How long do street midges live. How to deal with midges in an apartment, and how long they live

Sometimes even the smallest creature can cause a lot of trouble. AT modern world there are over 4000 species and 78 genera small midge. About 200 species are distributed in Russia, and only four of them feed on the blood of mammals.

flower midge

What do these small insects interfere with, what harm do they cause, and what is their life expectancy? How much trouble the midge brings to man and animal. Of the most diverse complaints about midges, the following can be distinguished:

• their bites are very painful;
• spoil house and garden plants;
• can serve as a carrier of infection;
• with a large amount - get into the nose, ears, eyes.

Excursion to nature

Midges to their appearance, resemble small humpback mosquitoes. Their body size barely reaches 6 mm. The main difference from mosquitoes is the presence of a short proboscis and small legs.

The appearance of the larva

The fly has three stages of development: egg, larva, adult insect

In their natural habitat, midges usually settle near open water bodies with fresh water. This is where they lay their larvae. To complete this process, some descend under water, while others lay their larvae near the water, on the shore. And there are some very extravagant individuals. They drop their eggs into the water on the fly.

Egg laying is a group process. At the same time, whole colonies of larvae are formed in the riverbed (how many - up to 200 per square centimeter). Their food is dissolved in water. organic compounds and/or small aquatic microorganisms. The food that enters the body goes through a filtration process. Therefore, the faster the flow of the river, the more and faster the process of digestion.

Habitat

Midge larvae are very sensitive to the amount of oxygen in the water. Therefore, in places with a small content of it, they quickly die. Such places include stagnant water or aquatic environment with large quantity decaying microorganisms.

If the environment in which midge larvae live changes, they are able to release cobwebs. How long is it? The length of this web reaches two meters. On it, they keep for some time in the fast flow of the river. If the natural balance is restored, the larva returns to its former place of residence along the cobweb.

An adult emerges from the larva in 10-14 days (the duration of the process: larva-pupa-adult - up to two weeks). When leaving its cocoon, the midge surrounds itself with an air bubble. It is in it that she rises to the surface from the water completely dry.

Live midge under a microscope

Nutrition

The process of nutrition occurs exclusively in the warm daytime. In the evening, at night or in cloudy weather, midges are not active. Blood is food only for females. Males feed on flowers.

AT different regions the same species of midges behave differently. For example: broad-legged, decorated or creeping - in the tundra zone they are a real disaster for the entire livestock of animals and humans. There is no life from her. And a little to the south, in the forest-steppe and steppe zone countries, they are not active as blood-sucking insects.

Bite process

midge bite

When bitten, a substance enters the wound with the saliva of the midge, which behaves like an anesthetic. Therefore, the very moment of biting and absorbing blood remains invisible to humans. The pain occurs only after some time, when it has already flown away.

At the site of the bite, redness, swelling occurs. The wound itches a lot. These phenomena are caused by the fact that midge saliva is poisonous.

If there are a large number of bites, there may be swelling not only of the surface of the wound, but also internal organs. In some cases, hemorrhage occurs, and symptoms of severe poisoning appear. This situation requires immediate medical attention and emergency care.

On Russian territory the largest number midges are represented in the taiga zone. How many species and who poses a threat to life? The following species pose the greatest danger to humans:

• tundra midge;
• midge Kholodkovsky;
• decorated midge.

The air temperature (comfortable for the life of midges), at which an attack on a person occurs, ranges from +6 to +23˚С.

How many diseases can this carry small insect? Of particular danger are midges-carriers of diseases such as:

• plague;
• leprosy;
• tularemia;
• anthrax.

Life at home

A wide variety of midges can be combined into four groups, according to their location in the apartment. Allocate:

• food, or Drosophila (often lives on rotten vegetables and fruits);
• wardrobe (dwells on old, or not washed things, put away for a long time in a closet);
• flower (settles on houseplants, which are improperly cared for);
• water (it loves heat and humid air very much, therefore, it will settle in the apartment mainly in the bathroom).

From the above, it can be seen that for a comfortable life in the house, as in the natural environment, dampness and moisture are very important for midges.

To bring out the hated midge, the first thing to do is to conduct a “home investigation” about the ways it entered the apartment. Locations can be:

• vegetables, berries and fruits, cereals that have been lying for a long time and began to deteriorate;
• overcrowded (especially in the summer) trash can;
• poorly cleaned aquarium;
• excessively moist earth in flower pots (especially if it was fertilized with sleeping tea leaves);
• plumbing drains and ventilation shafts.

Fight and prevention with midges on the street

Chemical preparations for midges

Fighting a harmful midge living in nature is difficult, but possible. To do this, you must follow a number of rules:

• do not walk near the river in the hot daytime (especially where there is a lot of vegetation);
• use repellents;
• the midge does not like windy weather, so use this factor to your advantage;
• put on clothes light shades covering arms and legs.

Destruction in the house

How much effort and time must be applied to eliminate this misfortune, from which there is no life? The fight against midges at home should begin with finding out the place of their greatest deployment and centers of settlement.

Kitchen

The most important rule is never to leave a bucket of garbage overnight. The next steps will be:

Garbage bin in the kitchen with leftover vegetables

• monitor the freshness of products (prevent the formation of rot);
• the use of adhesive tape is recommended (both outside and inside the cabinets);
• washcloths and rags for washing dishes should be twisted and dried after use;
• prevent the formation of fatty deposits and clogging drain pipe sinks and hob;
• no leakage and contamination of taps;
• make homemade traps in the form of a glass with rotting fruit or unfinished juice (the field of entry there a large number midges, it must be tightly tied and discarded).

Flower pots

Karbofos - a remedy for midges in the apartment

If the midge has settled on your favorite flowers and interferes with their development, you must do the following:

• reduce watering the plant to a minimum (how much to water? a little bit);
• if tea leaves were used as a fertilizer, it must be removed from the surface of the earth in a flower pot;
• stick up to five matches into the ground (gray down);
• spray the plant with a weak solution of potassium permanganate;
• the use of store-bought drugs: "Karbofos", "Fitoverm", "Agravertin".

Bathroom

Here, the main means of combating midges will be the elimination of dampness and moisture. It is necessary to monitor the flow of water and sewerage. Eliminate leaks in time, and remove the resulting pollution.

In the apartment, pungent odors of natural origin will help in the fight against midges:

• the smell of garlic;
• the smell of incense;
• the smell of citrus;
• the smell of camphor (camphor is crushed and heated in a pan);
• the smell of crushed horseradish root.

It is important to remember that the fight against midges is a laborious and lengthy process. But, having adopted all methods, a person will always emerge victorious in this struggle.

Video: Fly bitten in the eye

Drosophila - no matter how much you look at this creature, it seems that it is harmless, which does not bring harm to a person. But it only seems so, including about harmfulness. When midges curl in a column in the kitchen, this is already an unpleasant situation.

They lay their eggs in spoiled food, so over time they only become more, and if you do not start getting rid of them, these creatures themselves will not go anywhere. On the contrary, over time there will be as many of them as it is difficult to imagine.

Flying around the house, fruit flies can get into dishes and drinks on the table. This is the worst thing that can happen, because then adults and, for sure, children will eat this food and liquid. That is why it is necessary to get rid of the flying misfortune immediately.

Where do midges come from and where do they live

It always seems that little creatures appear literally from nowhere. As if they are just waiting for spoiled food to appear in the house - and right there. The fact is that adult females begin to lay eggs even at the time of ripening fruits and vegetables. Getting into warm conditions, the fruits begin to deteriorate. At the same time, the midge begins to grow, since this is an ideal habitat for it. As a result, a larva is obtained from an egg, and then an adult insect. These midges are also called fruit midges, and now it’s clear why.

Drosophila live not only in spoiled fruits: they can also become pests for indoor plants. All they need is constantly moist soil, so look for a source not only in the kitchen.

What is the lifespan of Drosophila

How long do midges live? Actually, not for long. How better conditions the longer they will live. For example, in winter they can exist for almost three months. At a temperature of 18 degrees above zero - about 20 days. And if the mark on the thermometer rises to 25 degrees - 10 days.

The process of their development is in the following way: the fly that found optimal conditions lays eggs. Once in the nutrient medium, half-millimeter eggs produce larvae. The latter are up to 3.5 mm long, white color. The main period in the process of their development begins. The viability of Drosophila depends entirely on how they live at this moment. Young midges appear after four days, and after another eight hours they are ready to become mature and also begin to lay eggs. As you can see, this process happens very quickly, therefore, no matter how many of them there are now, it is better to destroy them immediately.

For your information - the female lays (it's scary to imagine) up to 80 eggs at a time!

How to prevent the appearance of insects in the apartment

• Store fruits and vegetables in a cool place where they will not spoil.
• Before putting dirty dishes into the sink, clean it from the remnants of food, jars - from the remnants of berries and fruits.
• Take out the trash regularly, and wash the bucket every time after that if it is dirty.
• Monitor the condition of the site near the house (relevant for private development) so that there is no debris left there, since midges can initially start in the grass.
• Don't leave open banks and bottles of beer, compote, wine, jam, syrup, and so on. All this can cause the appearance of small flies.

How to deal with apartment mosquitoes

Although prevention is always easier, getting rid of it will not be difficult either. To do this, you need to take only a container and bait (and it doesn’t matter how much), and a person can already be said to be on the way to destroying a flying swarm. When fruit flies gather for sweets, you will need to close the lid and place the box or jar in the freezer. They will die in 10 minutes. You can also warm them up microwave oven- a few seconds will suffice.

You can collect them periodically and with a vacuum cleaner from the ceiling, walls and other surfaces where they like to sit down. After collecting, it is enough to clog the inlet of the vacuum cleaner pipe for several hours, and the midges will not disturb anyone from there.

First you need to determine the place of "residence" of insects and understand how many of them there are in the house. For example, if a crowd of small flies has accumulated on the balcony, clean it well and treat the places with a special solution. The bathroom is simpler: something sweet can be poured directly into the bath, and when fruit flies accumulate there, just rinse with a shower.

Choose a way to fight insects: using a jar, a cup, a bag, Velcro:

• In a jar of compote or other liquid, you need to insert a paper funnel with a tiny hole at the end. So it turns out that they can easily get inside, but they will not be able to get out.
• Bait (specially bought in the store) can be poured into a plastic cup. Also, some fruit or even a recently used tea bag can be used as bait. From above, on the neck, a cling film is applied and strengthened with a thread or elastic band. On it you need to make a lot of small holes. It will work according to the same scheme: they will not be able to fly out.
• Pieces of fruits and vegetables can even be simply put in a bag, no matter how much it is a pity, and left for at least a day. When they accumulate there, the bag is closed as quickly as possible and thrown out. Preferably, immediately on the street, away from home.

You can buy and hang around the apartment the usual flypaper bait for flies.

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Summer is the time for preparations, so in every kitchen you can observe an abundance of fruits, berries and vegetables. It was then that seemingly harmless small fruit midges appear literally out of nowhere. It gets into dishes and drinks on the table, can fly into the nose, mouth or get into the eyes, causing discomfort to a person and causing a feeling of disgust. Considering how many midges live and how quickly they multiply, you can soon observe a whole horde of pests in the house.

Development process

For your life, female fruit fly lays up to four hundred eggs. Usually the place where pests live is spoiled fruits or vegetables. In the same place, females make clutches. In the presence of favorable conditions for development in a day, Drosophila larvae appear from the laid eggs. Feeding on fruit juice and microorganisms, after 5 days the larvae pupate. Even after the same time, a young insect appears, which becomes sexually mature the very next day.

On a note!

The process of formation of the larva and the appearance of a young individual of Drosophila does not exceed 10-20 days (depending on the conditions in which they live).

Habitat

Usually fruit flies live in damp and shady places. In the southern regions, their mass accumulations are found in orchards and vineyards. Drosophila is a favorite habitat, since it is there that the ideal environment for insects is created: the presence of heat and food (especially in winter time of the year). Often they are planted in factories for the production of canned fruits, wine and juice, as well as in warehouses where fruits are stored.

Lifespan

The life expectancy of midges largely depends on habitat conditions. Outdoors, the larvae of this type of pest can appear when the air temperature warms up to +16 degrees.

Interesting!

If the temperature indicators are kept at around +18 degrees, then the midges of Drosophila live for about 20 days. With an increase in temperature above 25 degrees, adults live almost 2 times less.

Accordingly, the question arises at what temperature midges die. Adults, as well as their larvae, do not tolerate low temperatures: Contact on the street with snow or ice, they can simply die. Therefore, small pests try to survive the cold season in human housing, settling in a bucket of garbage or on a windowsill. Their life expectancy during this period increases to 50 days.

On a note!

And in other colors, several types of midges start up, and not just Drosophila.

The easiest way to get rid of adult fruit flies and their larvae is to create unfavorable conditions for their habitat. First of all, it is necessary to remove, which can serve as a rotten fruit or vegetable. After all, knowing how long midges live without food, and they can only live in conditions of hunger for a few days, getting rid of a swarm of midges by this method is quite quick and easy. With excessive accumulation of insects, pesticides can be used, from which insects will die en masse.

Perhaps there are no such people who would not meet ordinary midges. Sometimes they completely unexpectedly attack the apartment and it can be difficult to figure out what caused their visit. At the cottage or country house their appearance is quite natural, but where do the midges come from in the apartment? Before moving on to this issue, let's talk about the midges themselves.

The life cycle of the midge

Drosophila, or wine midges, have several subspecies and differ in subtle outward signs. Midges feed exclusively on rot, so their appearance in the apartment should lead to certain thoughts. The size of insects ranges from 3 to 5 mm; their life expectancy is 20-25 hours, however, during this short span time one midge manages to lay several dozen eggs. The development of an insect includes three stages: egg, larva, adult. Under favorable conditions for midges (the presence of rotting fruits, vegetables, fermented compotes, used tea bags, etc.), the process of passing from the first to the last stage will take no more than a day.

Reasons for the appearance of "flying guests"

In most cases, the midge appears in the kitchen. Here she feeds on decaying food, spoiled fruits and vegetables. Thus, the following reasons for the appearance of insects in the house can be distinguished:

• garbage storage. If you do not take care of the disposal of the garbage bag in a timely manner, you can safely expect the arrival of midges. Because it feeds exclusively on rotting foods, it will not work to avoid the visit of the pest;
• storage of spoiled fruits and vegetables. fruit midges blackened bananas, moldy pears and apples are extremely fond of. From overripe tomatoes and eggplants that have lost their presentation, they also will not refuse;

• rotting of the roots of domestic plants. With excessive saturation of indoor plants with water, the process of decay of their roots begins, which in turn creates for insects ideal conditions for nutrition and reproduction;
• neglect of cleaning aquariums and cages with pets. Stagnant water and animal digestive products can also cause midges to form;
• open sewerage and broken pipes. If you have midges, and there is a sewer smell in the apartment, it is likely that your pipes have begun to rot. Do not delay the repair; otherwise, the number of insects will increase, and a leak in the pipe will lead to a real flood.

In addition to the listed reasons, there are many situations that contribute to the appearance of a pest in the house, but each of them is based on a rotting environment.

Where do midges come from?

It's time to figure out how midges are formed on fruits and in plants. Many of us have noticed that even with the advent of cold weather, the midge does not keep you waiting. closed windows and -20 degrees "overboard" cannot stop the attack of insects in any way. Why? This situation is explained very simply: in stores, there is often a stalemate of goods in which fruit flies are planted. Insects lay their eggs on fresh fruits and vegetables that we buy and bring home, but due to the lack of an appropriate environment, there is a delay in the development of midges. The eggs are almost impossible to notice: their size is too small. As soon as the process of decay on fruits and other products begins, the organism of the future midge is activated.

In the same way, insects "hide" in houseplants and trash cans.

Insect control methods

After we figured out where the midges come from in our apartment, it's time to talk about ways to remove them.

So let's take a look at the most effective ways midge expulsion:

• collect all spoiled products and take them to the trash;
• wash fresh fruits and vegetables hot water and put in the refrigerator;
• if it was not possible to find out where the midges come from, and their number is constantly growing, make a trap: add three tablespoons of vinegar to a container of soapy water and place it near their habitat. The wine midge, smelling it, will fall into the liquid you have prepared and will not be able to get out;

• another trap idea you might find useful: open package put a rotting fruit (for example, a banana), wait until the insects are interested in it and fly into the bag, and then tie it up and take it out of the house. It is foolish to expect that all individuals without exception will be in the package, but you will still be able to get rid of the bulk;
• any hardware store sells regular flypaper. By hanging it at home, you can also reduce the number of flying pests;

• rub a small amount of garlic in a small bowl and place where the concentration of insects is greatest. Drosophila are afraid of strong odors, so the process of expelling them will not take you too long;
• Flying clusters can be neutralized with water with a small amount of alcohol or glass cleaner. Just spray the midges from a bottle, and then collect their immobilized bodies from the floor.

The listed methods of dealing with insects will not give results immediately, but only after a couple of days. If these measures did not help, then move on to a more serious "weapon" - disinfectants.

Important! Using chemicals strictly follow the instructions on the packaging and take precautions!

Tips to help get rid of fruit flies:

Preventive actions

In order for Drosophila to no longer bother you with their visit, you must follow a number of rules:

• plant geraniums in the house. Absolutely all insects smell of this plant is unpleasant;
• follow the care instructions indoor plants, do not overfill them with water and always maintain the required level of moisture in their soil.

Following these simple rules, you will save your home from the invasion of wine midges.

For several weeks now, hordes of midges have been preventing Volgograd residents from relaxing by the reservoirs. She climbs into the ears, eyes, mouth. When this misfortune will end and how to deal with it - in the material "AiF-Volgograd".

When will the midge fall?

According to experts, annoying midge Volgograd residents will have to endure a few more weeks.

“The intensity of the development of midges depends on several natural and climatic factors, the main of which is the duration and intensity of spills on our rivers,” says Vladimir Gorelov, head of the laboratory of hydrobiology and assessment of damage to aquatic biological resources of the Volgograd branch of GosNIORKh. - This spring high water stood on the Volga for more than 20 days, now its intensive decline is underway. Accordingly, the departure of more and more hordes of these insects continues. My personal predictions: residents of Volgograd, Volzhan, residents of the Volga-Akhtuba floodplain should be patient with midges for the whole of June. It will become much smaller, the number will decline only in the first ten days of July. The peak of midge emergence will come in mid-June.”

But in the Don river basin, according to the forecast of a specialist, the drop in the "livestock" of this midge will occur a little earlier.

What are the most effective mosquito repellents?

1. mosquito net and tight clothing. Going to nature, the river bank, it is necessary to wear tight clothes that cover the body as much as possible. It is desirable to have special mosquito masks of any configuration.

2. Cologne + oils. Can be soaked into clothing or sprayed onto open areas skin cologne with the addition of drops of valerian, lavender, clove or anise oils. Impregnation of clothes with Clove cologne or clove oil is considered especially effective.

3. Menthol. Help protect against midges ointment from home first aid kit, which include sharp-smelling menthol and essential oils.

4. Vanillin. Add to any cream base and rub into the skin.

5. Special ointments. Repellents and ointments such as "Taiga", "Deta" are effective.

How to get rid of itching after a midge bite?

If itching has begun from the bites of the blood-sucking brethren, it is better not to comb the wounds. Experts advise treating itchy places with boric alcohol or making a cold compress from ammonia, table vinegar or baking soda (1 teaspoon per glass of water). Salt or soda solution is very effective. It quickly relieves both itching and swelling.

Myths and facts about the midge

There are many myths associated with the midge.

“Many Volgograd residents are for some reason convinced that the HPP is allegedly to blame for the intensive development of midges, we didn’t have it before,” says Vladimir Gorelov. - But it's not like that at all! Most forms of midges breed in our wooded floodplains, that is, in the floodplain of the Volga and Akhtuba, Don, and it has always existed with us.

There is an even more controversial statement - they say, near Volgograd, supposedly “there are no breeding sites for midges - hordes of these insects are brought to us by the wind from Astrakhan. Again, the myth is not true. Typical floodplain places where these insects develop begin literally within the city.

It is true that there is not so much harm from the midge as from its closest "relatives" in the order of orthoptera - mosquitoes. Mosquitoes can carry a range of serious viral diseases- Congo-Crimea fever, malaria. The midge has not yet been “convicted” of this. However, for many people, even short-term contact with these insects causes serious allergic reactions - itching, burning of the skin, swelling. At the same time, female midges are usually able to penetrate into the skin of people and animals. Males just like to circle in huge clusters over any large object - stationary or moving.

The midge is completely unable to resist any serious gusts of wind. They can bring it to a great height, and far from water bodies.