Welcome to Catch-fly: fly trap pest control


Catch-fly always catches the fly

Catch-fly provides solutions to home insect pest problems. This fly trap website is aimed at achievable, environmentally safe pest control through the use of fly traps and other means of safely deterring insect pests. The emphasis is on non-chemical pest control.


It takes the form of an information-shop, where useful details are provided about products offering a solution, which you as the customer can then purchase if it suits your particular pest problem.

Questions often arise, about the actual pest or about suitability of a product. Please use the enquiries page or email Catch-fly Support.

 



Catch-fly.com now incorporates the professional arm of this business, called FlyEvidence, which provides a professional insect identification service for legal and academic contracts. Services provided by FlyEvidence are on a contractual basis; please click here for more information.








Pest control

"Pest control" defines a wide range of concepts. Anything of nuisance value could be described as a pest, so I want to focus purely on insect pest control. To be clear from the outset, contrary to popular opinion, there are actually very few species of insect that can be defined as a pest. Roughly one million species of insect are known globally and of those only approximately 0.05% are really serious pests; that is, about 500 to 1000 species. So you see, the vast bulk of insects are not pests and are not harmful; it is sad so many people kill insects indiscriminately.




 

Hoverfly - Eoseristalis pertinax (Syrphidae) pollinating an Umbelliferae;
Scathophaga  stercoraria (Scathophagidae) in background;
Scotland, Kirtomy, Betty Hill, NC756634, October 2006, A.E. Whittignton.


 

Fly traps

Fly traps, correctly used, can protect the many species which are not pests, focussing on species that really do need control, because they reach high numbers of individuals, are deadly harmful or reap devastation on human products and belongings. Carefully managed pest control therefore has a high profile among insect scientists (or Entomologists as they are know).

Insects commonly regarded as pests include those which:
  • transmit disease (mosquitoes, flies)
  • are parasites (fleas, lice, bedbugs)
  • that damage structures (termites, timber beetles)
  • destroy agricultural goods (locusts, weevils)
  • feed on and foul stored products (moths, beetles).

Many entomologists are involved in pest control. Although in the last 50 years pest control has relied on insecticides, sometimes with devastating consequences to the environment; more and more people are relying on safer methods of pest control, such as lures, traps and bio-control.

Effective pest control relies on understanding the biology of the pest species and, of course, knowing which species is involved so that correct pest control is provided. This is where it makes sense to employ an Entomologist who can help you understand the pest species, it's biology and the relevant pest control required. I am confident that this website will assist you in every way, but please contact me if you have questions.