There’s currently no hard evidence to prove whether this year (2024) has more flies than previous years.
Winter 2023/24 in the UK was a relatively cold one vs averages.
Why does this matter?
It matters because it affects fly populations.
Flies try to survive through winter and continue mating, but the cold kills them off and limits how much they can breed. And, the colder the temperatures, the lower the survival rates are.
Most flies need to continue reproducing during winter because they have short lifespans. That’s why, during winter, flies seek microhabitats to stay warm, from compost heaps to cattle sheds, where they continue to reproduce. Also, prolonged bouts of extreme cold can kill flies hiding in these winter habitats.
The summer months act as a multiplier for fly populations, allowing them to breed, and live free of cold, thus resulting in increasing numbers of flies across the UK.
The less flies that survive the cold winter, the lower the fly numbers are when summer kicks off, which naturally affects how many flies there are around during the summer.
Since winter 2022/23 was a mild one, it resulted in increased fly populations throughout summer 2023.
More recently, winter 2023/24 has been a very cold one vs historic standards, which results in less flies surviving through it and reduced fly numbers in summer 2024.
Why does it seem like there are more flies in 2024?
There is probably a more localised reason as to why you have lots of flies in 2024. That’s what this post will discuss.
Continue reading below to learn why you have lots of flies in your home as well as what you can do to get rid of them.
Found lots of flies in the attic or garage in winter or spring?
The Cluster Fly will look for warm, sheltered places like homes, garages, or sheds to stay warm for the winter, where they will group together in a large cluster and effectively hibernate until Spring. When weather conditions are a bit more hospitable, they will make their way back outside. These flies are not interested in laying eggs in human food, so although it can be somewhat frightening to discover a swarm of hundreds of flies sleeping in your garage or loft, they are relatively harmless to humans.
Cluster flies lay eggs in earthworms so that’s all they really want to do once they awaken from their slumber. When the weather warms up they’ll try to get back outside to carry on business as usual, but you may suddenly find yourself with a large swarm of these flies in the house if they are struggling to find an exit or if they’ve only just come out of hibernation.
What to do
Discovered a swarm of flies suddenly in the house one summer’s night?
Flies tend to reproduce a lot in the summer and your area might just happen to have a lot of a certain species at certain times of the summer. If you’ve left the lights on in your house during the night, it will draw flies, and with the window open you could discover hundreds of them occupying a room suddenly.
What to do
Noticed a lot more common flies around the house suddenly?
What to do
There are various ways to deal with flies in the home such as zappers and sprays which can be bought online or in a local hardware store.
