Large-scale production of house fly, Musca domestica (Diptera: Muscidae), larvae fed 3 manure types

Abstract

House flies, Musca domestica, L., (Diptera: Muscidae) are well-known pests at animal facilities; however, they can be used for manure biodegradation. Utilizing house flies to process animal manure offers a means to recycle nutrients and reduce contaminants (e.g., pathogens and heavy metals), while also producing multiple revenue streams (e.g., protein for feed, fat for biodiesel, frass as a soil amendment). This study determined house fly larval performance on a larger scale (kilogram of wastes; thousands of larvae; single feeding) as a follow-up to a previous experiment performed at a bench-top scale (g of wastes; hundreds of larvae; incremental feeding). Four thousand larvae were fed 1 kg of swine, dairy, or poultry manure, or a control (Gainesville diet: 50% wheat bran, 30% alfalfa meal, and 20% corn meal). Peak larval weight occurred 4 days after inoculation and no significant difference in development time to first pupariation occurred across diets. However, percent survivorship to pupariation varied, with the highest occurring in Gainesville (74%), swine (73%), and poultry (67%) manure, whereas 50% survived when fed dairy manure. The highest pupal weight was found for those fed Gainesville (27 mg), and similar weights were found for those fed swine (21 mg), dairy (24 mg), and poultry (25 mg) manure. Although using house flies to manage manure has received little consideration in Western countries, other regions have this practice in place. Results may provide insight on differences between small- and large-scale studies, which is valuable for industrialization of this species for waste management and creating a more circular economy.

Manipulating larval rearing media to optimise mass production of the blow fly Calliphora vicina (Diptera: Calliphoridae)

“…Pérez et al (2016) concluded that C. vicina was highly adaptable to being reared in a laboratory setting with artificial nutritional diets, which this study has supported in the most part where larval media of 90% meatmeal and 10% whole egg powder, 60%–70% meatmeal with the addition of 20% bran flakes and 10% whole dried egg powder or whole eggs ensured the fastest larval development to pupation, the highest pupation rate and subsequent adult emergence. Similarly with the mass rearing of house flies ( Musca domestica L. 1758), a mixture of various substrates (i.e., 50% wheat bran, 30% alfalfa meal and 20% corn meal) enabled the highest level of survival to pupation and pupal weight compared with pure animal wastes (e.g., swine, dairy or poultry manure) (Miranda et al 2023). The exceptions were the rearing of C. vicina on pure meatmeal (44% survival to adult flies) or meatmeal with brewer's yeast (10%), which significantly reduced larval development and survival to eclosion down to 24%.…”

Can the Necrophagous Blow Fly Calliphora vicina (Diptera: Calliphoridae) Be Reared on Plant-Based Meal?

“…Mass rearing of house flies (Musca domestica L. 1758) can be achieved using plant-based substrates (i.e., 50% wheat bran, 30% alfalfa meal, and 20% corn meal). This substrate mixture produced the highest survival to pupation and heaviest pupal weights compared with animal wastes (e.g., diary, swine or poultry manure) [62]. Pérez et al [12] reared larvae of C. vicina on several different artificial diets; the shortest developmental time (egg to pupae) was on pig's liver (18.8 days) compared with milk powder and egg (24.6 days) and powdered liver.…”