240 CHEESE-MITES AND FLIES. 



scope of a mass of cheese-mites is somewhat 

 startling. We see a confused heap of struggling 

 insects, and the idea of eating them at our next 

 repast is by no means agreeable. Still they are 

 worth examination as a type of a large class of 

 animalcules which have for their object the 

 destruction of many substances which might taint 

 the air and do harm if they were allowed to remain 

 in a state of decay. 



The Cheese-mite has an almost transparent oval 

 body tapering to a snout-like head. It can move 

 with some agility upon its eight brownish-coloured 

 legs. In sunlight this creature's globular polished 

 body shines as though it were made of crystal. 

 This mite lays eggs abundantly, and also produces 

 young alive, so this double mode of production 

 may account for the rapid increase of the colonies 

 in an ancient cheese. 



The generic term Acarus includes a large 

 number of species. There are those which, to the 

 dismay of the entomologist, are found destroying 

 his finest butterflies and moths, and reducing his 

 cherished specimens to a little heap of dust. Some 

 special kinds of mites prey upon figs, prunes, 



