Why are we seeing so many flies lately?

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Whether you swat or spray them, you may be seeing more house flies lately.

From a weekend birthday celebration in the park, to the back deck, Annie Miller, who lives in Crestwood, said the flies seem to be growing in numbers.

"If they're in the house, I swat them. I kill them if they're in the house. But outside, I spray but they come back," she said. "They were the big flies, and they were just everywhere.

"As soon as I go out the door, there are flies. As soon as I come back in, there are flies."

Steve Foss with Mosquito Joe of the Bluegrass, said the company is taking more calls for service.

"We've had, probably, three times to four times, more calls than normal," Foss said. "It's happening because of the weather that we've been having. A a lot more rainfall."

Foss said house flies thrive on that water.

"They breed in decaying, organic matter," he said. "So, the wetter it is, the more decaying matter there is."

And the extra time at home, during the pandemic, could also be feeding the fly population, Foss said.

"They've been producing a lot more trash," he said. "So, with this rainfall that we've been having, debris, trash cans get filled with more water, and you see more flies."

Foss said the flies might be annoying, but mosquitoes carry diseases and should be a bigger concern.

"They are a much more dangerous insect than a house fly," he said. "House fly or any other type of fly is a nuisance."

Foss said treating your home and trash and the cold weather will all help thin the herd.

"I would say with the weather, what's going to happen is the fly population — a couple of frosts or freezes — will actually be reduced and actually be killed off for the winter," he said.,

And at this point, Miller said she'll take what she can get.

"I hope so ... because they're terrible this year," she said. "I hope they won't be around much longer, because they're really bad this year. I've never seen them this bad."

Foss said whether it's house flies, mosquitoes or other insects, a treatment plan is always the best solution.