From Hillary Shaw
I hope that the electrostatic flytrap described in your news story (9 February, p 19) does not work as planned. It seems a little too efficient for our own good. In ten days a fly could infect a huge number of others with the fungus and housefly numbers would plummet.
But this might not be a good thing. Houseflies, or at least their maggots, perform a valuable service by disposing of dead organic matter. Left alone it would breed bacteria, attract rats and encourage a whole host of less desirable fauna than the housefly itself.
I am reminded of the Chinese effort to rid their fields of sparrows because they ate the grain. Soon they were overwhelmed with all the nasty insects the sparrows had been keeping under control. Why do we humans think we have the ability, let alone the right, to modify entire ecosystems? I’d personally rather stick with the fly spray—an ozone-friendly one of course.
Leeds
