20 FLIES FOUND IN HOUSES 



Flies very closely resembling the honse-Jly. 



Hewitt (1910, p. 352) states that "in India two species of 

 flies closely allied to M. domestica are found — Musca doinestica 

 sub-sp. determinata Walker and M. enteniata, both of which, on 

 account of their close resemblance to M. domestica and the 

 similarity of their breeding habits, are frequently mistaken for it. 



(i) M. domestica sub-sp. determinata Walker. 



" This Indian variety of the house-fly was first described by 

 Walker (1856) from the East Indies. His description is as 

 follows : 



' Black, with a hoary covering ; head witli a white covering ; frontalia broad, 

 black, narrower towards the feelers ; eyes bare ; palpi and feelers black ; chest with 

 four black stripes ; abdomen cinereous, with a large tawny spot at each side at the 

 base ; legs black ; wings slightly grey, with a tawny tinge at the base ; prsebranchial 

 vein forming a very obtuse angle at its flexure, very slightly bent inwards from thence 

 to the tip ; lower cross vein almost straight ; alula whitish, with pale yellow borders; 

 halteres tawny.' 



" In appearance and size it is very similar to M. domestica. 

 Its breeding habits are also very similar. Aldridge (1904) states 

 that at certain seasons of the year it is present in enormous 

 numbers. The method of disposal of night-soil is to bury it in 

 trenches about one foot or less in depth. From one-sixth of a 

 cubic foot of soil taken from a trench at Meerut and placed in 

 a cage 4042 flies were hatched. Lieut. Dwyer collected 500 

 from a cage covering three square feet of a trench at Mhow. 

 Specimens in the British Museum collection were obtained from 

 the hospital kitchens, and Smith found them in a ward at 

 Benares." 



(2) Miisca enteniata Bigot. 



This fly has a distribution somewhat similar to the last 

 species, and like it has a marked resemblance to M. domestiea. 



Bigot (1887) says the frons is narrow but the eyes are well separated ; antennre 

 and palps black; face white ; thorax black with large longitudinal grey bands; sides 

 greyish. Abdomen yellow with a dorsal black band ; feet black. Fourth longitudinal 

 vein bent with slightly rounded angle. 



