DIPTERA. ^^ 



_ The geiiiis Musca{?.y\ in which Linn^us comprised the immense 



the AsiM^, the BomhM.^, and the £m/>ida, is now reduced to the 

 House Ply and a few resembhng it. The habits of these ti^uble- 

 some companions arem conformity with the two great principles of 

 anmml life, that is, eating and propagating their species ' 



Flies feed prmcipally on fluids which exude from the bodies of 

 animals ; that is, sweat, saliva, and other secretions. They abo seek 

 vegetable juices ; and they may be seen in our houses to feed eairlv 

 on fruits and sweet substances. e^ij^ern 



hrlv^on fZZl^fl '^Tf '^'''' '^^' ""'' vegetables, and particu- 

 laily on fungi m a state of decomposition, on dung-heaps, cow dun.^ 



to suck up the fluid substances which are diffused over the surface o^ 

 -heir bodies. In our dwellings they eat anything that will serve to 



II 



!1S 



Fig. 6x.-Lancet of the Meat FIj. pig. 6.. -House Fly (Musca dornestlca), 



^ r'iciu'^ ^^"'™' ^''"^'''^^'^'' succeeds generation with the greatest 



The House Fly {Musm domestica, Fig. 62) is about three lines in 



'^gth, ash coloured, with the face black, the sides of the head 



-^liow and the forehead yellow' with black stripes; the thorax is 



arked with black lines ; the abdomen is pale underneath, and a 



r.sparent yellow at^ the sides, in the males, and is speckled with 



';• ^^''l:^.^^ are Dlack ; the wings transparent, and yellowish at 



!>ase. iliis species is extremely plentiful throughout the whole 



-Mirope. Every one knows how annoving it is towards the end of 



^^ummer, and especially so in the South of France during the hot 



The Ox Fly {Musca bovina\ a near relation of the house fly, is 

 00 very common. It settles on the nostrils, the eyes, and the 

 ^junds of animals. 



The Executioner Fly {Musca caniifex), which is not rare in 

 Jance, also attacks oxen. It is of a dark metallic green colour 



G 2 



