1 905-] 



The Horse Bot Fly. 



109 



and the larvae so irritate the skin that the horse seeks relief by- 

 licking, and in this way the maggots get into the mouth and 

 finally into the stomach and intestines, to the walls of which 

 they firmly attach themselves by means of prominent mouth- 

 hooks ; there they live all through the autumn, winter, and 

 spring, and cause great irritation and inflammation. In the 

 early summer they may be found in abundance in the rectum. 

 Finally they release their hold and pass out in the dung, where 

 they pupate about June, and about a month later the imago 

 appears. 



Some observations on this insect have been made by Mr. 



Fig. i — Larva of Gastrophilus equi emerging from the Egg-case. 



Alex. Meek, M.Sc, F.Z.S., who has communicated the following 

 note on the subject to the Board. 



Specimens of the bot worm of the horse were obtained in 

 1894 from various parts of Aberdeenshire, and subsequently 

 hairs from horses with the attached eggs. These all proved to 

 belong to the species Gastrophilus equi, Fabr., and probably this 

 is the only species which attacks the horse in that part of 

 Scotland. 



The accompanying photographs show (1) the larva emerging 

 from the egg-case, and (2) the bots attached to the stomach of the 

 horse. Among many eggs which were hatched with the aid of 



