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Life Cycle of House Fly

Compared to their peers in the insect world, the common housefly has a relatively long life expectancy. In the wild, they can live up to one month. They survive even longer in laboratories and heated homes.

The life cycle of a housefly begins in the egg stage. A female housefly is capable of laying up to  150 eggs in a batch. Over a period of a few days, she will produce five or six batches of eggs. Female houseflies favor damp, dark surfaces such as compost, manure and other decomposing organic material for egg laying. House fly eggs resemble individual grains of rice and are typically three to nine millimeters in length.

Within a day, house fly eggs hatch into larvae, also known as maggots. Maggots are legless, white insects that feed from the egg-laying site for three to five days. During this time, maggots molt several times. They then choose a dark place to pupate.

Fly pupae are similar in function to butterfly cocoons: their hard, brown shells protect the inactive, developing flies. Over the course of three to six days, the pupae develop legs and wings, ultimately emerging as full-grown houseflies. Within two to three days, female houseflies are capable of reproduction.

 

Life Expectancy of House Fly

House Fly Larvae

Gestation of a House Fly