False Stable Fly vs Face Fly

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute False Stable Fly Face Fly
Scientific Name Muscina stabulans Musca autumnalis
Order Diptera Diptera
Family Muscidae Muscidae
Size 7-10 mm 7-8 mm
Habitat Farmland Farmland
Diet Predators Omnivores
Regions Europe, North America, Asia Europe, North America
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

False Stable Fly

A robust fly resembling a large house fly with reddish-yellow patches at the wing base. Larvae can be facultative predators of other fly larvae.

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Did You Know?

Its predatory larvae sometimes consume house fly larvae, making it an accidental biocontrol agent.

Face Fly

A non-biting muscid fly that feeds on secretions around the eyes and nose of cattle. It is a mechanical vector of the cattle pinkeye pathogen Moraxella bovis.

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Did You Know?

It enters homes in large numbers each autumn to overwinter, hence the name autumnalis.