Montana flies can be a Big Sky Pain in the Butt. As the weather warms, flies emerge and often move into our homes and living spaces. If they weren’t so annoying and dangerous, maybe they wouldn’t be of concern but…
Flies spread pathogens that are harmful. When they land on your sandwich, snack, or beer, they spread Cholera, dysentery, food poisoning, and many types of bacteria and germs. Why wouldn’t they? They breed in rotting meat, plants, waste, and feces.
Military camps have been terrible places because of flies. Corregidor and other military bases in the Philippines were deadly due to flies. After the WW2 battles, corpses littered the area. Within a few days flies were abundant. The military decided to spray pesticide on the islands. They used DDT, which killed the insects. The ground was covered with dead flies and insects several inches deep! I am sure that it did not help the soldiers and citizens in the area.
Pesticides are dangerous to use. The long-term health issues outweigh the short-term results. This is also true for mosquitos. There are not any decent repellents for flies. The repellants for Squitos have issues as well.
110,000 species of flies’ buzz around us. Only a few species are the deadliest. Blue Bottle and Blow Flies are the worst, and the ones that show up at our campsites, picnics, and homes. They are drawn to the smell of food and odors.
Drain flies enter our homes through pipes. Unused drains in bathrooms and sinks often loose water in their plumbing goosenecked pipes. The flies just fly into your home. Fruit Flies arrive with fruit and produce from the grocery.
There is no magic Bullet to deal with flies. They are part of our lives. Like it or not they get into our homes and make us sick more often than we want. So, how do we become more Fly Free?
Repair all screens. Add a screen door to the home. Sliding door screens with magnet closures allow for fresh air and are a great barrier for flies.
Keep your plumbing drains active. Run some water down the drains to keep insects and odors from entering your kitchens and bathrooms.
Fans will keep/ blow flies away. I added some fan bulbs that have both a light and small fan to the lights under the deck overhang. We sit outside without the buzz.
Clean your yard of pet and critter waste. Feces is prime breeding territory for flies.
Discard old fruit and produce.
Use mesh covers to cover outdoor picnic food.
Keep trash cans, recycle bins, and mulch piles away from your home, and down wind.
Dump your trash often. It is also good to use trash cans with lids.
The best way to get rid of flies is to Killem! You may just put a small dent in the population but swatting, and shooting flies is a great stress reliever. Salt Guns are accurate out to 5 feet and will not hurt you. Sticky traps also do the trick but look nasty. Change them often. It is also a good idea to sanitize swatters occasionally.
One of my great hunting dogs named Shelby, hated flies. If a fly flew by and bothered her, she just ate it. It was amazing to watch her snap them out of the air. Shelby never got sick from flies, but she sure put a dent in the population.
Help keep your flies down!
Montana Grant
