The Feeding Habits of Glossina swynnertoni Austen

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Abstract
This tsetse fly was studied in its own habitat. It took 1-10 minutes to take a complete feed, but the majority fed in 1 -3 minutes, on a man or on a calf. Primary excretion, the concentration of the blood meal by the elimination of watery fluid, normally began while feeding was still in progress. Immediately after feeding flight speed was only 3-4 miles per hour, probably only one fifth of what it was before. When offered a choice, more flies fed on a shaded bait than on one in full sun. The interval between feeds was determined by marking flies on engorgement and recapturing them at the next feed. The interval varied from 1 to 15 or more days in males and from 1 to 8 days in females. The mean interval in males was 4 days in April (end of wet season), 4 1/2 in June (early dry season, cool), 4 in July and 3 1/2 in October (late dry season, hot). In females it was 3 days in April (singificantly less than in males) and 5 in July (significantly more than in males).