Green Bottle Fly Facts & Information

What Orkin Does

Green bottle fly prevention and control may be comprised of both exterior and interior procedures. Your pest management professional will positively identify the offending pest, conduct an inspection and then develop an integrated pest management plan (IPM) to resolve the problem. The key components of a green bottle fly IPM plan include:

• Identification – since not all flies have the same behavior and habitat, it is important to correctly identify the offending insect so that an effective and efficient IPM program can be put into place.

• Inspection – your pest management professional’s inspection will provide the information and observations needed to develop the proper IPM plan

• Sanitation – keep the property clean and get rid of all sources that provide green bottle flies a suitable development habitat.

• Exclusion – seal and repair screens, holes, gaps and any other entryway that green bottle flies may use to enter the home or may allow animals to enter the structure.

• Traps - Light traps to attract and trap flies.

• Chemicals - Chemical products to treat fly resting places and using chemical fly baits, residual insecticide and aerosol products in locations where flies are active.

Appearance

• Size: Green bottle flies are similar in size to house flies

• Color: They appear metallic green with portions of copper-green.

• Wings: They have clear wings with brownish-colored wing veins

• Eyes: large, reddish-colored compound eyes

• Body: black legs and antennae

Reproduction & Life Cycle

Green bottle flies complete their life cycle in a short time, but the period of time is affected by factors such as the quality of their food source, seasonality, temperature and humidity. The adult female fly deposits up to about 200 eggs that hatch and become larvae in 1-3 days. Within about 3-10 days, fully developed larvae leave their development site and burrow into the soil. Pupal development takes approximately 6-14 days after which time the adults will emerge and begin to feed on plant nectar, a carcass or garbage. The female fly lays eggs about 2 weeks after they leave the pupal stage. Green bottle flies usually complete 3 or 4 generations per year, more in the warmer regions of their distribution areas. One female green bottle fly will lay about 2,000-3,000 eggs in her lifetime

Distribution

The green bottle fly is found throughout the world, but is more likely to be found in the Northern Hemisphere. This species is widely distributed throughout the United States and southern Canada.