Results 
Analysis of our material and the data of other authors who investigated daytime 
shelters in the steppe zone of the USSR, indicates that places of shelter are found in 
grassy vegetation, Our observations, during the course of a day, indicated that 
isolated cofllections of biting midges (caught with cochineal?) in the grass and in 
day time hours cannot serve as examples of their numbers, since in the period before 
attack activity the collections of biting midges on such sites,but with animals,were 
already very numerous An analogous phenomenon was noted in Karely (V.M. Gluchova, 1962). 
(sually authors write about daytime shelter of biting midges, however in the night time 
hours biting midges most often are not active,or hardly active and grassy cover serves 
then as shelter during the night. According to V. M. Gluchova's (1956) around the clock 
calculation of biting midges from horses with application of sticky (7%) to the 
feet showed the influence of attack, by way of crawling, as much in full darkness as , 
by moonlight. Attack in darkness was noted as well by I.S. Amosova (1956). It follows 
from that that at night and during the day miting midges conceal themselves in grassy 
cover which is not very high in the steppe zone. For this layer of vegetation, a sharp 
daily fluctuation of both temperature and dampness is characteristic. From the emerging 
dew, dampness is always very high on the grass but it is sharply lowered in the ground 
which is Strongly insulated, Consequently, in the conditions of the steppe zones of the 
\kraine in the period of absence of activity, there exist methods of transmitting tne sharp 
fluctuation of temperature and dampness. It may be supposed that in steppe species, 
the capacity of transmitting sharp overfalls of moisture, spiracular indéx is shown 
tobe extremely low. 
All the observed places of shelter belong to natural stages. But in separate works 
(Sh, M. Muradov, 1966; N.S. Zhuk, 1967; P.A. Petrischeva, 1962; A. K. Shevchenko, 1971) 
| point out such places of day time shelter as rodent burrows, bird nests, animal breeding 
| stations. This question demands very detailed study. However, it is impossible to 
| exclude the fact that in these biotopes, biting midges may fly far away for food on 
| 
‘}animals and birds. Examination of animal breeding stations, dwellings and part 
artificial nests allowed us to establish that in the steppe conditions of the Ukraine 
they do not appear to be places of day time shelter. If animal breeding stations were 
| free from animals in the summer, then biting midges there, despite thoroughness and 
‘fon-momentary searches, were not encountered. On those farms where animals are 
found in the summer in lodgings, biting midges are only encountered = where 
Windows were glazed, since, after being saturated with blood, biting midges usually 
‘fly away through open windows. The location of biting 
midges in human dwellings is linked, as has been shown with their attraction towel one. 
| In uninhabited bird nests , there also were no biting midges. All this leads to the 
| conclusion that places of shelter of biting midges serve only as natural stages 
and finding them in animal dwellings and human habitations appears to be a result of 
their attraction to prey or to light. 
Conclusions 
1. The study of daytime shelter of biting midges and analysis of the literature in 
regard to this question showed that in the steppe zone, in particular within the borders 
of the Donetsk region, places of daytime cover of these blood Suckers in unfavorable 
Periods of the day appear to be grassy and, rarely, bushy vegetation, 
oe Adult biting midges in the period of absence of activity may reflect 
yore fluctuation of temperature and moisture, characteristic of the steppe zone of the 
kraine, 
3, The conclusions of a series of authors that animal stations and dwelling 
places serve as daytime shelter places for biting midges , appear to us to be 
tistaken, Careful study in the steppe zone of the Ukraine indicated that biting midges either 
penetrate lodgings to parasitize animals,or accompany these animals from the pasture, or 
ly toward electric light. 
