BITING FLIES 



379 



Horseflies, or "Gadflies" {Tabanidce) 

 Horses and cattle, and often other animals as well, are persecuted 

 by various species of large, two-winged flies, which alight on the head, 

 neck, back, or flanks, and torment the animals by piercing the skin and 

 sucking the blood. The pests are capable of causing noticeable loss of 

 flesh, not to mention the unpleasant effects on the animal's disposition. 

 These flies have no connection with the bots or grubs found in the 

 stomach of the horse or under the skin of the back of cattle. Their 

 sole injury is that caused by their bites. Their young live in pools 

 or running streams, and their eggs are laid on leaves or twigs over- 

 hanging the water. 



Various oils may be applied to the animals, to drive away the flies. 

 One method is to spray them with kerosene emulsion, diluting the 

 stock with 10 parts of water. 



The Horn-fly {Lyperosia irritans Linn., formerly Hcematobia serrata) 

 The horn-fly is a biting insect about the size of a common house fly 



but more slender, and injures cattle by swarming on them in large 



numbers, biting and annoying 



them severely. The fly gets its 



name from its habit of resting 



in clusters around the base of 



the horns, where it cannot be 



dislodged by its host. It does 



not feed at this point particu- 

 larly, but rather on the flanks, 



bellj^, and wherever opportunity 



offers. 



There are several generations 



annually. The larva is a small maggot, and lives in moist, fresh dung. 

 If all dung is collected frequently and spread out to dry, the maggots 



will be killed. Cattle may be protected by repellents, among which 



fish oil or train oil is the best. Kerosene emulsion, applied with a 



spray pump, will kill such flies as it hits, and will give protection for 



two or three days. 



606. — The Horn-fly. Enlarged and 

 natural size. Original. 



