APPLE LEAVES, APHIS ATTENDANTS — HONEY-DEW FLY. 65 



upon the backs of the lice, its feet at this time moving with in- 

 credible rapidity, corresponding exactly with those of a dog when 

 eagerly occupied in digging open the hole of a woodchuck ; at 

 the same time the lips at the end of its beak are held down be- 

 tween its fore feet, instantly sucking dry every particle of honey 

 dew which the lice, having their backs thus briskly irritated, in- 

 continently spirt out. -Thus in a moment the fly runs about over 

 the backs of the whole flock, milking every one of them " dry," 

 as a dairyman would express it, and filling himself with the de- 

 licious sweet. But rapid as the fly is in doing this work, he 

 finishes it none too soon for his own safety, for any aat that is 

 near by, from a cry or some other signal given by the lice, seems 

 immediately to know that a thief has broken in among the flock, 

 and with his utmost speed hastens to the spot. As soon as the 

 ant approaches the fly takes to , his heels, as if aware he might 

 come off minus a leg or a wing if he allowed the enraged aat 

 to grapple him. And the ant now with his antennae gently 

 strokes tlie backs of the aphides, as if soothing them after such 

 rude treatment, and assuring them of his future watchfulness and 

 protection. 



This fly pertains to the genus Tefhritis, in the Ortalidan group 

 of two-winged flies (Family Muscid^, Order Diptesa). Though 

 of the same size it is clearly a different species from the Tephritis 

 4-fasciata of Macquart (Exotic Diptera, ii. 226), and also from 

 his Z-maculata, two species which inhabit our southern States. 

 It may be named the Honey-dew fly, or the Honey-dew Tephritis, 

 (T. melliginis.) 



It measures about 23 to the tip of its abdomen and 0.28 to the end of its wings. 

 It is polished and shining, its head black, the orbits of the eyes margined above with 

 white ; the thorax is dark green and the aibdomen greenish black ; the under side of 

 the abdomen, when distended, is of a dull reddish or yellowish brown color and 

 somewhat hyaline, with a broad black stripe in the middle, which is interrupted at 

 the sutures; 'the legs are black, the basal joint of the feet dull yellow ; the wings are 

 perfectly colorless and pellucid, and are crossed upon the disk by three black bands, 

 which are narrower than the intervening spaces; the middle and inner of these bands 

 are oblique and shorter, not reaching the inner margin of the wing, and the inner one 

 is broadly dilated towards its anterior ead, which dilation is extended along the 

 margin of the wing to its base. The outer one of these three discoidal bands is con- 

 iSnent at its anterior end with a fourth band which is situated upon the anterior 



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