Meet the Stomoxys calcitrans
Life Cycle
Stable flies breed in moist, decaying organic matter. The adult female lives for four to six weeks in the laboratory but around seven to ten days in the field, and during this time she lays multiple clutches of eggs. Adults can fly within one hour post-emergence, and will be ready to mate three to five days later. Once mated, the female will start to lay eggs five to eight days post-emergence.
Each female fly may lay up to 800 eggs in her lifetime, with each clutch requiring a separate blood meal. Eggs hatch in 12 to 24 hours into first instar larvae, which feed and mature through three instars in 12 to 13 days at the optimum breeding site temperature of 27°C.
Third instar larvae transform to pupae within the puparia. The adults develop inside and then emerge from the puparia. The average stable fly life cycle in the field ranges from 12–30 days depending on the environmental conditions, but is usually around 28 days.
Adults can fly within one hour post-emergence, and will be ready to mate three to five days later. Once mated, the female will start to lay eggs five to eight days post-emergence.
Biology
Stable flies are unlike many other blood feeding fly species, in that both sexes feed on blood. In most other cases, the female feeds on blood to obtain protein for egg production and the male survives on sugar alone.
Stable flies are diurnal, feeding on their hosts during the early morning and late afternoon in warm weather and in the middle of the day in cooler weather. When feeding, stable flies can fully engorge in five minutes if left undisturbed.
After feeding and during hot periods of the day, they rest on the underside of vegetation, fences and other structures near their hosts. Occasionally stable flies are active throughout the year or there are summer peaks, but most frequently peak populations occur in spring and in autumn