130 



llie >i)iea(I of infection; but the provision of a staff of trained 

 niinoxopists and the fart that animals are often hij^'hly infec- 

 tions before exliibiting- any external symptoms, consitiite prac- 

 tical difficulties which render sncli a course almost impossible of 

 adoption. Camps should also be established near every large 

 town and European station in whi(di sick hoi'ses, donkeys and 

 other animals that it is inailvisable to slaughter might be 

 isolated. Tlie author thinks that in view of the discoveries of 

 Kinghoiii and Yorke in llhodesia, the destruction of big game 

 in the vicinity of inhabited centres should be encouraged instead 

 of lieing artificiallv restricted. 



TiiKiLEK (Dr. A.). The Immunisation of Cattle against East Coast 

 Fever. — Second Repf. of the JJirectdr of Vefcriiuu-ij Reseaiclt , 

 r II ion of South Africa, Oct. V.)V2, dipc 'foirn, lOl-'!, p]). 

 2GG-.'J14." 



Since dipping against ticks could not l)e resorted to, some 

 I'i^J.iS;)-") cattle in the Transkei have been inoculated with spleen 

 and gland pulp mixed with peptone or aleuroiuit. The ex- 

 perience in the field indicates that the inoculation can be under- 

 taken safely in respect of either clean or infected cattle with the 

 prospect of conferring immunity on 5G-(J0 per cent. The im- 

 munity may not be absolute as 1 per cent, breakdowns wero 

 uoted amongst the experimental animals. The animal which 

 supplied the spleen and gland pulp for the injection has 

 apparently an influence on the results, as the variation in 

 mortality from the injection cannot be considered to be due to 

 anv other factor. 



Bedfokd (G. a. 11. ). A Tick New to South Africa.— ,S'pco//(/ h'ept. 

 of the Director of Veterinorj/ Rexearcli, Lnion of Soutft 

 Africa, Oct. V.}]2,'Cape To, en, 1[)V\, i)p. a4:J-::i44, l"pl. 



Spinose ear-ticks {Oriiitliodorus merjnini, Duges) were found 

 in the ears of cows at Vryburg, and sheep at Fauresmith. They 

 have also been found in the ears of the horse, ass, dog. and 

 occasionally man, in the Sudan, United States and Mexico. 

 They can be easily distinguished from all other species of 

 Orn/tl/odorus in South Africa by the integument not being 

 mammilated. According to Hooker the larvae hatch out after 

 1.1 days in summer; they then enter the ears of the host and gorge 

 themselves; after five days they moult upon the host, and the 

 nymphs continue feeding sometimes for months. They then 

 drop off, and crawl up several feet from the ground and secrete 

 themselves in cracks and crevices of posts, gates, etc., where they 

 change to adults after about seven days. They then pair and the 

 females commence ovipositing, after which they die. It is not 

 necessary for the adults to nourish themselves before copulating 

 and ovipositing, as they are able to store up enough food in the 

 nymph stage. The author agrees with Hooker in believing that 

 the adults never feed, becattse thev have never been found on a 



