- House flies grow from egg to mature breeding adult in as little as seven days in warm weather with access to plenty of food. Females need to eat protein such as rotting meat in order to manufacture eggs. Males become mature enough for mating when they are 72 hours old, but females are mature at little as 28 hours old, according to USDA's Entomology Research Station.
- Males perform a complex mating dance that lasts only a split second to human eyes. Males can mount the wrong end of female flies and try to mate with other males. Mating usually occurs when the female is resting on a wall or other flat surface, but once copulation begins, the pair can fly off, still connected, if startled. The actual mating lasts anywhere from two to 96 minutes, unless interrupted. Females are larger than males and strong enough to throw off the suitor and escape.
- Four to 20 days after mating, females are ready to lay eggs. Each egg is 1.2 millimeters long. Females lay an average of 75 to 150 eggs every day up to four days. Female flies lay eggs in manure, dead bodies or rotting food so that when the maggots emerge, they can immediately start to feed. Eggs need moisture or they will dehydrate and the maggot dies, so garbage heaps and animal manure piles make ideal breeding sites.
- Clean up all food spills, keep food sealed in containers and keep all garbage in enclosed cans in order to block flies from getting into these breeding areas. Remove animal manure or spread it out to dry and kill any eggs inside. Block windows in homes with mesh screens in order to keep away flies. Keep doors closed as much as possible. House flies transmit numerous diseases. If they walk on manure or rotting corpses and then walk on food, anyone eating that food may get sick.
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