Are There Botflies In The Dominican Republic? (Solved)

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The bot fly is a species of a parasitic fly, this type of fly has a stage in which it is converted into a larva, this stage is infamous for many stories of people infected with this larva buried in their skin. The bot fly is any fly of the Oestridae family.

This type of fly is also called “death fly” because of the terrible infection its larvae can cause.

Although this type of fly can be found in Mexico, Central, and South America, there is no evidence of this type of fly in the Dominican Republic.

The Dominican Republic is a Caribbean island, many of the animals and insects that exist in Central and South America do not exist in the Dominican Republic, we are separated by thousands of kilometers of seawater.

Many people living in other areas usually become infected while traveling to places where bot flies are present. In the Dominican Republic, no cases of bot fly infection have been reported.

In my experience living in the Dominican Republic, I have never seen this type of fly, nor have I heard of any cases of human infection by fly larvae.

The bot fly looks like a cross between a fly and a bee and has a striped, hairy body with a metallic color.

The one species of bot fly that commonly parasitizes on humans is Dermatobia hominis. Dermatobia hominis, like many other species of bot flies, develops inside the skin. Other species, however, grow inside the host’s gut.

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How does a person get infected by a bot fly?

Females of botflies lay eggs in blood-sucking arthropods, such as mosquitoes or ticks, to reproduce.

Infested Arthropods lay the egg larvae when biting a human or some other mammal.

The botfly larvae penetrate the skin of the host from the bite wound or a single follicle of hair and penetrate the subcutaneous tissue.

What kind of flies exists in the Dominican Republic?

Metallic Fly (Lucilia caesar)

The green or bluebottle fly is a dipteran of the family Calliphoridae, with a bright green or metallic blue thorax and abdomen. It is one of the largest species and in the adult, stage feeds on flower nectar and liquid substances from excrement and corpses.

Loft fly (Pollenia rudis) 

These flies fly in clusters, need warm places to hibernate and often fly near windows attracted by the lights of sunny winter days.

Fruit fly (tephritidae) (eliminated in the Dominican Republic).

Reproduce in areas where fermenting residues are found (fruits, vegetables, beer, vinegar). Larvae feed on bacteria and yeast from rotting fruits and vegetables. They can also be found in some drainage areas and on dirty cleaning utensils.

House Fly (Musca domestica)

House flies are carriers of disease and can infest all types of facilities. They are attracted to all types of food, including food for human consumption or pet food.

They breed in moist decaying plant matter, uncovered garbage or pet food. At night they prefer to rest near food sources.

Drain Flies (Psychodidae)

They are usually found in sewage beds, where the larvae feed on organic matter that they extract from sediments.

They are commonly found in sewers and pass into buildings through drains. They have a very slow flight and tend to spend a lot of time perched.

Flesh Flies (Sarcofaga carnaria)

They are usually the first to appear in the presence of dead meat, so they are considered an important vector for the dissemination of pathogens.

Larvae live and develop in any type of decomposing organic material or excrement.

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