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Where Do Fruit Flies Come From?


Summary: Fruit flies are common pests of kitchens, but where do fruit flfies come from? The short answer is that fruit flies breed in any forgotten place where food material has slipped between cracks to decompose or where fruit has been left out too long.

James R; Johnstown, PA asks: I getting a lot of fruit flies in my kitchen during the summer. Where do fruit flies come from?

Dear James: To answer your question, "Where do fruit flies come from?", my suggestion would be that the fruit flies are coming in to your home on the fruits and vegetables that you are bringing in from the garden, grocery store or farmer's market. It's very common for this to occur during the warm summer weather.

Wash your fruits and vegetables when you bring them into the house. You can use a product like Veggie Wash if you are worried about removing waterproof pesticides. Or, refrigerate them. Either way, you want to remove the breeding source for the flies.

Ripe, soft fruits like bananas, peaches, pineapple and strawberries are some of the most frequent breeding sources for fruit flies. Once you remove the

Fruit_fly.jpg
Fruit fly on bowl

breeding source the fruit flies will be gone within hours. They have a very short life span so you won't see lots of breeding adult flies if they have nothing to eat or nothing to lay their eggs in.

A quick shot of any flying insect killer like Raid Flying Insect Killer will also do the trick for the adult flies. But, if you don't get rid of the breeding source you'll have the flies back in full force within a day or so.





Comments

Tara
02 Aug 2009, 13:26
Please help! We have had what we think are fruit flies for a few months now. Their tiny but from what I can tell they have red eyes and are slightly humpbacked. I see the majority of them near the kitchen sink or kitchen window. I have done LOADS or research and we have taken apart all of the drains and cleaned them. We have also used a drain gel. They seem to go away for a day or two after, and then they are back. We have even stopped our sinks with the rubber stoppers for a few days to make sure nothing can come up from the drains. They still seem to be around, so does that eliminate drains from being the source? Also checked the overflow drain.

I have checked fridge pans, cupboards for rotting food, we have sealed off windows to eliminate the possibility of them coming from outside. I have looked everywhere and still can't find the source.

Am I missing something? There does seem to be fewer but not completely gone. They are bugging...every time I cook something on the stove they hover around and sometimes get into whatever I am cooking. I have found them in our sack of bread. Must have flown in while making a sandwich and didn't realize it before sealing it up. Really annoying...

Any suggestions?
Lisa Wolk
10 Aug 2009, 23:27
I get fruit flies every summer. I know it's from the fruit I bring in from the store. I wash them and leave them in a bowl ready for the kids to grab. I then start to get the flies. So, I use fly traps and they work wonders. I put one up above the bowl, hanging from the ceiling and one above the garbage can. I know they are ugly looking, but they work great. It gets rid of them every time and they're cheap. Just thought I would give some advise to anyone asking.

Good luck.
Questionable
28 Sep 2009, 15:03
I am experiencing a fruit fly infestation. I am disliking it very much. I do not know where they came from, I do not buy many vegetables, nor fruits. When I do they are refridgerated, but washed off before hand. Nothing is left out on the counter, dishes are always done and the garbage is always taken out. It just seems like they're multiplying and multiplying. They're not only in my kitchen, they're in my closets, bathroom and bedrooms. I am going to have to use raid to get rid of them, but i hate the thought of having to wash everything down after wards. Is there anyway I can get rid of these easier than spraying raid throughout my apartment?
Florence Robinson
18 Oct 2009, 13:33
I represent a group of people that like to know.
I dried pears yesterday. I had no fruit flies before and after (I threw out-side all the peelings and core) today I have a house full of fruit flies. I am convinced the flies must have had the eggs in the fruit. Beautiful sprayed fruit from my yard!
No rotten or spoiled fruit in my house!
james collins
06 Nov 2009, 15:39
My home is infested with fruit lies how do I get rid of them? I've gotten rid of all the garden vegetables.
bailey
11 Nov 2009, 01:17
Hey there! We are a non-drinking of alcohal of ANY sort. However, we were told to buy some very cheap wine and sit the (half full) bottle on the center of the kitchen table. It would attract the fruit flies, and they can not make their way out of the bottle. We have noticed that most of them migrate to the bottle and we manage to catch them and shake them up in the bottle. (Sorry if this offends anyone) But, we have never had this problem and I HATE those flies! Good Luck
elsie
15 Nov 2009, 19:11
I have this infesttion of very small black flies. I've noticed them mostly on the ceiling above and around the lights. They are mostly in the kitchen my den (which is open to the kitche). I have never seen them before. I have used Raid to kill but they come right back. What are they and how do I get rid of them. I thought they were friut flies but I have had fruit on the counter and never seen them before. Please help me.
gary
21 Dec 2009, 18:17
put a piece of bannana in a pop or juice bottle and keep the lid handy in a few hours put the lid on most of the gnats will be in the bottle do this a few times and they will be gone
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