I"' SSnce 1970 the Vector Biology and Control Division of has prep. with the assistame 02 collaborators outside tb Orgaaiaatioa, a number or paprs on vecto: +ol, The Zxpert Co on fnsecticideo held in October X974 (Tecbdcal Repart Series ME I recome&& that: theae doe-nts - general review@ of the ecology rtroz of indivfdual vector groups - should be continued an wlth upta+ate practicad infor~latzonon the parkfcular subject, f- '"55, with- the gtmat-el. ~emndfor ehPs saterfa3 for use as training and inf ,a gaides by different categ *E personnel, particalarly in the deti :ies, it was decgded to develop two separate rseriee of theae doc avanced series for M ,Sc, students in aedical entowlogy and ' profet~sfo~lstaff, an8 a ~liddl~~"leve1series for lea6 specialized r l the co=unity, The advanced series will cover the relevant subject in sore derail and at a higher technlca3 level. It i s believed that thir type of inforwtion 1 assist vector control specialists to acquire the knowledge required for theit daily work, Zn order to improve the value and usefulness of this gulide, eralu fortas are attached, and users are request4 to send the coapleted fornts to the I WO Divisfoa of Vector Biology and Control in Geneva sc that their comaeute sag be takea iato consideration when the guide 16 revised, WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION ORGANISATION MONDIALE DE LA SANTE VII. TEE HOUSE-FLY - BIOLOGY AMD CONTROL 3. Keiding Danish Pest Infestation Laboratory Lyngby, Denmark The issue of this document does not constitute Ce document ne constitue pas une publication, formal publication. It should not be reviewed, II ne doit faire I'objet d'aucun compte rendu ou abstracted, quoted or translated without the rdsume ni d'aucune citation ou traduction sans agreement of the World Health Organization. l'autorisation de I'Organisation mondiale de la Authors alone are responsible for views expressed SantB. Les opinions exprimhes dans les articles in signed articles. signds n'engagent que leurs auteurs. CONTENTS I Introduction ................................................................... I1 Taxonomy. nomenclature and geographical distribution ........................... I11 Life history. biology and ecology .............................................. 111.1 Life history ............................................................. 111.1.1 The eggs ......................................................... 111.1.2 The larv~ae ....................................................... 111.1.3 The pupae ........................................................ 111.1.4 The adult fly .................................................... 111.2 Breeding sources ......................................................... 111.2.1 Dung ............................................................. 111.2.2 Garbage and wastes from food processing .......................... 111.2.3 Organic manure other than dung ................................... 111.2.4 Sewage ........................................................... 111.2.5 Accumulations of plant material .................................. 111.3 Seasonal fluctuations and overwintering .................................. 111.4 Biology and behaviour of adult flies ..................................... 111.4.1 Feeding .......................................................... 111.4.2 Distribution by day and by night ................................. 111.4.3 Dispersion ....................................................... IV Public health importance of house-flies ........................................ IV.l Potential of flies for transmission of disease ........................... 1V.2 Important diseases that may be transmitted by non-biting flies under certain conditions ....................................................... IV.3 Fly nuisance ............................................................. V Fly control .................................................................... V.l Environmental sanitation and hygiene ..................................... V.l.l Elimination or reduction of fly breeding ......................... V.1.2 Elimination of sources that attract flies from other areas ....... V.1.3 Exclusion of flies from contact with materials containing pathogenic germs ................................................. V.1.4 Protection of food. utensils and man from contact with flies (non-chemical methods) ........................................... V.1.5 Education and public cooperation in environmental sanitation programmes ....................................................... V.2 Insecticidal control ..................................................... V.2.1 Larvicides ....................................................... V.2.2 Residual treatment of resting-sites .............................. V.2.3 Impregnated strips. cords. etc ................................... V.2.4 Toxic baits ...................................................... V.2.5 Space treatments and direct spraying of fly aggregations ........a V.2.6 Fumigation ....................................................... Page V.3 House-fly resistance to insecticides .................................... V.3.1 Development of resistance ........................................ V.3.2 Occurrence of resistance in various insecticides ................. V.3.3 Nature of resistance ............................................. V.3.4 Cross-resistance and multiple resistance ......................... V.3.5 Stability of resistance .......................................... V.3.6 Preventing or reducing the development of resistance ............. V.3.7 Significance of resistance for fly control ....................... V.4 Biological and other means of control .................................... V.4.1 Biological control and regulation of house-fly populations ....... V.4.2 Sterility methods and genetic control ............................ V.4.3 Trapping ......................................................... V1 Fly survey methods ............................................................. VI.l Counting flies on selected areas or attractants .......................... VI.l.l The fly grill count .............................................. VI.1.2 Counts of flies landing on baits ................................. VI.1.3 Counts or estimates on available surfaces ........................ VI.2 Trapping flies ........................................................... VI.2.1 Baited traps ..................................................... VI.2.2 Sticky traps ..................................................... VI.2.3 Light traps ...................................................... VI.3 Catching flies ........................................................... VI.3.1 Sweeps of net .................................................... VI.3.2 Movable suction device ........................................... VI.3.3 The fly cone ..................................................... VI.4 Counting fly specks ...................................................... c I Glossary ....................................................................... V111 Selected references ............................................................ IX Evaluation ..................................................................... A . Questionnaire for self-evaluation ........................................... B . Questionnaire for return to the Division of Vector Biology and Control ...... The common house-fly, kusca domestica L., has foll~wedman and been a nuisance to people all over the world wherever livestock are kept or garbage* accumulates (Fig. l). Musea domestica deserves its name as it is by far the most common fly in and around houses2 villages and in urban areas with insufficient sanitation. The house-fly is of public health importance, because it may transmit infections to food and people, and because it is a plague adding to the daily burden of people living under poor sanitary conditions, and Unacceptable where living conditions and hygiene are at a higher level. Fig. 1. Musca domestica domestica L. female (Denmark) M. domestica is a typical synanthropic* fly (syn-anthropic means together with E) as, with few exceptions, it is dependent on human settlements and activities, includi-ng the keeping of domestic animals, it breeds in human waste and manure of animals, it feeds on man's food and garbage, and uses human buildings for shelter. There are many other synanthropic flies of public health importance, which will not be dealt with in this brochure; however, M. domestica is the most common and widespread species*. The area of origin of M. domestica is not known, but its biology and distribution point t* a subtropical or tropical area in the Old World, perhaps East Africa, and it seems to have followed man from this earliest development. * The terms marked with an asterisk are defined in Section V11 - Glossary. WFI0/VBC/86.937 page 5 11. TAXONOMY*, NOMENCUTUTIE* AND GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION Classification of the Diptera* yf public health impurtance: arde r Diptera Flies suborders 3emat?cera1 Brachbcera2 Cyclo?rhapha3 I i 1 I Families ~ulicidae ~sychddidae ~imul/idae ~eratodogonidae Tabanidae Huscidae Glossinidae Calliphoridae ~es?ridae Hosquitos includes BlackfLtes Biting midges Horseflies House- Tsetse flies Blowflies, etc. Warble flies Sandf lies flies, etc. 1) Antennae* with many segments (>6) 2) Mainly large flies, antennae wirh three segments, the last being the largest 3) Antennae with three segments. The last bears a bristle called the arista*. M.