What Attracts Fruit Flies, Where Do They Lay Eggs?

What could be more attractive than a large bowl filled with fresh fruit? While it’s tempting for you, it’s even more enticing to bothersome insects like fruit flies. The more you learn about these annoying gnats, the better you can prevent them from infesting your New Jersey home.

The 411 On Fruit Flies

Source: Rutgers | Male and female spotted wing drosophila.

The scientific term for fruit flies describes them well. Drosophila melanogaster, which means a dew lover with a dark stomach. These flies are related to the common housefly and are also insect pests. You’re bound to see them if you have a garden, fresh produce, or something fermenting in your home.

As part of the insect family, these miniature menaces have three body parts: head, thorax, and abdomen. They have one set of transparent, veiny wings and six legs. You’ll also notice that fruit flies have prominent eyes that are usually red. These compound eyes have hundreds of lenses that allow them to zoom in quickly on the decaying fruit and veggies they adore.

What Attracts These Tiny Pests?

Fruit flies may be tiny, but they have a sweet tooth. Instead of noses, their sense of smell is in their antennae. They can detect a delightfully decomposing treat for miles away. Then, their bodies produce a tiny whiff of pheromones that leads their buzzing buddies to the botanical buffet.

Fruit flies are not picky eaters, and all they need is the slightest hint of ripened produce. They adore any sweet fruit they can land on for a sugar binge. These tiny pests will also dive into plump vegetables that are ready to turn bad. The tiniest spot of decay will bring swarms to your kitchen or garden. They also are a pest concern in restaurants and grocery produce departments.

Another disturbing fact about fruit flies is their affinity for fermented foods and beverages. They have been the bane of existence for brewers and winemakers for centuries. If you brew your own alcohol, be wary of these bitty boozers. They invite thousands of friends for a contaminating cocktail party. Fruit flies are also attracted to any vinegar, hence their nickname of “vinegar flies.”

Wherever these insects detect decaying plant matter, they will head that way in a swarm. They will often congregate around sink drains that may have small particles of rotting fruit in them. It’s also important to rinse, sanitize, and dry your mops. 

Fruit flies are attracted to dirty mops and stale mop water. Sour sponges, moldy dishrags, and piled-up garbage is another temptation for them. Fruit flies aren’t picky, and they always assume and an open invitation.

What Do Fruit Flies Eat?

These flying pests come in swarms to dine on any turning produce you have in the house. They aren’t bloodsuckers like mosquitos, and they couldn’t bite you even if they wanted. Their minuscule mouthpiece is only made to suck up liquified plant matter. 

Unlike their revolting cousin, the housefly, fruit flies don’t need to vomit to ingest food. However, their almost-microscopic fecal matter is a calling card to welcome other fruit flies to the feast.

The adults and their larvae ingest the surface of soft, rotting fruits, veggies, and particles. As they eat away at the surface, the object keeps decaying until it’s gone. If they have anything fermenting or decaying around them, fruit flies will flourish.

Where Do They Lay Their Eggs? 

These irritating pests use rotting produce and damp drains for food, and it becomes their breeding ground. Have you ever wondered how you can see one fruit fly, and they seem to multiply into a swarm overnight? They invite all their friends, and they are exceptional breeders.

After the slightly larger female mates with a male, she can lay up to 500 eggs at a time. It only takes about 24-36 hours for the wriggling larvae to hatch in their decaying nursery. During the next four days or so, the maggots will devour the soft layers of decaying matter around them.

The engorged larvae squirm away from the nursery to find a dry, secluded place to encase themselves as pupae. It takes about another four days for the countless pupae to emerge from their coffins as adult fruit flies. In a couple of days, the new adults search for more decaying matter and mate. 

Females can lay several batches of eggs in their short lifetime. No wonder they can become an infestation so quickly. Given the right environment, fruit flies can live between 40-50 days. They can be challenging to control once they get in your home in the Garden State. However, there are some steps you can take to avoid an infestation.

Are They A Health Hazard? 

In the past, most people just viewed these tiny flies as a nuisance and a given around fruits and vegetables. However, they aren’t as harmless as thought. They buzz through rotting garbage and dirty drains and carry any present microbes on their bodies. Consequently, they can transfer these harmful germs to your products and other surfaces in your home. 

Some of these potentially lethal microbes may include listeria, E. coli, and salmonella. They may be tiny, but fruit flies can be just as hazardous to your health as houseflies, cockroaches, mice, and other vermin. If you see fruit flies in your house, it’s cause for concern and action.

First, keep all produce and fermented foods sealed or refrigerated. Discard any sweet foods that are beginning to over-ripen. Pitch dirty sponges, and don’t keep wet dish rags around in the kitchen. Keep your trash covered and taken out when the can is full. Clean and sterilize your mops, and don’t leave any mop water sitting.

Final Thoughts on Fruit Flies

New Jersey is the Garden State, and you’re likely to have a bounty of homegrown produce around. Keep your food safe and your family healthy by eliminating any situation that would tempt hungry fruit flies. If you have an infestation in your home, contacting a New Jersey pest control agency is your best. They can get rid of them without using homemade concoctions and other dangerous pesticides.

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