Mrs.+Dietz'+-+Wonders+of+Science

How long will "Fred - the fly" live with me? In other words, what is the life span of a fly?
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 * ======The average fly's life span is 2 - 3 weeks though I don't know how old Fred was when he flew as I opened my door.======
 * Fred, like all flies, has amazing eyes. The housefly's compound eyes are some of the most complex of the insect world, allowing them to see a full 360-degrees. This is why flies are hard to swat and why Fred is still living with me.
 * House flies feed on liquid or semi-liquid substances beside solid material which has been softened by saliva or vomit. Because of their high intake of food, they deposit feces constantly, one of the factors that makes the insect a dangerous carrier of pathogens. Therefore I always put my saucer over my coffee cup when getting ready in the morning.
 *  Fred has a hard exoskeleton that protects him from moisture loss. Fred uses the hairs on his body to taste and to smell. Interesting!
 * Fred's ancestors are believed to have evolved about 65 million years ago. That's quite a family tree!
 * German scientists have built a flight simulator for flies in order to better understand how the fly sees and coordinates its movements. Their hope is that what they learn might be of use in developing robots that can move around their environment. That's amazing!!!!!
 * I haven't seen Fred around lately, but while he was with me, Fred sure caused me to WONDER!
 * __Watch a housefly feeding using its proboscis.__ http://www.arkive.org/house-fly/musca-domestica/video-08.html

Jake's entry of the eight types of flies on my discussion page, led me to look into one of them - the fruit fly. So here's "the skinny" on fruit flies: [] How about someone looking up one of the other 6 types of flies (bottle fly, blow fly, caddiasfly, drain fly, gnats, phorid-humpbacked fly) and sharing what you find out on my discussion page. Keep wondering!

LEARN ABOUT AMAZING SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERIES USING 1.) THE FLY AND 2.) ITS LARVAE, THE MAGGOT. THESE TWO EXAMPLES ARE WHY I ALWAYS TELL YOU TO "THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX." //Dr. Jeff Tomberlin, entomologist with the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station, is investigating the use of the soldier fly to turn livestock manure into a source of protein and energy for poultry, while reducing numbers of the common housefly. Check it out!!!//  //[]//  // "Maggots are the world's smallest surgeons. In fact they are better than surgeons - they are much cheaper and work 24 hours a day," Professor Boulton jokingly said. WOW! Check it out! //// [] //