On the behaviour and sensory physiology of the house-fly larva,Musca domesticaL. I. Feeding stage

Abstract

The reactions of the house-fly larva to four environmental factors, namely temperature, air humidity, smell and light have been studied in the Laboratory. It was hoped that the results would shed some light on the general behaviour of the larva in its normal habitat. A comprehension of this behaviour will assist in understanding the ecology of the species, and hence facilitate its control. In order to analyse the behaviour of the larva, its reactions (other than to light) were first studied in relation to one factor at a time. An attempt was then made to test experimentally its reactions to various combinations of factors.