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Phorid Flies
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Phorid Fly Identification & Prevention
Also known as the humpbacked fly or coffin fly, phorid flies will infest almost any type of moist, decaying organic material.
Description
![phorid flie](/images/content/phorid-flies.2404181214550.jpg)
Phorid flies are small flies, tan to dark brown in color, up to 1/8 inch in length, and distinguished humpbacked. Any organic material that remains wet can potentially be utilized for food and breeding by this fly. The female deposits 20 eggs at a time and can produce 40 eggs in 12 hours. Larvae emerge within 24 hours and feed for 8 to 16 days before crawling to a dry area to pupate. Under ideal conditions, the lifecycle can be completed in as little as 14 days or take as long as 37 days.
Biology and Behavior
- Because they frequent unsanitary areas, phorid flies are a concern as they can transmit pathogenic bacteria onto food or human tissues.
- Phorid flies can be found in mausoleums and mortuaries and will infest human cadavers.
- Commercial kitchens that 'wet wash' with pressurized water often push moist organic debris into cracks under equipment and gaps under walls where the material ferments and breeds phorid flies.
- The most difficult infestations happen due to sub-slab breaks in drain lines where organic material accumulates. Adult flies or larvae enter the living space through cracks in the slab, gaps around utility penetrations, or unsealed expansion joints.
- You can find sub-slab infestations by boroscopes used to locate broken lines or cutting a core hole in the slab to look for conducive conditions or signs of activity. Replace all infested soil and repair the leaks to solve these problems.
- Phorid fly problems are also common in overwatered house plants and floral displays, as well as pet terrariums.
- Wet mops and brooms that collect moist organic material and are not cleaned and stored properly are good breeding sites.
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