Cane Fh/ of Grenada. 411 



I may also mention, as closely connected with this subject, 

 thatj at the meeting of the Society of Natural History of the 

 Island of Mauritius, on the 12th of September, 1832, a me- 

 moir was read upon the habits of another insect nearly allied 

 to the Grenada insect, termed the cercope ecumeuse {Aphror- 

 phora Goudota Bennett), found in very great quantities upon 

 trees in the island of Madagascar, the larva of which has the 

 power of emitting a considerable quantity of clear water, 

 especially in the middle of the day when the heat is greatest. 

 A farther account of this insect appears in the Proceedings 

 of the Zoological Society of London^ on January 2 2» 1833; from 

 which it is evident that, instead of remaining in a frothy 

 mantle? as with the cuckoo-spit insect, as a defence to the 

 insect, the fluid which it has pumped up from the plant into 

 its stomach is ejected in great quantities, and falls to the 

 ground in a constant and considerable shower.* 



From these circumstances, I think it can scarcely be 

 doubted that the chief injury caused by the Grenada insect 

 arises from its continually sucking the plants, f , 



The sugar cane is also attacked by other insects. In. the 

 Transactions of the Society of Arts, vol. xlvi., the late Rev. 

 Lansdowne Guild ing lias published a valuable paper, for which 

 he received the gold Ceres medal of that society. He describes 

 a very large weevil f (Caldndra palmarum) which, although 

 generally feeding upon the species of palm, will occasionally 

 attack the sugar cane; also a smaller species of the same 

 genus (C. sacchari Guild.), commonly termed " the borer §," 

 which confines its attacks to the latter plants, the larva bur- 

 rowing into and feeding within the centre of the stems of the 



Gtftfiw-riJijitntaJi ij!*£cfe c^tJe4i (< f l^fhot^l^^Q^ri>' qiF &3]pF#q 

 lideous moth (Diatrae'a sacchari Guild.), for. the destroying of 

 which a reward of 50/. was offered ^# tfefei^ieftf i&j&jjlfts 

 CKfeky and Spencej/^^dyoJnifi©n3^f)owTjbiflJm^^fftfefe 



lla Baa^'ishns'i 'iijov bne :9ail tafilq edi lo pzoilt&i islifnia 



* Mr. Bennett has informed me that he has observed that the common 



cuckoo-spit insect is capable of producing similar effects, although in a 

 much less degree?- e m9fn to 9(io j Dfljjrgn^a. ni 9TB (ainq A) 8un9g 

 j r We have several British species of JDelphax nearly allied to the Gre- 

 nada insect; but it is curious that they are here generally found among 

 grass and low herbage. I, however, have recently met with a species near 

 Cambridge, in some quantity, .upon tall reeds. 



t This is evidently " the unknown species of horned beetle " noticed 

 by Kirby and Spence. '(Introduction, vol. l. p. 183.) . .,- ; .., .*.,.:• 



§ A figure of the larva, cocoon, pupa, and imago of Catdnclm : palmarum, 

 and of those of Caldndra sacchari Guilding, with a description of the 

 habits of the two species of insect, are given in this Magazine (Vol. V. 

 p. 466-4,70.) : both the figures and description are copied from the 

 Transactions of the Society of Arts, vol. xlvi. p. 153. ^ Uw^oVjswote^L oris 



