338 KANSAS UNIVERSITY SCIENCE BULLETIN. 



of the water, wait until ready for flight." This shows that the 

 flies do not take flight immediately after emerging from their 

 pupse, either when in the open air or when emei'ging beneath 

 the water. Instead, they wait a short time for their wings to 

 dry and harden. 



Predaceotis Enemies of Simiilmm. 



Like most insects, Simulium flies have their predaceous en- 

 emies, and may have some parasitic ones, though little is known 

 of the latter. U. S. Dept. Agri. Bui. 5, n. s., 1896, gives an ac- 

 count of some of the natural enemies of bufi'alo gnats, as fol- 

 lows : "But few birds have been observed to feed upon them, 

 though for the southern forms, the mockingbird, winter wren, 

 and especially barnyard fowls, after the flies become gorged 

 with blood, feed upon them. Dragon flies (Libellulidse) and 

 robber flies (Asilidas) have been observed to catch them. The 

 larvse are devoured in large numbers by the smaller fishes, min- 

 nows, etc., and probably the carnivorous beetles, bugs, and 

 other aquatic insects prey upon them." 



Perhaps the best observations of predacious enemies of 

 Simulium larva, says in part: "I observed some small carabid 

 by Messrs. E. C. O'Roke and H. R. Jennings on their Ento- 

 mological Survey of 1912. Mr. O'Roke, in writing about 

 Simulium larvae, says in part: "I observed some small carabid 

 beetles, the kind you see along mud on stream banks all over 

 this section of country (Ellis county), feeding on the sand-fly 

 larvae. Two would take hold of a small larvae and pull it much 

 like two chickens pull an earthworm. This was after I had 

 removed the larvse from the water on a stone." 



Mr. Jennings, in writing of the chances a sand" fly has of 

 getting away from the water upon emerging from their pupai 

 where fish exist, says in part: "Any fly unfortunate enough 

 to remain on the surface until the water was deep enough for 

 fish, and also free from algas, was very certain of having an 

 immediate and fishy grave. Repeatedly I saw flies disappear 

 from the surface in this manner, and to make sure that it was 

 not by flight, I crippled some of them and took care that they 

 floated within reach of the fish, when their disappearance was 

 both immediate and certain. In fact, very few flies which got 

 into the current were allowed to leave the surface of the water 

 in flight, and these few probably owed their existence to the 

 fact that a strong wind was blowing directly upstream, and 



