THE HOUSE FLY.^ 



CONTENTS. 



Kinds of flies found in houses 



Where the tnie house fly lays its eggs 

 How the house fly passes the winter. 

 Carriage of disease by the house fly . . . 

 Natural enemies of the house fly 



Page. 

 3 



5 



7 



Page. 



Control measures n 



Preventive measures 13 



What commimities can do to eliminate the 

 house fly 23 



KINDS OF FLIES FOUND IN HOUSES. 



SEVERAL species of flies are found commonly in houses. Some 

 of them so closely resemble the true house fly that it requires 

 very careful observation to distinguish them from it. 



One of these is the biting stable fly (fig. 1). It occurs frequently 

 in houses and differs from the house fly in the important particular 

 that its mouth parts are formed for 

 piercing the skin. This fly is so often 

 mistaken for the house fly that most 

 people think that the house fly can bite. 



Another frequent visitant of houses, 

 particularly in the spring and fall, is the 

 cluster fly.^ It is somew^hat larger than 

 the house fly, and is distinguished by its 

 covering of fine yellowish hairs. Occa- 

 sionally this fly occurs in houses in such 

 numbers as to cause great annoyance- 

 It gets its name of "cluster fly" from its 

 habit of coUecting in compact groups or 

 clusters in protected corners during 

 cold periods. In the maggot stage it 

 is parasitic on certain angleworms, especially a common greenish 

 colwed earthworm. 



Another species, which ahnost exactly resembles the house fly, is 

 the stable fly shown in figure 2. It does not bite as does the biting 

 stable fly. It breeds in decaying vegetable matter and in excrement. 



Several species of metallic greenish or bluish flies also are found 

 occasionally in houses. These include the blowfly or meat fl}",^ the 

 blue-bottle (fig. 3) and the green-bottle (fig. 4) flies. They breed in 

 decajang animal matter. 



There is stiU another species, smaUer than any of those so far men- 

 tioned, w^hich is sometimes called the "lesser housefly."* A related 



Fig. 1.— The stable fly or biting house fly 

 (Stomoxys calcitrans). Much enlarged. 



Musca domestic^ h, ^ Polknia rwdw Fab. ' Calliphora erythrocephala Meig. 



' Fannia canicularU L. 



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