Small, white, disgusting and usually in very large numbers, this is how maggots present themselves in the trash can. And the bizarre spectacle is often accompanied by an extremely unpleasant smell. It's no wonder that when you open the bin you feel disgusted and your body hair stands up, especially when yesterday everything seemed to be fine in the bin. And the question arises, where does the disgusting carpet of maggots actually come from?
origin
The white maggots that you find in the garbage are usually the descendants of flies, especially the common house fly, also known as the fly. Garbage cans with leftovers are the ideal place for Musca domestica, the scientific name of the common housefly, to lay eggs.
life cycle
The life of a housefly lasts between 6 and 42 days, depending on the temperature and food supply. The optimal ambient temperature for flies is between 20 °C and 25 °C, which is why we are plagued by annoying insects, especially in summer.
Because flies don't live very long, the flies have to ensure that the species is maintained during the few weeks of their life, which is why they reproduce explosively under ideal conditions. For example, up to 15 generations of flies are possible in one year in livestock stalls. The life of a generation of house flies is divided into the following four periods:
- egg
- three larval stages
- puppet
- imago or adult
Tip: If the environmental conditions are very good, the period from the laying of eggs to the new fly lasts only seven days, but usually two to three weeks.
egg laying
For successful reproduction, the female fly looks for the ideal place to lay her eggs, so that the larvae hatching from the eggs can find enough food and optimal environmental conditions. Since the fly larvae thrive in a warm, humid climate and feed on decaying matter, a bucket with decomposing food is an ideal place for their offspring from the fly's point of view.
Tip: Flies are attracted to putrefactive gases produced by the organic waste in the trash can. That's why you should always keep the bucket closed.
fly larvae
Once the fly has found an ideal place to lay its eggs, the female house fly can lay between 150 and 400 eggs every three to four days. The fly larvae, also known as maggots, hatch from these eggs after 12 to 25 hours. The maggots themselves are up to twelve millimeters in size, white and have neither heads nor legs. However, they can move by bending their bodies. Food is ingested via pincer-like mouth hooks.
As a result of growth, the fly larvae molt twice. Pupation begins at the end of the third larval stage, i.e. after molting twice.
Tip: The length of time between the laying of eggs and the hatching of the larvae varies greatly between different fly species. For example, the maggots of the bluebottle fly hatch during or shortly after egg laying, especially when there is a shortage of eggs.
Maggot formation is also influenced by the climate in the waste bin. Since maggots love to be snuggly, they are extremely comfortable in a warm and humid environment. Since the formation of maggots is favored by high temperatures, they are mainly found in the waste bin and in the organic waste bin in the summer months.
puppet
Once the larvae pupate, the maggots cannot move and become immobile. Their skin hardens and so-called barrel puppets develop. These are much smaller and darker than the fly larvae. The metamorphosis of the maggots within the pupae takes between three and eight days, depending on the temperature. When the transformation is complete, the finished fly leaves the pupa.
Tip: The pupated maggots need a dry place for the metamorphosis from larva to fly. That's why you can often find the dolls on the underside of the lid of the garbage can.
adult
Once the fly has left the pupa, it has reached the adult stage (adultus). Three days after hatching from the pupa, the new fly is sexually mature and mating can take place. The female flies are then immediately ready to lay their eggs. And the next generation then hatches in the form of larvae within a single day.
Tip: Since not all female flies lay their eggs at the same time, maggots in different larval stages are often found in the garbage. Therefore, you should start fighting them as soon as maggots appear.
feeding behavior of the larvae
Maggots need a lot of protein to develop, which is why flies prefer to lay their eggs in a bin with protein-rich foods such as meat, fish, cheese or bones. Flies prefer to choose garbage cans that contain these protein sources in a cooked state. The females are attracted by various smells that arise during the decomposition of protein. The fly larvae themselves, after they have hatched from the eggs, then stick upside down in the garbage and live there like the proverbial "maggot in the bacon".
Tip: The female fly does not care whether the protein-rich food is in the organic or residual waste bin. For the female, all that matters is that her offspring are well cared for.
If the organic waste consists exclusively of vegetable or plant remains, your bin is not as attractive to flies because this organic waste contains far less protein. Nevertheless, even purely plant-based waste is not a guarantee for a maggot-free garbage can, since flies also lay their eggs in less attractive places when laying eggs are difficult.