It's that time of year again.
Late summer.
And the fruit flies multiplieth.
They got a little out of control here about a week ago.
Some of them were so fat they could hardly fly.
But the little devils were still surprisingly agile and able to evade my quick hands* and the fly swatter.
Usually I dig out the cider vinegar and a shallow can, use an elastic to fasten plastic wrap over the top, and poke a few holes in the plastic with a toothpick. Fruit flies are attracted to the vinegar and crawl through the holes, but can't find their way back out again. When they accumulate, I take the can outside and let the flies go, hopefully before they drown in the vinegar.
I was too tired to do that this year, so instead I periodically threw a damp paper towel over the top of the container I keep my compostable items in, took it outside and released the fruit flies.
It was so much easier and very effective. In one evening I got rid of the majority of them. It usually takes several days to trap them using the vinegar method.
The only questionable moment came when I noticed a spider just outside the door. He was in the center of his web, waiting for some dinner, so without really thinking it through I waved the fruit-fly-laden paper towel in his direction, wondering if he'd like a treat. Four of the fattest fruit flies were immediately caught in the web. The spider ran lickety-split over to the first one and devoured it, then moved on to the second one and devoured it too. The other two flies didn't even struggle while this was happening.
By the next day the spider had packed his bags and moved on. You'd think he would stay where there were plenty of victuals but no.
I was glad he'd had a good meal, but I felt bad for the fruit flies. I was trying to release them into the wild and due to my reckless and thoughtless action they had .5 seconds of freedom before being caught and eaten.
Some days I hate Nature.
Then again, the spider wasn't the only one killing the fruit flies ... (see the * above)
Some days I hate my hypocrisy too.
Let's have a quick survey:
Do you swat, drown, or catch and release fruit flies?
20 comments:
Just think though, in the lifespan of a fruit fly five seconds is several human years. So there's that.
I try and release most things. I don't always succeed.
I spray them with vinegar. They fall down. I swat them. Laura, on the other hand, rounds them up and puts them out. Ditto flies and ants. Not me. I've been around too long.
Boud: Aha ... that was point five, not five, seconds of freedom - it's hard to see the decimal! But you're not wrong about it seeming longer for the fly. :)
Elephant's Child: It's impossible to succeed every time, everywhere. I think we have to be content with knowing we are trying.
Joanne: At least swatting is a quick death. I try to look at it that way.
We use the vinegar method, and if they don't survive to be released i figure they don't live very long anyway.
Fruit flies? The ones that lay eggs in the fruit on the trees, thus spoiling it so it cannot be eaten or sold because of the hatched larvae eating their way through it? Soft fruits such as pears, peaches, nectarines, tomatoes? why would you release those to keep breeding?
If you mean the tiny gnats that start hovering around fruit in bowls inside your house, that's a different matter. They begin to appear when the fruit ages and they smell the very first signs of decay, before the fruit shows any sign of it. They are attracted by the sugars in the fruits, especially bananas, and I wouldn't be releasing those either. I would eat the fruit faster or keep it in the fridge and just let it come to room temperature on the day of eating.
Mimi: That's true. I'm just a wimp about letting them drown :)
River: I mean the ones that live on fruit in your home. They always seem to reach peak populations at this time of the year and they reproduce like crazy. One day there's one and the next day there's a dozen and you got yourself a problem :)
I think that some of them are already in the bananas when you buy them, and just hatch and fly around as the bananas get riper. When I worked for a produce place in SF, if any bananas went bad, there would be clouds of tiny flies surrounding the box they were in, and there were NO other insects in that warehouse.
Reminds me of a joke: Time flies like an arrow, but fruit flies like a banana.
-Doug in Sugar Pine
The cartoon is a perfect commentary! Have a great day!
I love that meme! So funny. I try to get any insect out of the house, but with some it's harder than others. Houseflies are the worst -- they're so stupid, they just circle the room even if I've thrown open all the windows.
I put out spiders, bees, snails and those longlegged giant mosquitolike fliers, butterflies ... woodlice, beetles, most bugs and flitterers actually. I swat, ungently, all wasps and moths, and most houseflies. I fight fruit flies in differnt ways, a tea towel over our compost container being the easiest. swatting, chasing oput, even vacuuming them - they sure multiply!
I love that funny.
Many spiders make a new web every day (night actually), so moving is the way of the spider ;)
I love the meme - still chuckling! Fruit fly season is starting in our house, too - I'm beginning to harvest tomatoes from the garden. The tomatoes go on the counter to finish ripening, and the fruit flies move in. I don't even try to get rid of them. I keep the lid on the compost bin, keep the tomatoes clean and sorted, and just live with the few remaining fruit flies. If they rampaged through the house, it would be a different story; but they seem to live quietly in the neighbourhood of the tomatoes. When the last of tomatoes are gone, so are they. Fair enough. :-)
My gosh...that's what I would do! I'm a real wimp when it comes to killing anything. That's if I can get to them before my cats do! Then it's game over!
Doug: You're so right about the bananas harbouring the fruit fly eggs. I always rinse bananas when I get them home from the store, and repeatedly during an infestation. Fruit flies LOVE bananas! That joke is also a truth :)
Marie: A happy coincidence - I had just found the meme after I released the fruit flies into the spider web :)
Steve: I loved that meme too - the cat's face and body language crack me up. Flies really are not bright. Moths are also very reluctant to go back outside. They want to be in the light at night, and they rest during the day. They really can't win. lol
Charlotte: I didn't know that spiders make a new web every night! That's really interesting and would explain why the spider moved on. Putting a cloth over the compost bin sounds like a good idea to me.
Diane: Yep, there are definitely things that can reduce the population. And if you don't mind a few around, that's enough. I wonder if they reproduce faster or slower depending on the fruit? They seem to just explode in number when they're around bananas, for some reason.
Martha: Cats are especially helpful with regular flies, which is so gross when they crunch them up - ick :) lol
I vinegar the fruit fly/gnat suckers--and ants don't get any better treatment either. On the other hand, a very tiny spider was crawling across my desk this morning. I gently gathered it on a tissue and carried it outside. Same with a moth that was stuck between the storm door and the kitchen door. Stuck an arm out to open the storm door so it could fly away. Ah well, a mass/mess of contradictions.
Hahahaha! Love the meme!
Ugh. Fruit flies.
I've tried the vinegar method--even tried various flavours!
No luck.
Here is where I admit I have an electric swatter. That I wave periodically over my bowl of fruit. It zaps them quicker than a wink.
At least it's very, very fast...
Mary: Contradictions for sure, often depending on childhood experiences, allergies, and the prevalence/ugliness of the bug :)
Diane: There's something to be said for a quick end :) I think that's why I don't mind squishing them, but seeing them stuck in a spider web bothered me!
I have seen fruit flies that hover over fruit carts in the market. This is particularly annoying to watch them spoiling grapes. It takes quite time to choose stainless grapes though fruits can be pealed thankfully.
I hink it's not about being hypocrite but real because when you say there are so many other things that can eat fruit fly you are speaking truth simply. And when you are grieving over that it happened sooner and sudden because of your thoughtlessness you are revealing goodness in your nature.
Blessings
Nature can be quite unforgiving. I hope you don't lose too much sleep over the fruit flies. Plus, you got good spider karma going for you now. We drown them in our household, jenny_o. Take care.
baili: The sweeter the fruit, the more fruit flies love it! I always wash my produce well, but I scrub especially hard during fruit fly season :) Thank you for those kind words, my friend. xx
Mr. Shife: Good spider karma - never thought of that angle :) Your assessment of Nature is spot on.
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