﻿310 S. A. NEAVE — NOTES ON THE BLOOD-SUCKING 



large numbers on freshly killed game, they are not much in evidence out in the 

 bush. They seem most active in bright sunlight. 



Genus Lyperosia, Eond. 



I only met with these insects in Western Uganda. They were seen in large 

 numbers on freshly killed eland, waterbuck, kob and wart-hog in various 

 localities in Ankole and the valley of the Semliki. They would appear rarely, 

 if ever, to attack man. 



Genus Auohmeromyia, Br. and Berg. 



These flies attack man only in their larval state. They are widely known as 

 "floor maggots" and A. luteola, F., (and perhaps other species) occurs in the more 

 neglected huts in native villages throughout Tropical Africa. The adult flies 

 are sometimes to be seen on the walls of native huts, and frequently enter a 

 tent when it is pitched near a village. 



Genus Cordylobia, Griinb. 



The flies of this genus also attack man in the larval state by burrowing into 

 the skin and producing a painful boil. Dogs also suffer very badly in some 

 places from this cause, and I have seen one instance in the case of a rat, 

 probably some species of Tatera. Many instances in human beings would seem 

 to preclude the possibility of the eggs having been laid direct on the skin by 

 the parent fly, and in these cases they have probably been deposited on clothing 

 when put out to dry. 



The commonest species is C. anthropophaga, Griinb, and this seems to be 

 more abundant in Northern Rhodesia and Nyasaland than to the north. A few 

 adults of the recently described C. praegrandis, Aust., were taken in Northern 

 Rhodesia, Nyasaland and German East Africa, in the same circumstances as 

 Auch meromyia luteola. 



Family Hippoboscidae. 



The curious flies of this family are widely distributed in Tropical Africa. 

 They are not very easy to collect in any number, at least in the case of the 

 winged forms, on account of their habit of leaving the body of their host 

 immediately after death. If a large animal, such as an antelope, suspected of 

 having these parasites, be shot, the body should be approached quietly, and if no 

 disturbance is made, several of the flies can usually be netted ; but they will be 

 driven off at once if numbers of natives are allowed to rush up to the carcase 

 and stand round it, as is their usual habit. The species that frequent birds are 

 often very difficult to capture, as the flies are extremely active, and seldom seen 

 until in the act of flying away. I have often noticed that the best chance of 

 taking the flies arises when the carcase of the shot bird has fallen into water, 

 and the insects then become entangled in the wet feathers. 



The following is a brief list of the species taken on my last tour, not including 

 two or three not yet identified. 



