THE FLY-BUG. 573 



A few of the details of this insect's structure are given on 

 Woodcut liXVII. At Fig. a is shown one of its fore-legs, at 

 Fig. b the antenna, with its slender terminal joint. Fig d is 

 a greatly magnified representation of the beak, and Fig. c 

 shows a profile view of the head together with the beak. 



It has already been mentioned that the spider will destroy 

 the Bed-Bug. There is one of its own relations, however, which 

 performs this operation much more efifectually. It is popularly 

 called the Fly-Bug, and its scientific name is Reduvius per- 

 sonatus. A rather enlarged portrait of this curious insect is 

 given on Woodcut LXVII. Fig. 3. This insect is an example 

 of the Keduviid,ie. 



The colour of the Fly-Bug is brown, sometimes blackish, 

 and sometimes with a yellowish tint. The tibise are yellow at 

 their bases, and the abdomen has a shining surface, black below, 

 but with a yellow patch in the middle above. 



The insect is sometimes found within houses, but is generally 

 taken on account of its habit of flying towards light, and so 

 entering at night windows of lighted rooms. Mr. E. A. Smith 

 tells me thai a.t Deal he found several Fly-Bugs lying dead 

 under a window-sill. Both in its perfect and preliminary 

 stages, the Fly-Bug feeds on other insects, and has such a 

 liking for the Bed-Bug that a room has been cleared of these 

 obnoxious insects by the introduction of a few Fly-Bugs. 



In its larval and j)upal states, this insect has a habit of en- 

 veloping itself in a thick coating of dust and other refuse, and 

 is so addicted to this practice that, after it has shed its skin 

 and come out all bright and clean, it has been seen deliberately 

 to take the dust coating from its shed skin and place it on its 

 new coat. The s^jecific name of jpersonatus, or disguised, has 

 been given to the insect in consequence of this habit. The 

 Eeduvius is a much more formidable enemy to the Bed-Bug 

 than the spider, for the latter has to wait for the chance of its 

 prey coming to its net, whereas the former is a hunter and 

 seeks prey for itself. An entomologist in my neighbourhood, 

 ■vvho kept a larva of the Eeduvius, found that it woidd eat 

 three or four Bugs daily, so that a few of these insects, if at 

 liberty, must cause great havoc among our ' Norfolk Howards.' 



Apart from the service which it renders, this Eeduvius is not 



