Fleas. Hymen optera. 995 



tick, sheep louse iiy), a wingless insect similar to a louse, that 

 lives between the wool, nourishing' itself on the sweat, on the 

 wool fibers, and the blood of its host, and molesting the animal 

 by causing itching. , The sheep tick harbors in its body the 

 Critidia melophagea, a protozoon similar to the trvpanosome, 

 which has been discovered in the Pathological Anatomical In- 

 stitute in Budapest, but its transition into "the blood of the ani- 

 mal host has not been observed. To get rid of melophagi the 

 same procedure should be adopted as with lice, namely dipping 

 in tobacco decoction, decoction of walnut leaves in vinegar, solu- 

 tions of assafetida (2:100) or the use of weak creolin solutions. 

 Friedberger & Frohner recommended applications of gray mer- 

 cury ointment (3 to 4 gm.) along the back and below the neck. 

 Shearing also helps materially in getting rid of the parasite. 

 The purification of the stables and subsequent whitewashing 

 with chloride of lime is essential ; crevices in the walls especially 

 should be thoroughly cleansed and filled up. 



C. Fleas. Aphaniptera. 



Fleas occur in dogs, cats and rabbits, also in chickens and 

 pigeons, and the flea which is parasitic on man, Puplex irritans, 

 may infest the bodies of the domestic animals. The fleas also 

 which reside outside the animal body, especially in the dust 

 and clefts of the ground, settle on young and feeble animals, 

 not rarely in very large numbers and cause intense itching 

 which may lead to the development of severe dermatitis. 



Their removal is best effected by diligent care of the skin 

 and by occasional baths. In severe cases the same treatment is 

 indicated as with lice (see page 983). 



In America and Africa there lives a far more dangerous 

 flea, viz., Pulex s. Sarcopsylla penetrans, which by its bite may 

 cause violent inflammation with subsequent ulceration and 

 necrosis of the skin in men and animals. 



D. Hymenoptera. (Hautfliigler.) 



(a) Bee (Apis mellifica). In the neighborhood of bee- 

 hives animals are at times attacked by ])ees when these are 

 swarming, and they may cause death by their stings. At the 

 points of the stings the skin or mucous membrane swells, and 

 dyspnea may occur owing to the swelling of the nasal mucosa 

 and also symptoms of collapse, diarrhea, further hemoglobi- 

 nemia and jaundice (Albrecht). 



Literature. Albrecht, W. f. Tk., 1892, 241.— Funfstiick, S. B 1S8.5 75 — 

 Ganter, B. Mt., 1905, 10.— Hable, O. Vj., 1892, N. F. IV, 96.— Jaenow, Z f Vk 



1898, 22. ' fi J 



(b) Bumble-bee (Bombus terrestris). This at times at- 

 tacks horses and cattle if the nests of the insects are rooted up 



