# Fruit flies that don't like fruit.....?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fruit-flies-that-dont-like-fruit/552301>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [September 1, 2010, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fruit-flies-that-dont-like-fruit/552301 "2010-09-01T19:38:32Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\
**Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fruit-flies-that-dont-like-fruit/552301/1 "2010-09-01T19:38:32Z")

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I seem to have fruit flies in my kitchen. Or, at least, they look like fruit flies. There’s a few of 'em upstairs, buzzing around my computer as well.

Problem is, they don’t ACT like fruit flies. They’re hovering over on the cupboard next to the sink, in the part of the kitchen dominated not by food storage, but by cabinets full of glasses and plates. Not five feet away is a lovely plate of tomatoes and peaches. They are completely uninterested.

I put a bowl of old wine out over by them, to see if they’d jump in and take a swim. A couple did. The rest stay clustered on the bottom of the cupboard.

What are these things? How do I get rid of them? There is no food anywhere around where they are - both I and Mr. Athena have looked, and we just got back from a long weekend out of town, during which time Mr. Athena’s mother housesat for us. This woman is a cleaning freak, if there had been any sort of food or ickiness around the kitchen, she would have found it and gotten rid of it.

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**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\
**Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fruit-flies-that-dont-like-fruit/552301/2 "2010-09-01T19:58:16Z")

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Are you sure they’re not [drain flies](http://www.pestproducts.com/fliesdrains.htm)?

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**Author:** ![Blake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a9a28c/32.png) [@Blake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blake)\
**Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fruit-flies-that-dont-like-fruit/552301/3 "2010-09-01T20:00:12Z")

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[Drain flies](http://www.pestcontrolsydney.com.au/insects/Drain%20Flies,%20HYG-2071-97.htm)

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**Author:** ![rayman5321](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@rayman5321](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rayman5321)\
**Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fruit-flies-that-dont-like-fruit/552301/4 "2010-09-01T20:20:29Z")

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Athena,

I had the same problem. I bought some old-fashioned fly paper and that solved the problem. Give it a try.

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**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\
**Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fruit-flies-that-dont-like-fruit/552301/5 "2010-09-01T20:53:16Z")

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Yikes! Maybe they are drain flies! I’ve never heard of such a thing.

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**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\
**Post date:** [September 1, 2010, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fruit-flies-that-dont-like-fruit/552301/6 "2010-09-01T20:57:19Z")

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Do you have a disposal in your sink? If so, there’s your culprit. Teensy-tiny bits of food crud get caught under the flaps. Try the ol’ vinegar-and-baking-soda volcano to help clean things out.