Curious Kids Facts: Where Do Flies Go At Night? Do Flies Sleep?

Deepthi Reddy
Jan 20, 2023 By Deepthi Reddy
Originally Published on Oct 27, 2021
Fact-checked by Amatullah Gulbargawala
Fly on human skin.
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Age: 3-18
Read time: 4.4 Min

Have you ever wondered how huge regular objects appear to tiny flies?

Flying around such large objects with the fear of being caught, must be tiring and stressful for these tiny little flies. The world must appear enormous to tiny flies.

Do you know that there are around 120,000 species of flies in the world? To name a few, flies like mosquitoes, horseflies, dragonflies, fruit flies, gnats, midges, and many more are commonly called flies.

It is often asked if flies fly, and the answer is yes; flies are active and spend their time buzzing around in summer and winter looking for food.

Like us, flies take short naps during the day to escape the afternoon heat. Although they are active during the day, adult flies spend the entire day buzzing around and sleep soundly during the night.

Young flies sleep more often than adult flies. Do you ever wonder where do flies disappear at night? Come sunset, a bleary-eyed fly will look for a comfortable and safe place to sleep.

They can sleep on the underside of branches, twigs, tree trunks, or leaves. A sleepy fly will also spend its night dozing off to sweet slumber under a rock!

While you are staying awake at night, wondering where do flies go at night, take a break and browse our website for more exciting stuff like these amazing fairyfly facts. And if this was not an eye-opener, then read our content on did you know where flies go in the winter?

Where do houseflies go at night?

Wondering where do houseflies go at night? Read on to find the answer.

When they say that flies are cold-blooded, precisely speaking, being cold-blooded means that the body temperature of flies changes according to their surroundings. As night approaches, flies look for a warm place to sleep.

Most flies do not function well at low temperatures. At night the temperature is low, and most flies take refuge in warm corners of walls or curtains. While in the wild, flies sleep on the underside of leaves, on branches, long grass, or tree trunks.

Flies do sleep at night and are very similar to humans in this respect. If a fly does not sleep well one night, it tries to go to sleep early the next day to catch up on its lost sleep.

Houseflies, unlike mosquitoes, go to sleep at night on floors, walls, garbage cans, electric wires, electric cords, and indoor ceilings. When in the natural environment, houseflies become inactive at night and go to sleep.

Houseflies require polarized light to guide them visually. When it is cold, adult flies are too cold, unable to move, and may become dormant or die.

Where do flies go at nighttime in houses?

During the daytime, the same fly that can't stop buzzing and bothering you seems to be absconding again. So, where do these flies disappear to at night for rest in your house? Here is the answer.

At night flies in your house sleep on places like the floor, curtains, walls, corners, furniture, or anywhere they can get a good grip. At night, they don’t spend time looking for areas free from predators, they rest and sleep anywhere.

Do flies go to sleep?

Yes, flies do sleep, and they take naps, too! Most of them sleep at night but also take naps during the day. It is because every brain needs rest as it is a vital part of any organism be it small or big. Like us, flies too have a central nervous system that facilitates their sleep.

They also have circadian behaviors that are responsible for governing sleep and wake-up mechanism. Similar to humans who sleep in two stages - the rapid eye moment (REM) and non-REM, flies too alternate between lighter and deeper sleeping patterns.

Where do cattle flies go at night?

House fly on green leaf.

Flies sleep at night, and studies reveal that their sleeping pattern is very similar to that of humans.

Humans sleep in two phases: the rapid eye movement stage (REM) or light sleep, and the non-rapid eye movement stage (non-REM stage), or deep sleep cycle. Flies also alternate between these two stages of the light and deep sleep cycle, like humans, while they are sleeping.

Flies have adapted their super-sensitive eyes and antennae to react to any changes in the environment.

Flies live on cattle almost all the time. Flies sleep at night on the undersides of cattle, resting their heads pointing downwards towards the ground, and sleep with their wings held at an angle of 45-60 degrees to their body.

Where do dragonflies go at night time?

Studies reveal that, unlike mosquitoes, dragonflies and fruit flies prefer cooler environments to sleep in. They are active during the day and evening.

These flies cannot see in the dark and use their sensitive antennae to see when there’s no light. Fruit flies sleep under leaves, branches of plants, on twigs, on tree trunks, and on the stems of tall grasses.

Dragonflies are colorful insects ranging in a wide variety of color hues, and you might wonder how these flies can protect themselves while sleeping. In long grasses, a dragonfly may seem to surprise you, appearing out of nowhere.

The dragonfly has an intelligent brain and sleeps in grasses or barks of trees by camouflaging itself with its surroundings. This allows dragonflies to rest and protect themselves from harmful potential predators.

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Sources

https://goodbyedrainflies.com/preventing-flies/do-flies-sleep/

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Written by Deepthi Reddy

Master of Business Administration

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Deepthi ReddyMaster of Business Administration

With an MBA under her belt, Deepthi has discovered her true calling in content writing. Her writing repertoire is diverse, covering travel, movies, pet care, parenting, animals and birds, and more. Her joy of learning and creating has helped her craft well-written and engaging articles. When she isn't writing, Deepthi enjoys exploring new cultures, trying different foods, and spending quality time with her two children aged 7 and 12.

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