Do Fruit Flies Bite? What You Need to Know

Fruit flies are tiny creatures that love decaying food. But do fruit flies bite? These creatures are more of a nuisance, and can’t directly hurt you. However, there are potential risks of fruit flies in your home, besides being an annoyance. Let’s review how fruit flies can impact your home and how to get rid of them.

Do Fruit Flies Bite or Not?

Anatomically, fruit flies lack fangs and teeth, so they cannot bite humans. They have a proboscis, or a flexible mouth that can extend and sponge up rotting food. But this proboscis is not strong enough to pierce your skin, as is the case with a female mosquito.

They can, however, transfer harmful bacteria from unclean surfaces to clean ones, say from a kitchen counter to a plate, or from a bathroom sink to a coffee mug. That means if fruit flies land on a surface with salmonella, E. coli, or listeria, they can transfer it to your skin or other parts of your home. These particular bacteria can cause food poisoning, but other bacteria can cause rashes or other infections.

Household Items That Attract Fruit Flies

Fruit flies are, well, attracted to fruit. Usually it’s overripe or rotting fruit that does the trick, but they may also be attracted to onions and potatoes on your counters, or random bits of food. Glasses of wine that weren’t rinsed out from the night before or beer cans on the counter that need to be rinsed and recycled may also cause a fruit fly frenzy. In bathrooms, fruit flies may be attracted to scum you can’t see within the drain. 

How to Get Rid of Fruit Flies

For such a tiny insect, fruit flies live around 30 days or more. They breed where there’s tons of food and it’s slightly moist, so that means they may lay eggs in your trash, or near sinks or showers.

Fruit Flies in the Kitchen

If you have fruit flies in your kitchen, you try the following:

• Create a DIY fruit fly trap using vinegar, a jar, a rubber band, and plastic wrap. 

• Seal your trash bins tightly.

• Make sure fruits and vegetables are sealed in a clean crisper drawer.

• Wipe down surfaces frequently to remove sticky spots or small pieces of food lodged in cracks.

Fruit Flies in the Bathroom

If you have fruit flies in your bathroom, try this out:

• Pour some boiling water down the drains to kill them. 

• If you’re not sure what your pipes are made of, you can try a bleach solution to kill them.

If these methods don’t work or if the infestation seems too big to take care of, it’s time to hire a bug control pro near you to get the job done in a more efficient manner. Pest control professionals have the skills, tools, and expertise to get rid of fruit flies effectively and help you prevent them from returning.