Why are there so many flies this year in Marloth Park, when we eat meat outdoors?…

One of the less enjoyable aspects of living in the bush in Marloth Park, especially as summer approaches, is dealing with flies. We love sitting at our veranda table, enjoying a meal while watching our wildlife visitors wander through the garden. However, this year, we seem to have more flies than ever, particularly when we prepare and serve meat outdoors.

There is nothing quite as annoying as sitting down to enjoy a delicious steak or another favorite meat dish, only to spend much of the meal shooing flies away from our plates. We want to relax, enjoy our food, and watch the wildlife, not constantly defend our dinner from these uninvited guests!

So, why might there be so many flies this year?

Marloth Park is transitioning from the dry winter season into the hotter summer months. October and November can bring rising temperatures, shifting weather patterns, and eventually summer rainfall. Warm conditions encourage flies to develop and reproduce more quickly. When moisture becomes available, breeding opportunities can increase, particularly where organic material, animal droppings, and other suitable food sources are present.

Living in a wildlife area also means sharing our surroundings with countless animals. Although we may not always see the sources of fly activity, the bush provides plenty of opportunities for flies to feed and reproduce.

Meat is especially attractive to many flies because of its smell and the nutrients it provides. Once we put steaks, hamburgers, or other meat dishes on the table, flies arrive almost immediately. They seem to have an uncanny ability to find our dinner, even when we have only just sat down.

Although flies are a normal part of life in the bush, the number we encounter can vary considerably from one season to another. Weather conditions, breeding cycles, and food availability can all contribute to a particularly troublesome year. Without local monitoring data, we cannot know for certain why fly numbers seem unusually high this season, but warm weather and abundant breeding opportunities are a reasonable explanation.