REPORT OF THE STATE ENTOMOLOGIST IQI12 7 
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QUEEN BLOW, FLY 
Phormia regina Meign. 
A study of the queen blow fly was undertaken for the purpose of 
obtaining data which could be used as a basis for estimating the 
period a human body had lain exposed to the elements in midsum- 
mer. We found so little definite in available literature concerning 
the biology of the blow fly, and especially the duration of the various 
stages, that it was necessary to work out the life history before 
attempting a moderately accurate estimate of the age of certain 
maggots taken from the corpse. It was supposed at the inception 
of the work that the so-called common blow fly, Calliphora 
erythrocephala Meign. was the more prevalent species at 
Nassau, the place where these investigations were conducted. Our 
experiments resulted in rearing only the above named species, 
kindly determined by Mr C. W. Johnson of the Boston Society of 
Natural History, and a flesh fly, which latter will be discussed 
subsequently. There seems to be comparatively little known con- 
cerning this blow fly. Mr G. N. Hough records this species as 
very common everywhere in this country, though it appears to be 
rare in Europe. Aldrich lists it from such widely separated local- 
ities as New Jersey, Montreal and New Mexico. It is worthy of 
note in this connection that Mr J. H. Paine reared this species in 
larger numbers from city garbage in Boston, Mass., than either 
the common house fly or the bluebottle fly, Lucilia sericata, 
though it should be noted that Phormia was present in fewer lots 
and that by far the most came from one lot, concerning which there 
seems to be no special record except that no house flies were 
obtained and the material was collected in August. 
Methods. The head of a recently killed calf was procured about 
6 p. m. August Ist, and on account of the low temperature pre- 
vailing for that season, no ova were deposited upon the head that 
evening. It was exposed throughout the next day which was mod- 
erately cool, in a place protected from larger animals, and at 
5 p. m. there were hundreds of eggs about the mouth and in the 
hair at the base of the horns. Several flies were observed in the 
immediate vicinity. This was the source of the material upon 
which the following notes are based, since flying insects were ex- 
cluded after this primary infestation. Observations were made and 
material collected about 7 a. m. and 6 p. m. during most of the 
