hrysomya megacephala (F.), like many blowfly species, utilizes discrete and ephemeral resources such as decomposing carrion for feeding and egg laying. The spatial context in which exploitative competition takes place in C. megacephala is characterized by two populations: dispersing adult individuals, and immatures that are laid in clutches on the substrate by adult females. Aspects of the life-history associated with larval competition for food in experimental populations of C. megacephala, including individual oviposition behavior and minimum weight for larvae to become pupae were investigated. Results indicated that females may lay only a portion of their eggs at a time, as opposed to the previous held notion that the female C. megacephala deposits its eggs at once. The percentage of eggs hatched was ca. 90 %, and the critical weight for pupation was 30 - 32 mg.
