334 JAS. J. SIMPSON—ENTOMOLOGICAL 
and a canoe has to be used. Haematopota decora and H. pallidipennis were 
caught hovering around the pony, while one tick was also found on him. Around 
the town of Paiko, which stands at the base of a commanding hill, is an 
extensive fertile plain, where the Fulani graze large herds of cattle. No biting 
flies were seen, nor are there likely to be any in this district, owing to the almost 
complete absence of any form of shade. The fact that cattle live well in this 
vicinity and that horses are bred here also points to the absence of tsetse or other 
biting’ flies. 
About five miles beyond Paiko, there is a small river, where G. palpalis 
occurred in swarms ; while again before Shaku, the river Jatto or Ebba has to 
be crossed. At the latter river only Haematopota pallidipennis was found. 
Shaku is a small town at the base of a large hill. No cattle are kept here, but 
a few mares were seen. The chief, however, complained of a sickness which 
killed off the horses, and his description of the disease was extremely suggestive 
of trypanosomiasis. The only blood-sucking flies caught or seen were H. decora, 
H. pallidipennis and Tabanus sp. 
About eleven or twelve miles from Shaku is the village of Tufa, a beautiful 
small Gwari town situated on the edge of a kurimi. The road for the greater 
part of the way is through open orchard-like country and high grass. It is not 
at all improbable that G. palpalis occurs at Tufa, though none was seen. 
From Tufa to Izon is about six or seven miles. The road passes through 
long grass and several fadamas. There are small hills on all sides, but the 
road itself runs through a plain, and in the dry season is fairly good. Outside 
Izon there are numerous large farms with rice, millet, guinea-corn, beans, 
cotton, etc. The town of Izon consists of several small sub-villages, and is a 
very important centre for agricultural produce ; it is situated in the Nassarawa 
Province, on the left bank of the river Garara. The river at this part is from 
three to six feet deep in the dry season, but over twenty in the rainy season ; 
the banks are steep, and the width varies but little at the different times of the 
year, being always from forty to fifty yards. Crossing is effected in canoes. It 
is a slow-flowing stream, of which the bed and banks are composed of sand ; the 
banks are covered with dense vegetation and high shady trees. At the crossing 
itself, which is sandy, G. palpalis is abundant, as also are Tabanus gratus and 
HH, pallidipennis. Further removed from the river, G. tachinoides, H. pallidi- 
pennis and T. pertinens were caught, while in the town itself both G. palpalis 
and G. tachinoides were found; these last may, however, have followed the 
natives from the river crossing. 
As has been already mentioned, this ford is on the main Zungeru-A buja road, 
and is consequently very important. There is a continual stream of natives 
passing to and fro, and numbers may be seen at almost any hour of the day 
waiting to be transferred in the canoe. The clearing in the bush is a few yards 
in width, only sufficient for the canoe to be brought alongside for loading. High 
shady trees overhang, and tsetse swarm all around. A distance of at least 
fifty yards on each side of the actual crossing could, with little difficulty, be 
denuded of all bush and shade-trees. The same ought certainly to be done at 
the crossings of the Bako river, the river near Paiko, and the river Jatto. 
