Fruit flies are often considered a nuisance in homes and gardens, drawn to overripe fruit and sugary spills. However, for those involved in certain hobbies or scientific studies, particularly in herpetology or entomology, fruit flies are a valuable resource, especially as a food source for small reptiles and amphibians. Culturing your own fruit flies can ensure a consistent supply and specific traits. If you’re looking to start your own culture, catching wild fruit flies can be an easy and cost-effective method. This guide will walk you through a simple yet effective technique to attract and capture wild fruit flies right in your backyard.
Materials You’ll Need
Before you begin, gather these simple materials:
- A deli cup or similar container
- Culture medium for fruit flies (you can purchase this or make your own)
- Fermented fruit peel (mango, banana, or similar) or apple cider vinegar
- Aluminum wire screen or breathable fabric for a lid
- Saran wrap or plastic wrap
- Excelsior or similar climbing material
Steps to Attract Fruit Flies
Attracting fruit flies is surprisingly straightforward. By utilizing their natural attraction to fermenting fruit, you can easily lure them into a simple trap. Here’s a step-by-step guide:
Prepare the Bait
The key to attracting fruit flies is using bait they find irresistible. Fermented fruit is exceptionally effective.
- Create the Lure: Place a piece of fermented fruit peel, like mango or banana, into the deli cup. If you don’t have fermented fruit readily available, you can use your regular fruit fly culture medium and add a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar. The sweet and vinegary scent will act as a powerful attractant.
Set the Trap
Now, you need to create a trap that allows fruit flies to enter but makes it difficult for them to escape.
- Construct the Lid: Cover the deli cup with an aluminum wire screen lid. The mesh openings should be just large enough for fruit flies to pass through but small enough to exclude larger insects. If you find that the wild fruit flies in your area are larger, you can carefully widen the holes in the screen using a sharpened pencil or a similar pointed object. This customized opening will ensure you’re only catching the target insects.
- Position the Trap: Place the deli cup with the screen lid outdoors in a sheltered location where it won’t be disturbed. Ideal spots include under a bush, on a porch, or in a shaded corner of your garden. Leave the trap undisturbed for a few days.
Capture the Flies
After a few days, you should notice fruit flies congregating around the trap. The presence of maggots in the medium is a clear sign that fruit flies have not only been attracted but have also laid eggs.
- Seal the Trap: Once you see a significant number of fruit flies inside the cup, quickly remove the screen lid and cover the opening tightly with saran wrap. This will trap the flies inside the container.
- Knock Out the Flies: Place the sealed deli cup in the refrigerator for a minute or two. This brief cooling period will temporarily immobilize the fruit flies, making them easier to handle. Be very careful not to leave them in the fridge for too long, as excessive cold can kill them.
Establish the Culture
With the captured fruit flies temporarily subdued, you can now safely transfer them to a more suitable culture environment.
- Transfer to Culture Container: Working quickly, remove the saran wrap and the screen lid. Take out the mango peel or fermented fruit bait, being careful to scrape off any maggots and return them to the culture medium. Add some excelsior or another climbing medium to the deli cup. Excelsior provides a surface for the flies to climb on, which is crucial for a healthy fruit fly culture.
- Secure the Culture: Seal the deli cup with a new lid made of breathable fabric. This type of lid will prevent the fruit flies from escaping while allowing for air circulation, which is essential for the culture’s long-term health.
- Let Them Recover: Allow the flies to warm up and wake up in their new culture container.
Enjoy Your New Fruit Fly Culture
From this point, your fruit fly culture should thrive and expand. You can easily create subsequent cultures from this initial one. This method is not only easy but also incredibly cost-effective. Aside from the minimal cost of the deli cup and culture medium, catching wild fruit flies is essentially free. By reusing cups and making your own culture medium, you can maintain a continuous supply of fruit flies for just pennies. This simple technique provides a sustainable and economical way to source fruit flies for your needs.
