture, they are of no significance as a pest in the household.

frequently asked Questions

How do I get rid of fruit flies?

Fruit flies can be easily baited with fermented fruit or leftover drinks. Use these tools to build a fly trap from which the insects can no longer escape. A foil-covered bowl or a screw-top jar are ideal containers. Poke holes in the cover and fill the jar with an attractant such as apple cider vinegar or juice and dish soap. If you want to get rid of annoying insects permanently, you shouldn't store any waste in the kitchen.

Where do fruit flies come from?

Fruit flies are carried from the garden into the home by purchased fruit or with the fruit that has been collected from the garden. Most of their eggs are already on damaged fruits, so that fruit flies hatch after a few days. You should therefore check fruits and vegetables for bruises and damage. Store such foods under a plastic cover. As soon as the first insects are visible underneath, you can take the plate outside and open the hood outdoors. Consume the fruit as soon as possible.

How do fruit flies reproduce?

The pairing of the fruit flies follows an elaborate courtship ritual, which consists of several steps. The male tries to find out if the female is ready to mate. It approaches its partner and tries to get her attention. More often it happens that the females run away. Then the male has to work hard again and the procedure starts all over again. Only when the female is persuaded does the male make a first attempt at mating.

How fast do fruit flies multiply?

When the female mates, she lays her eggs after just 24 hours. A clutch can contain up to 400 eggs, from which larvae hatch after a short time. These go through several stages within the next few days until they pupate. The adult fruit fly hatches after four to five more days and can mate after 24 hours.

Are fruit flies harmful or dangerous?

Fruit flies are not dangerous to humans because they can neither sting nor transmit diseases. Nevertheless, the appetite quickly dies when the flies are en masse in the kitchen. Drosophila species feed on yeasts and bacteria, which are involved in the rotting processes of fruit. The insects are able to transfer these microorganisms to fruits and vegetables.

How long do fruit flies live?

Vinegar flies have a life expectancy between two and eight weeks. The purpose of the males is to mate female partners and to ensure the continued existence of the species. They usually do not live longer than ten days, while the females can reproduce several times in their life.