130 Mosquitoes 



fact the early recognition of which is evidenced by these 

 well-known lines of Swift : 



' So naturalists observe, a flea 

 Has smaller that upon him prey ; 

 And these have smaller still to bite 'em, 

 And so proceed ad infinitum' 



Of which a more popular alliterative and generalised 

 version is : 



' Big bugs have little bugs 



Upon their backs to bite 'em; 

 And little bugs have lesser bugs 

 And so ad infinitum .' 



" Mosquitoes are not exempt, but, like the rest of the 

 insect world, must needs fight for their lives. 



" Among the most important enemies with which the 

 mosquito must contend are the following, named in the 

 order of their importance : fishes, birds, predaceous in- 

 sects (including certain mosquito larva?), reptiles, crus- 

 taceans, and certain lower forms of animal and plant life, 

 as hydra, infusoria, and fungi. Many species of fish 

 devour mosquitoes in the egg, larval, pupal, and adult 

 stages (in the last stage just as the adult emerges, or 

 during the oviposition period). This gustatory election 

 is not common to all species of fish, which accounts for 

 the apparent contradictions that appear in communica- 

 tions from different observers in various parts of the 

 world respecting their mosquito-destroying efficiency. 

 Capt. James asserts that he found fish constantly in com- 

 pany with culicid larvae in the rice fields of southern 

 India. Col. Giles, on the other hand, declares that in 

 northern India he never met with fish and larvae of 

 Culicidae in company. Nuttall, in England, claims to 



