40 
WARBLE FLY. 
METHODS OF PREVENTION AND REMEDY. 
The notes directly following refer to prevention of attack, or of 
the fly “ striking,” as it is called, by application of washes or dressings 
such as may make the coat of the animal obnoxious to the fly, or may 
destroy the vitality of the egg, or may kill the newly-hatched maggot; 
also the feeding-ground being where there is shelter—natural or 
artificial—when the fly is about, or where there is access to water. 
The following notes confirm the opinion (brought forward, I 
believe, first by Bracy Clark, and held by many writers) that the 
Warble Fly does not follow the cattle over water, consequently that allowing 
access to shalloiv pools is a great preservation from attach :— 
The first observation on these points was sent me by Mr. Henry 
Thompson, M.R.C.V.S., Aspatria, Cumberland:—“The amount of 
warbles on an animal and amount of warbled animals in a herd will 
be rather difficult to arrive at, but I would say from fifteen to twenty 
warbles on the back of each animal,—that is, grazing on lands well 
sheltered with trees ; but where there are good large ponds, and the 
animals go into the water aiid stand during the hottest part of the day, 
they are not so rife. From what I can gather, as well as from observa¬ 
tion, I find the Warble Fly will not cross any extent of water.” 
June 28th, 1884. “During the recent hot weather I have frequently 
seen my feeding bullocks suddenly gallop off, with their tails erect, and 
rush into the nearest water, where they seem to be less tormented by 
the flies.”—J. B. Scott, Sutterton Grange, near Spalding. 
“Our cattle do not suffer much, but then we have plenty of 
marshy ground close at hand, and a good deal of timber which affords 
shade.”—Prof. W. Fream, College of Agriculture, Downton (1884). 
In a communication on warble prevention sent me by Mr. B. St. 
John Ackers, of Prinknasli, Painswick, he mentioned regarding the 
cattle, “ Those that are in sheds escape entirely with me.” 
The following note, sent me by Mr. W. E. Cattley, Edderton, 
Ross-sliire, N.B., refers very specially to benefit (with one exception) 
from housing cattle as a preventive to attack:—“ A lot of three-year- 
old heifers (black polls), which had not been housed last summer 
except in bad weather, were all affected. They have now calves at 
foot. The short-horn crosses used for the dairy, which had been kept 
in at night all the summer, were clear of warbles, except a three-year- 
old, which was always in the house at night.” 
Whilst I was still resident at Sedbury Park, Gloucestershire, I 
have seen our cows going at the swinging trot that shows fly attack 
in the exposed pastures, or in the park, but I never saw this in 
