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Fly Facts: Question 1 Do Flies Spread Germs?

Flies can spread germs very efficiently. They have taste receptors on their feet to identify food, and bristles and a spongy mouthpad that collect and transmit particles and germs from many surfaces. Flies vomit digestive juices onto food and suck it up, potentially spreading any germs from garbage or sewage. They clean themselves by rubbing legs together and can deposit anything collected during this process onto other surfaces.

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55 views8 pages

Fly Facts: Question 1 Do Flies Spread Germs?

Flies can spread germs very efficiently. They have taste receptors on their feet to identify food, and bristles and a spongy mouthpad that collect and transmit particles and germs from many surfaces. Flies vomit digestive juices onto food and suck it up, potentially spreading any germs from garbage or sewage. They clean themselves by rubbing legs together and can deposit anything collected during this process onto other surfaces.

Uploaded by

xin zhong
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Fly Facts: Question 1

Do Flies Spread Germs?

You may have heard it said that flies spread germs. Is this
true?
The answer is definitely YES! Flies spread germs very
efficiently.
A HouseFly
How do they spread germs? In order to understand this, we
first have to know a little more about a fly’s body and eating
habits.

Fly Facts: Question 2


How Does a Fly Taste Its
Food?

A fly is about 7 mm long. Because it is an insect, it has six


legs.

The fly has taste receptors on the bottom of its feet so it


knows immediately if something it lands on is good to eat.

Its body consists of a head, a thorax and an abdomen. Click


here to see a diagram showing the different parts of a fly.

There are small bristles all over a flies body, legs and feet.
These bristles collect small particles of things it lands on.
As for its mouth, a fly cannot bite but instead has a spongy
pad which it uses for feeding.
Both the bristles and spongy pad play a big part in spreading
germs.

Fly Facts: Question No. 3


How Does a Fly Eat?

Because a fly can’t bite or chew, it has to collect its food


differently to us.

First, a fly vomits on the food. This releases saliva, enzymes


and digestive juices over the food. The digestive juices help
to dissolve the food into a soupy mixture.

The fly sucks up the food through their sponge-like mouth


parts.

Imagine what is happening to your food the next time you see
a fly land on it. The fly is vomiting up on your sandwich so it
can suck it up into its spongy mouth!

If a fly has eaten from a rubbish bin, some of those germs


stick to the fly’s mouth parts. When the fly vomits on your
food, it transmits some of those germs to your sandwich.
Fly Facts: Question No. 4
How Does a Fly Clean Itself?

Wherever a fly goes, it collects particles of things it lands on.


This includes rubbish from the garbage bin it visited or the
sewage system, or manure from animal droppings, etc.

In order to clean these particles off, the fly rubs its legs
together. In the process of rubbing its legs, the fly wipes off
the scraps it has collected during its travels.

Imagine if the fly happens to be on top of your sandwich


when it decides to start cleaning itself!

Click here to see a video clip of a fly cleaning itself.Scroll


down the Wikipedia page until you find a picture on the right
hand side which looks like this and then click on it.A fly
cleaning itself
Fly Facts: Question No. 5
How Does A Fly Walk Upside
Down?

Flies have sticky pads on their feet. Each time they land on
something, they collect and spread germs from one surface to
another.

For example, if a fly has been walking around in the compost


pile in the garden and then flies inside your home and lands
on your kitchen table, it deposits germs on the table surface
from the compost bin outside.

Any germs which have been collected along the way are also
dropped by the fly.

The most common diseases spread by flies include typhoid,


tuberculosis and dysentery. All of these can be very serious if
not medically treated and can result in death.

Scientists estimate that houseflies carry approximately


1,940,000 different kinds of bacteria. That’s a lot!
Fly Facts: Question No. 6
Fly maggots Does A Fly Lay
Eggs?

A female fly will lay about 100 eggs at one time. Over a life
time, a fly may lay approximately 1000 eggs.

The eggs are often laid in soil, on the bodies of other animals,
on plants, in rotting food or on dead animals. The eggs hatch
into larvae, called maggots, within 12 to 30 hours of being
laid.

The pupae become adults within a few days and the whole
cycle begins again.
Most houseflies live for approximately 30 days.

Fly Facts: Question No. 7


Are There Different Types of
Flies?

Yes. There are more than 100,000 different types or species


of flies.
Fly Facts: Question No. 8
Where Do Flies Live?

They live all over the world – even in the coldest of climates.

Fly Facts: Question No. 9


Are Flies are Fantastic Flyers?
While most insects have four wings, flies only have two
wings. Insects which have two wings are called Diptera
which means “two wings”.

Flies are very good fliers. You will know this if you’ve ever
tried to swat or catch a fly. They can move very fast. They
can also:

Fly backwards
Hover and
Spin.
Fly Facts: Question No. 10
Do Flies Have Special
Abilities?

Apart from being able to fly backwards, hover and spin (all of
which are very difficult to do), flies can walk upside. Their
hairy, sticky feet enable them to land and walk on smooth
surfaces.

Fly Facts: Question No. 11


Are Flies are Helpful?
While we don’t like flies on our food and in our homes, they
are an important part of the ecosystem.

Many animals depend on flies as they eat flies! Can you think
of animals which eat flies? (eg., spiders, birds)

Flies also help to control other insect pests. They assist in


recycling by feeding on decaying waste such as dead animals
and dung.

Flies are also effective in pollinating plants by spreading


pollen from one plant to the next.

Okay, so flies are helpful, but that doesn’t mean we


necessarily like them.
The solution: If you don’t like having flies in your home,
perhaps you should consider keeping a few spiders in the
corners of your room! After all, spider loves to eat flies!

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