I have a fruitfly infestation

Cissa · Post by **Cissa** » Mon Nov 10, 2008 10:05 am

Here's how they they operate: They are not actually eating the fruit/juice, they are laying eggs in it. The life span of a fruitfly from egg to death is only about a week, and probably as much as 90% of that time is spent munching food as a larva. The adults probably do not eat at all, they probably only have time to breed and lay eggs, so again, if they don't find anything they move on (any woman who has experienced labor pains will tell you how important it is to get that baby out!). Well, fruitflies lay 400 eggs or so!! If there's no suitable maternity ward, they don't hang around waiting for one to show up.
My advice is just don't leave anything else out.

Hillary - your right, most fruitflies come from the market. Anyplace that has food laying around in abundance is going to draw them.

Of course, I can't feel too sorry for you - I have spider infestations

Helen8 · Post by **Helen8** » Mon Nov 10, 2008 3:34 pm

I have spider infestations

Get a cat, Cissa. We've been spider-free for decades. Those the cats can't reach, they'll zero in on with their eyes, attracting our attention so that we'll get 'em!

Post by **Gillian** » Mon Nov 10, 2008 6:55 pm

Anyplace that has food laying around in abundance is going to draw them.

There's absolutely nothing left out for them now. Things like nectarines and peaches -- anything that has to be kept out of the fridge to ripen -- all that's past season anyway, so we'll see. It's gotten quite cold up here too, so I'm hoping that'll finish them off. We even had about a half inch of snow here on the ground this morning.

I have spider infestations

Girl, better you than me. I absolutely *hate* spiders -- to the point of almost being phobic.
You have my deepest sympathies. *shiver*

Helen8 · Post by **Helen8** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 1:55 pm

I'm with you, Gillian. I've had my share of close encounters with black widows

and brown recluses

here in the desert.

Cissa · Post by **Cissa** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 3:17 pm

Okay, first off I have 3 cats and 2 dogs, all of which I've trained to eat spiders. but we're not talking a spider here and there, I mean, like 30 a day!!!

And for the record, I hate them more than anything else. I mean, I'd rather be held up at knife point than be in the same room with one of these fuckers. Sorry, but they make me curse like a sailor. Phobia? Hah! My whole family suffers from this particular phobia, and I'm on meds for it!

At the least they are not venomous (they're Yellow Sacs), but they come down on us in the middle of the night and bite us leaving these little painful pustules all over our bodies. UGH!!! And I grew up on a farm too, with plenty of Black Widows and Fiddlebacks so you'd think I'd be used to this, but I am tellin' you girls right now, I have never encountered the plague we get in this house from time to time.

I can only thank god we live in New England, where generally, they don't get larger than silver dollars... generally.

Helen8 · Post by **Helen8** » Tue Nov 11, 2008 3:19 pm

they don't get larger than silver dollars... generally.

[faints dead away]