I am a hunter. I hunt not for big game or for small fowl, but for a tiny predator mighty and quick-the common fruit fly. The little buggers are my sworn enemies and the moment they take flight in my kitchen I declare a full-fledged war.
Seeing as how the fly is my enemy, I thought it pertinent to do a little background research to get a better grasp of who I am dealing with. The fruit fly's technical name is Drosophila melanogaster and apparently it is one of the most commonly studied organisms in genetics, physiology and life evolution. A group of scientist even took the time to sequence its complete genome. What, why?! And all I want to do is annihilate these little pests from my home.
A single female fruit fly can lay 100 eggs a day. The lady flies do all of their egg-laying in the bits of decaying fruit left around by my 1 year old. So, when there are 25 fruit flies buzzing around my kitchen there is a good chance that left unchecked I could be dealing with 10,000 flies in a matter of days. Disgusting.
Upon advice from my sister-in-law (who is dealing with a fly war on her home front), I concocted a supreme hunting device. I simply mixed together a small amount of apple cider vinegar and a teaspoon of sugar for a true fruit fly delicacy. Then I placed plastic wrap over the top of my mixture. I then proceeded to make tiny little holes in the plastic wrap to allow curious flies to enter their dungeon of doom. The trick is to make the holes large enough for the flies to enter but small enough to make their return trip to my kitchen impossible.
The end result is fruit fly Armageddon.
Warning: If you are squeamish I would suggest not clicking to enlarge the photo, there are some sick little swimmers in this shot.
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5 years ago
