hodge] 



FLIES AS A NATURE-STUDY PROBLEM 



S3 



advantage on earthen or wooden stable floors or on decaying 

 matter that cannot be vised for fertilizer. To avoid the dangers 

 to the soil of using borax, hellebore has been later recommended. 

 Mix one-half pound powdered hellebore with ten gallons of water, 

 allow to stand 24 hours and then soak down the manure at the 

 rate of one gallon per cubic foot. This is said to kill from 88 to 

 99 per cent of the maggots, and not to endanger stock, unless 



Fig. 4 — Difference in result made by the crack underneath a fly trap. 



Test made June, 191 5. by dividing bait into two equal parts, putting one-half 

 under each trap. Result indicated at end of day. The large store trap has an 

 opening of 1 inch around bottom, through which the flies run in to bait and freely 

 out again. The GeUhelastone trap has a ' 4 inch crack opening upward to bait, and 

 all the flies that go in are caught. It would probably have caught nearly twice as 

 many flies, if the big trap had not been freely feeding the pests close by. Photo- 

 graph by C. F. Hodge. 



the animals drink the mixture, poultry being warranted to suffer 

 no bad effects from eating the poison soaked grain or the poisoned 

 maggots, but no adequate experiments are cited to prove this. 

 Now compare the labor, nuisance and expense of this plan with 

 permitting the breeding flies to walk into a trap in the barn- 

 yard. There is the water to pump and lug, the mixing to attend 

 to at the proper times, the treatment of the manure and finally the 

 tons of sloppy manure to pitch, haul and spread — and to wade 

 around in in barnyard, manure shed or pit — and even with all 



