How to Care for Your Housefly Feeders

Raising Adult Flies for Feeding Insects or Pets

Insect life cycle

Flies go through a complete metamorphosis: egg, larva, pupa, adult. Flies are sold as pupae because they are easy to ship in this resting phase.

Time Flies Need to Develop

Temperature affects how fast insects develop. The warmer the conditions, the faster they develop, up to 100º F. Flies emerge from their pupae in 3 days at 80º F and in 5 days at 60º F. After being stored in your refrigerator for a while they take longer to emerge. After cold storage for several weeks flies emerge in 5-6 days at 80º F and 7-9 days at 60º F.

Conditions to Raise Flies

The best conditions for your flies to emerge is 80º F and 50% to 60% relative humidity (RH). Putting them into a warm place is referred to as incubating the pupae. A box or place with these conditions is called an incubator You can find a warm spot in your house or set up a box with a small light in it to warm. If the creature you are feeding the flies lives in a warm terrarium you may be able to place a dish or container in the terrarium and put fly pupae in it to emerge. A dish up off the ground is best, such as a dish suspended from a suction cup attached to an aquarium wall. After some experience you will find how fast the flies emerge in your conditions.

Small containers for holding fly pupae until they emerge can be take-out food containers like you get a sauce in. larger containers can be canning jars with gauze or mesh over the top held on with a rubber band or a canning jar ring. You may be able to put pupae in a sandwich bag, blow air into it and close it with a twist tie - like a small balloon. You can then transfer the flies from the container into the cage with the creatures you are raising. Make sure that there are no small holes in the cage that will allow the flies to escape.