FLIES AND OTHER HOUSEHOLD INSECTS 



41 



straightening with a quick muscular action. The maggots of this 

 insect are likely to occur on cheese, particularly that which has 

 been kept for some time, and also upon ham. This species has 

 proved to be a serious pest in some packing houses. It is more 

 or less abundant about cheese factories. 



This little pest can be best controlled by storing products likely 

 to be injured, in a dark place. Scrupulous cleanliness is a most 

 efficient preventive. Rubbing daily the bandages and sides of 

 cheese, in hot weather, has been recommended for the purpose of 

 destroying or brushing off eggs. The cheese may be washed with 

 hot whey or with lye, the latter acting as a repellent. Smoked 



Fig. 23 Cheese skipper: a, maggot or larva; b, puparium; c, pupa; d, male fly; e, 

 female; all enlarged. (After Howard, U. S. Dep't Agric. Div. Ent. Bui. 4. n. s. 1896) 



meats should be put in places inaccessible to the flies. A fine 

 screen, 24 to the inch wire mesh, effectively excludes this little 

 insect. 



Cheese or meat infested by skippers is not necessarily ruined, 

 since the injured parts can be cut out and the remainder used as 

 food. 



Cereal and seed pests 



A number of these insects are likely to occur in houses and, on 

 account of their somewhat similar habits, they are discussed under 



