Halteres assist in flight control and balancing.

The Australian salute: nuisance flies

How to recognise some of the more common flies found in and around most homes in Australia.

• 21 September 2007 | Updated 14 October 2011

• How is a fly different from other insects?
• Why are certain species attracted to people and human activities?
• Non-biting flies
• Common biting flies

Diptera is one the largest Orders of insects, consisting of at least 150 000 described and undescribed species worldwide with an estimated 30 000 species in Australia.

Members of the Diptera include:

• mosquitoes
• midges

  Bushflies are attracted to humans and domestic animals, often feeding on secretions around the eyes and mouth.
• sand flies
• march flies
• bush flies
• houseflies
• robber flies
• crane flies.

How is a fly different from other insects?

Flies have one pair of functional wings and a pair of minute pendulum shaped structures called halteres, in place of the hind-wing found in other flying insects.

The halteres assist in flight control and balancing.

Most flies have mouthparts designed for lapping, or piercing and sucking.

Why are certain species attracted to people and human activities?

Flies considered to be pests are usually those dependent on animals for food or a place to lay their eggs.

They rely on a liquid diet such as animal secretions or soluble solids, liquefied by special enzymes in the saliva. Some species prefer to lay their eggs on living or dead flesh.

Non-biting flies

Houseflies, Musca domestica (family Muscidae) have four stripes on their back and are a nuisance to humans and animals around the household. They feed on wet or dry organic foods (most of which are also eaten by humans) as well as decomposing organic matter.

They are therefore capable of carrying bacteria on their mouthparts that is harmful to humans and animals.

Houseflies deposit eggs in animal dung and other decomposing organic matter. Once emerged, maggots feed on this until they develop into adults.

Bushflies, M. vetustissima (family Muscidae) have two stripes on their back and are often seen in droves at a summer BBQ or attempting to land and feed on secretions around the eyes and mouth of people and domestic animals (dogs, horses).

Bushflies deposit their eggs in animal dung within which maggots will feed.

Some species of mosquito are an important vector of human diseases.

All flies have one pair of wings and one pair of halteres.

Common biting flies

Common biting flies include mosquitoes, March & horse flies and sand flies.

Mosquitoes

Mosquitoes belong to the family Culicidae. Typical characteristics include:

• an attraction to stimuli such as carbon dioxide or heat naturally emitted by host
• females feed on blood for egg development (males do not feed on blood)
• not all species attack humans, some feed on birds, reptiles and even fish
• eggs are laid on still water (including water filled buckets, cans, puddles)
• larvae are aquatic.

Certain mosquito species transmit important diseases in humans, such as:

• Ross River virus
• malaria
• dengue fever
• Australian encephalitis.

March and horse flies

March flies and horse flies belong to the family Tabanidae. Common traits of this family include:

• females feed on the blood of humans and animals
• males feed on nectar
• common in forests and woodlands.

Female March flies deliver a painful bite using their blade-like mouth-parts. The area often becomes red and inflamed and a large puncture mark can be seen which tends to ooze blood from which the fly feeds.

Sand flies

Sand flies belong to the family Ceratopogonidae and common characteristics include:

• both sexes feed on plant juices, but only females feed on blood
• piercing-sucking mouthparts
• adult midges range from 1.5-4.0 millimetres in size.

Sand flies are common in coastal areas including:

• tidal zones
• lagoons
• estuaries
• mangrove swamps.

Other biting flies include species of:

• stable flies (Muscidae)
• black flies (Simuliidae).

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