SCIENCE AND INDUSTRY. 
wonderful things could be done in the way of adapting our population 
to their environment if we had better and more reliable information 
about the climatic zones of our country, about what kind of animal and 
useful plant-life could be introduced, and how we could combat noxious 
plants and weeds. He also spoke of the difficulty of making people in 
Australia understand what wonderful work had been done in the United 
States in the way of preserving fodder in ensilage. The practice is 
now a marvellous success from the Atlantic to the Pacific. Professor 
David expressed the hope that the University of Queensland would keep 
the teaching of both geography and geology in close touch with the 
survey work of the Lands Department, with forestry work, and with 
farm experimental work. For defence work the thorough study of 
physical geography was of the greatest national value. 
BLOW-FLY EXPERIMENTS. 
Experiments being carried out by the New South Wales Government 
in co-operation with the Institute of Science and Industry into the 
blow-fly pest in the pastoral areas have progressed sufficiently far to 
indicate valuable lines of investigation. | Writing ‘to the Institute 
recently, Professor J. Douglas Stewart mentioned that he had just 
visited the new experimental station at Warrah, near Quirindi, which 
had been established to test in a practical manner the results obtained 
by Mr. W. W. Froggatt at Moree. These preliminary inquiries went 
to show that the blow-fly could be suppressed by destruction of its breed- 
ing places and the trapping of adults. At Warrah, therefore, a rect- 
angular area has been selected, approximately 5 miles by 8 miles, and 
comprising about 10,500 acres of alluvial plain and timbered ridge 
country. <A creek runs through the property. Throughout the area 
about 100 traps have been set out about half-a-mile apart, each being 
numbered. The traps are to be inspected once a week, and the catch 
recorded. Meteorological records will be kept, as well as, for the pur- 
pose of comparison, records of the prevalence of the blow-fly in adjoining 
areas. Owing to the prevailing drought the experimental area is now 
but lightly stocked with sheep, and consequently the destruction of 
existing offal, carcasses, &e., should be effectively carried out by the 
assistant in charge, while the spraying with arsenical solution of recent 
carcasses will, in the opinion of Mr. Froggatt, cause them to become 
auxiliary fly-traps, and also prevent flies breeding in them. Should 
this test prove successful and the cost not prohibitive it will be possible 
for the stock-owners, by adopting similar methods, to avoid the hand- 
ling, crutching, and treatment of sheep during the fly seasons, and thus 
effect a considerable saving in time, labour, and expense. 
BREEDING CHALCID WASPS. 
Such scientific research as was carried out at Moree did not indicate 
the possibility of any easy way being discovered to effectively deal with 
the blow-fly pest, such as dissemination by disease artificially distri- 
buted. The chaleid wasp, however, was bred in large numbers there, 
and has been widely distributed. The accruing benefits as an auxiliary 
means of suppression are favorably reported on from many centres. 
The breeding of the wasp has now been transferred to the State Experi- 
mental Farm at Glenfield, near Sydney. Unfortunately, owing to the 
462 
