Most Common Flies in Mississippi

Mississippi is an area with a reasonably diverse landscape. Thanks to its different wooded areas, it has become a great place to live for many families. However, these landscapes have also made room for several kinds of bugs, with flies being the most common ones.

Some fly types are harmless and don’t do more than bother the people around. On the other hand, other fly types have been proven to carry diseases, bacteria, and many other pathogens that can contaminate water, food, and people themselves.

In most cases, people in Mississippi prefer to get rid of flies before they cause any more issues. However, not every type of fly looks the same, making it hard to identify which one lives in your area and how to get rid of it.

On this page, we’re going to show you the most common flies in Mississippi so that you can identify the ones living in your area much faster.

House Fly

The house fly is one of the most common insects in Mississippi and the rest of the world. These insects are common due to their ability to breed and feed in most filth kinds, such as feces, rotting, or general garbage.

House flies can appear in your home if there’s an area with poor sanitation. Most homeowners don’t know that they have house flies until it’s already too late. Usually, they are just a nuisance since they often come close to people’s ears, but in some cases, house flies can carry several diseases.

A housefly cannot bite a human. However, they can easily contaminate food and water, so if they carry any kind of bacteria, virus, or fungi, they can spread them to people in your home or pets. To get rid of them, the best thing to do is identify the place where they’re placing their eggs and clean it.

Mayfly

Mayflies are not flies. However, they’re insects that can also infest your building. While they’re not a direct threat to a person’s health, they can be a significant nuisance since they tend to gather in huge swarms in sources of light.

The mayfly gets its name due to its period of emergence, which is the month of May. They have reasonably short life spans, so they often die quickly without having to take serious measures.

To prevent mayfly swarms in your building, make sure that all your doors and windows are properly secured to prevent them from going through any holes or cracks. It also helps to get yellow bulbs and high-pressure sodium vapor lamps to prevent swarming.

Cluster Fly

Also known as “Attic flies,” a cluster fly is capable of entering your home through small openings. These are called attic flies because they often look for warm sites to stay in cold months, meaning they fly around houses and attics whenever there’s a sunny day.

A cluster fly is not considered a harmful insect since it doesn’t carry disease, and it can’t cause any significant damage to your property. They can darken your walls whenever they lay eggs, and they can fly around light fixtures, making them annoying for people around.

To get rid of cluster flies, you may call a pest control professional to help you if you see a large number of them in your home. However, if you want to manage the problem before it gets worse, make sure that your doors and windows are properly sealed.

Midge

Midges typically are found in coastal areas, although you may also find them occasionally in your Mississippi home. One of the most remarkable things about midges is their size; they don’t go over three millimeters long, making them particularly small.

Regardless of its size, a midge can pose a serious threat to human health since it’s known for biting humans, animals, livestock, and wildlife. A midge bite can cause severe irritation on a human’s skin, so it may be best to avoid those by wearing mosquito repellent.

You can quickly identify a midge bite if there’s a spot in your skin that looks like this:

• A small hole in the middle of the bite.
• Welts and blisters.
• A cluster of red dots.

People who are sensitive to bites may feel a burning sensation, so make sure that you take care of them as soon as possible.

Aside from wearing mosquito repellent, you may also avoid marshes and ponds, which are considered breeding areas for them.

Mosquito

Mosquitos are also a well-known type of insect worldwide. They’re known for feeding on human and animal blood. While mosquitoes are only a nuisance in most cases, some may carry diseases such as encephalitis or the West Nile virus.

The best way to handle a mosquito problem in your home is to use repellents to avoid bites. However, that may not stop pest populations around your house, so your best course of action would be to contact a pest control professional to help you.

A mosquito can be identified by looking at its legs; they mostly have long noses and legs, and they come in silver, green, or white colors.

Black Fly

Black flies are insects that don’t infest or breed inside homes, meaning that they only may get inside by mere coincidence. A black fly usually roams around people’s hair and ears, making them fairly annoying for most.

This insect is considered dangerous because of its bite. A black fly bite can be excruciating and cause lymph node swelling or skin rash. To make a bite, the fly cuts into the skin to get access to the blood.

Thankfully, black flies are not known for spreading human disease, so you only have to worry about not getting bitten. These insects mostly live in streams and rivers, so you may avoid them by avoiding wooded areas in summer. A black fly is usually small and black in color.

Gnat

Gnats are popularly known for being extremely similar to mosquitos. They mostly gather in garbage, ripe fruit, and houseplant soil. In essence, any place in your home that’s improperly sanitized may be affected by gnats since they’re favorable areas for a gnat’s reproduction.

This insect is not known for causing significant damage to properties, but it can threaten human health since it can gather pathogens from its breed sites and carry them to healthy food, plants, and more.

To avoid a gnat swarm at home, it’s recommended to eliminate any potential breeding sites.

Drain Fly

A drain fly is often called a “Moth fly” due to its resemblance to moths. They often gather in stagnant water, meaning that they use to collect bacteria and fly around kitchens, bathrooms, basement sinks, septic tanks, or sewers.

Drain flies don’t cause any harm to humans, but they can be a nuisance in your home.

Sand Fly

Sandflies are known for causing painful bites that can cause infections, so it’s heavily recommended to call a pest control professional to assess the situation as soon as possible. You can also use oil lamps to keep these insects away at home.

Stable Fly

The stable fly is similar to the house fly in looks. These are attracted to fresh blood and carbon dioxide, so they are known as blood feeders. However, they’re known for primarily feeding on cattle and horses.

 If they can’t find these two animal hosts, they may go for biting people and dogs.

Blue Bottle Fly

The blue bottle fly gets its name due to its characteristic color. This insect continually eats decaying flesh, meaning that it may transmit a high number of bacteria and diseases.

Most of these insects tend to gather and breed in garbage, decomposing meat, and windows.

Phorid Fly

Phorid flies are attracted to animals and decaying plants, and they feed on decaying food, meaning that they can transmit bacteria and disease in some cases. These flies can be complicated to remove from home, so consider asking for professional help.

Crane Fly

Crane flies are known for being one of the less harmful flies in Mississippi. They don’t bite, and they don’t carry any kind of disease. In fact, the sole purpose of these flies is to mate and lay eggs.

However, you may still call a pest control professional to get rid of them if you wish.

Face Fly

Face flies tend to seek warm places to rest during the winter season, and they feed on mucus from livestock, meaning that farmers are the ones having more issues with these insects, such as diseases and bacteria for the animals.

Flesh Fly

A flesh fly is another harmless insect since it doesn’t bite, and it doesn’t often carry disease to humans or livestock. They’re usually found in meat processing and packing facilities, but they may also find their way into residential buildings.

Horn Fly

This is a blood-feeder that takes several blood meals a day; they mostly attack cattle, bison, horse, and water buffalos, although they may also be found in residential buildings.

Yellow Fly

Finally, the yellow fly can cause severe and painful bites that cause large swelling on human skin. They’re mostly found during sunny days or hot weather in general.

How Long do Flies Live?

This mostly depends on the type of fly. However, they generally live from seven to 30-50 days.

Conclusion

Regardless of where you’re located in Mississippi, you’re likely to encounter one of the fly types stated above. In these cases, make sure to contact a pest control professional to help you assess the situation and prevent the accumulation of disease and bacteria in your home.

If you’re looking for the right team to handle the issue for you, Synergy² is here to help. We provide trusted services throughout the area, so contact us for the best pest control services around.