31 



s,ori;illy liy the hiill-poiit . V;iri()iis species of suiiflsli are common 

 .11 Louisiana watei-s also, and on aeeonnt of their strictly car- 

 nivorous habits, in most eases at least, they are most desirable. 

 The ])eople shoidd see to it that all permanent waters, no matter 

 (»f what exient. are well stocked with fishes, not only on account 

 of the larvae of liorseHes desti'oyed by fhem, hut for many other 

 n a.sons as well. 



ARTIFICIAL WLMLDIES FOR IIOKSEPUES. 



l']. 1(1 the present time no satisfactory remedy applicable 

 v all cases has ])een sni:<iested. for the habits of the various 

 sf ecies are such that it is difficult to sugfyest anythini? that can 

 be ai)i)lied in a ])ractical way. 



The method, long- in use, of protecting: work aninuds with 

 fly nets meets with (piite general satisfaction, and the use of 

 burlap on otlier choice aniimils has its merits, but the problem 

 <.f how to protect the stock in the pastures is the important one, 

 and its solution is not easy. In order to solve this problem a 

 general remedy for horseflies in some stage must be suggested, 

 and since it is the adults that do the damage, a remedy for 

 the.m is most desirable. 



If one takes the time to observe these flies around water 

 when they are plentiful, he soon notices that certain species, at 

 least when flying over the water, drop down now and then and 

 di{) their abdomens. Porchinski of Russia explains this habit by 

 saying that the flies come to drink, and that every time they 

 drojt down to the surface of the water they take a sip of the 

 l:(iuid. He also made a nuiiil)er of experiments, and proved that 

 by applying kerosene to the surface of standing pools large 

 numbei-s of horseflies of various kinds got the oil on their bodies 

 while drinking, and were killed. As to the quantity of kerosene 

 r((juire(l to kill them in -this manner, it is stated that he ap- 

 [lied iihoui the ecpuvalent of a half-pint to six square feet of 

 v.^ater surface. If this Was sufficient to do the work, no more oil 

 was ap{)lied until the next morning, when a like amount was 

 used. Li case the first male horsefly that came to drink did not 

 stick to the surface, more oil was applied immediately. He ob- 

 served that all the species of Chrysops and Tahanua which were 



