The Common House Fly is an insect that is common and very well-known because it can be seen in houses all through the country. It can also be found on farms flying around animals. The Common House Fly is often attracted to sweet things like sugar and it often flies around any unprotected food in the kitchen.

The Common House Fly is about six to seven millimetres in length and has a dark grey body with four dark stripes running down the length of it. It also has two large orange spots at the rear end of its body and its whole body is covered in tiny hairs. The Common House Fly has two antennae on the front of its head and three pairs of legs. It also has two transparent wings that are triangular-shaped and it can fly up to twenty kilometres an hour.

Common House Flies lay their eggs in decaying or dead organic matter such as dead meat, dog poo and rotting garbage. The larvae that hatch out of the eggs are called maggots and they look like tiny worms which are pale white colour. After two days, the skin of the maggot hardens and forms a protective case. This case is called a ‘pupa’. Inside the pupa the maggot develops into an adult Common House Fly.