Fruit flies primarily come from outside your home and enter by flying in through open doors or windows or by hitching a ride on fruits and vegetables you bring inside from the grocery store or farmer’s market
. They are attracted to the smell of ripening, fermenting, or rotting produce and other organic matter
. Female fruit flies lay eggs on damaged or fermenting fruits and vegetables, as well as in moist, organic areas like drains, garbage disposals, trash bins, mops, and cleaning rags
. The eggs hatch into larvae that feed on the fermenting material, and the life cycle from egg to adult can be completed in about a week, which explains how fruit flies can seem to appear suddenly and multiply rapidly
. Fruit flies do not spontaneously generate from fruit; rather, they are brought in or attracted to exposed food sources where they reproduce
. In summary, fruit flies come from:
- Outdoors, entering through openings or on produce
- Eggs already laid inside fruits or vegetables brought into the home
- Breeding in moist, fermenting organic matter inside the home such as fruit, drains, and trash
Controlling fruit flies involves removing their food sources and breeding sites by disposing of overripe produce, cleaning drains, and maintaining good sanitation
