Housefly: Where It Lives, Map & Facts

Where the housefly lives – recorded in 40 countries, with quick facts from Wikidata and an introduction from Wikipedia.

Scientific name	Musca domestica
Group	Grasshoppers, bugs & other insects
Found in	40 countries
Continents	Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, Oceania, South America
Class	Insect
Order	Diptera
Family	Muscidae

Where does the housefly live?

Open-licence (CC0 / CC BY) wild records published on GBIF place the housefly in 40 countries and territories across Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, Oceania and South America. In Denmark, Spain, Portugal it is listed as introduced (GRIIS checklists via GBIF).

Countries with at least a handful of records (a minimum share of the species’ records, to leave out vagrants and escapes). Records with coordinates only; captive and fossil records excluded.

What kind of animal is the housefly?

The housefly (Musca domestica) is an insect in the order Diptera and the family Muscidae, genus Musca. (Taxonomy from Wikidata.)

About the housefly

The housefly (Musca domestica) is a fly of the suborder Cyclorrhapha. From its place of origin, perhaps in the Middle East, it has spread around the world as a commensal of humans. Adults are gray to black, with four dark, longitudinal lines on the thorax, slightly hairy bodies, and a single pair of membranous wings. They have red compound eyes, set farther apart in the slightly larger female.

Text in “About” is quoted from the Wikipedia article Housefly (revision 1380781184), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: lead section excerpted verbatim, formatting removed. Quick facts, taxonomy and status: Wikidata Q166111 (CC0). Countries and pin: GBIF.org occurrence records (CC0 / CC BY 4.0).