32 



niTlNG AND NOXIOLS INSKCT8 OTIIKK THAN MOStJflTOKS 



Notes nnd 

 Specimens 



T.ibanidse 



Stomoxys 



proiliu-e c'onvft illust rat ions wlicrdiy tliosc (lies can lie rt'iulily i<li'iitilit'il liy luiyoiX' wlm 

 si'iurrs tlu'iii. For tliis purpose tlic natural colours arc intlicatoij in tlio black ami white 

 drawings. I believe they will be lielpful in this direction and of considerable value 

 to Medical Ollicers and Inspectors. Sonic non-biting Diptera which might easilv be 

 eoufonndcd witli harmful varieties liavc also been illustrated. In this connection I have 

 to acknowledge the kindness and courtesy of the Trustees of the British Museum 

 with reference to the permission granted for the reproduction of the coloured plates of 

 G. mor.tllaii.i, (1. jialpiili.i and (J. loiiijijifiniis. ]{oth in the identification of specimens 

 and the criticism of the drawings we have received the valinible help of Mr. Austen, 

 Dipterologist to the IJritish JIuseum, who has also contributed a paper on some of these 

 Diptera written specially for this report. 



Seroot is a name applied to several of tlir larger TahantiUv found in llic Sudan, such as 

 '/'. ilor.tiri/iii, 7' iifriciiiiuK, 7'. sociiiSj miil /'. hiijnlliitiis. Other Arabic names, kindly 

 translated for me by Sir R. von Slatiu, are given to these. Thus at Goz-Abu-Guma on 

 the White Nile, 7". i/orxirithi is called Tii-El-Gefitr ("bird of the desert"), while 

 7'. aofiiis, or a lly very like it, is known as A'/ Aijhi'llnsk ("the grey one"). 



Captain (Jrogan sent the following note from the Mamiir of (Joz-Abu-Guma regarding 

 these flies in answer to the memorandum. They seem well worth reproducing in extenso. 



1. " They bite both nuiu and beast. 



'1. Till y appear for the most part in the tinu of tlu' Kharif (May and June) and when 

 the dura crops ripen. 



8. They are found in thickets, woods and iindcigrowtii near tiic river, also in the 

 wooded parts of the interior rain lanils. 



4. From the eflTect of tiicir bites aiiiiuais lose roiiditioii and become verv lean. 



5. They bite during the day-time. 



(i. They also bite wild animals sudi as the lion. 



7. Nothing definite is kuowu about their breeding habits but tliey are said to be the 

 same as tlie ioeiist. 



8. They are numerous and especially towards the soutli. 



In addition reliable information points to the Aiiln'Uiisli being much the worst. Their 

 favourite places for atta<d<ing animals are in the hairless part under the neck, the bare parts 

 of the belly, and in the groin of the leg. Animals if exposed to their attacks, which draw 

 blood, get no peace and eventually die. There is no doubt that they drive wild animals 

 from Jebelein northwards during the Kharif." Captain Grogan further says : — " There is 

 also to be found, to my own personal knowledge, a little way south of Goz-Abu-Guma, near 

 to the river, during the months of April and .Mav a third scjrt of biting Hy, small and black, 

 something like a house fly which attacks camels and instantly draws biooil. Its name is 

 said to be El Aijii»ii ('the old one')." 



Specimens were afterwards sent, and, as expeeteil, this lly proved to be a species of 

 Stomiuiis which I had found very prevalent at Taiitikia in January, fiercely attacking mules 

 and drawing scarlet beads at everv thrust. 



It is also common in the Hahr-El-Ghazal and up the Blue Nile. I do not think it can 

 be a carrier of trypaiiosomes in the Suilan, otherwise many animals would have become 

 infected at Taufikia. As a matter of fact I only found trypanosomes in mtdes coming from 

 Abyssinia. Captain Greig's experiments go to prove it innocent in Uganda.* 



• Qrvig. Reports of the Slccpiag Sickuesa Commiwion of tlie Royal Society. No. VI., 1905, p. •.'ii3. 



