igotamatch

A fruit fly ? ~ or a fungus gnat (Sciarid) ?

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I most recently encountered fruit flies (3 of) , 2 of them frezidly multiplying . . . . as they came off Spanish Romaine Lettuce . Have you bought those recently ? !

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Those little flies are attracted to white & also sky-blue ; so sticky traps of those colours ~ preferably white . These will fukk things up for them nicely

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Or, watch & they will land on a white surface - squish quickly .
If they've newly landed , they can't get away on time , but if they're ready settled ~ you'll miss them !

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Just like most insects, fruit flies undergo a complete four-stage life cycle, which are consists of the following:

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Eggs
They start as eggs, and females can lay up to 500 eggs during their entire life span. The eggs are usually laid in fruits and decaying organic material and will hatch about 24 hours after they are laid. The optimal temperature for fruit fly eggs is 20-25 °C.

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Larvae
The next stage is the larvae (maggots), which are accompanied by bacteria that cause the fruit to rot. The larvae will consume as many foods as possible so it can store the energy and nutrients it needs during the pupal stage. Once the fruit or other food source becomes too well-fermented, the larvae will stop feeding.

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Pupa
During this time, the fruit is ripened and will fall to the ground until it rots. Once the emerging adults are ready, the puparium will turn black. Then, the fully-matured larvae will leave the fruit and will burrow into the soil for pupation, which usually lasts for 4 days. Once they have forced their way out, the adults will now turn lighter in color.
These small, white larvae will molt twice for the next 4-5 days and will develop from the first instar to the third instar stages. They are relatively small, and you can hardly notice them, especially that they are now away from the food source. At this point, the growing larva is also at rest but slowly developing a hard shell. While inside the cocoon, the larvae will slowly grow six legs and a pair of crumpled wings.

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Adult
Shortly after, they will emerge as adult fruit flies and will be ready to mate after 2-3 days. Under normal weather conditions or about 25 °C , the entire metamorphosis may take 1-2 weeks to complete.
An adult fruit fly usually lives up to 40-50 days. Fruit flies are also polygamous creatures, and females can mate with several males while storing sperm for future use. On the other hand, males can modify their mating behavior in the future, making them faster to reproduce. Copulation usually lasts for 15-20 minutes.

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