Fruit Fly

Natural Habitat

Commonly found in kitchens, pantries, restaurants, grocery stores, and anywhere ripe or decaying fruits and vegetables are present. They can also be found outdoors near gardens, compost piles, and orchards.

Diet & Feeding

Adult fruit flies feed on fermenting fruits, vegetables, and other organic matter. Larvae feed on the yeast growing in these fermenting substances.

Behavior Patterns

Fruit flies are attracted to ripe and fermenting fruits and vegetables. They have a rapid life cycle, developing from egg to adult in about a week under ideal conditions. Females lay eggs on the surface of fermenting food. Adults are often seen hovering around fruit bowls, kitchens, and other areas where food is stored or fermentation is occurring. They are highly active during the day.

Risks & Benefits

Risks: Considered a nuisance pest in homes and commercial settings. They can contaminate food products with bacteria and yeast from their bodies or by laying eggs on them, leading to food spoilage. They are not known to bite or transmit diseases to humans. Benefits: Drosophila melanogaster is a widely used model organism in genetic and biological research due to its short life cycle and ease of breeding in a laboratory setting.

Identified on: 7/2/2025