266 



THE AGRICULTUItAL NEWS. 



August 13, 1904. 



INSECT NOTES. 



The Cotton Leaf-blister Mite. 



The cotton leaf-UisttT mite fir.st c;uiie to the notice of 

 this Department in July 1903, when affected leaves were 

 sent from ]Montserrat. In September so much damage wa.s 

 being done in that island liy this pest that the Entomologist 

 was sent to investigate and report. At the same time the 

 mite was noticed in St. Kitt's and St. Lucia, and since 

 that time it has apjieavcd in Anguilla, Nevis, Dominica, 

 St. Vincent, and Carriacou. It is, howe^•er, now known that 

 the peasants of Carriacou and St. Lucia have long Iseen 

 familiar with tlie peculiar ajjpearance of the cotton leaves 

 which indicates the jiresence of the mite, but it had not lieen 

 cc■n^idercd a serious i)est. 



The etlects of its attack on Sea Island cotton have been 

 serious, and the croj) of 1903 was undoubtedly much reduced 

 on account of its ravages. 



Experiments have been tried in combating the leaf- 

 blister mite, and as this pest will probably be even more 

 widely spread this year than last, it is hoped that all cotton 

 growers will maintain a sharp look-out for its first appearance 

 and apply remedies at once. 



Hand picking of the infested leaves and pulling out and 

 burning badly infested plants have been tried, and careful 

 experiments have been carried on at !Montserrat to test the 

 efHciency of several insecticides, of whicli the following is 

 a list : Lime and sulijhur, sulphur and water, lime and 

 sulphur wash, crude Barbados oil and whale oil soap, whale 

 oil soap, and kerosene emulsion. One series of experiments 

 was begun in Septendier at Dagenham estate, one soon after 

 at Gro^e Station, and another in January at Dagenham. 

 Jlention of these exi)eriments will be found in the We»i 

 Indian BvUetin (Vol. IV, pp. 285,337) and the AgrimUuml 

 News (Vol. II, pp. 309,378 ; Vol. Ill, pp. 42,-53 and 154). 



So far the exi)erimental work has indicated that the 

 leaf-blister mite can be controlled by the use of sulphur. 

 This can best be applied dry in a mixture with lime, in eipial 

 parts, in the manner recommended for the use of Paris green 

 fi>r the cotton worm. The first ajiiilication of this mixture 

 should 1)6 made when the jilants are about three weeks old, 

 and subsequent applications at intervals of two weeks. 



As the most serious aspect of the injury by the leaf- 

 blister mite is its habit of infesting the young buds, it is 

 necessary to get the sulphur and lime dust upon the stems 

 and buds as well as upon the leaves. 



Any plants that have become seriou.sly infested should be 

 taken out and burned. No wild cotton should lie allowed to 

 grow near a field of Sea Island cotton as it is now known that 

 wild cotton is sometimes attacked by the leaf-blister mite. 

 Weeds should be kept down and the cotton plants given 

 every chance to make vigorous growth. 



These recommendations are based on one year's exiieri- 

 ence with the leaf-blister mite. It is probable that further 

 knowledge will make it [lossible to employ better and more 

 economical means against this pest, but for the present the 

 utmost care is necessary to accomplish as nuich as possible 

 witli the information already available. 



The Fiddler Beetle of the Orange. 



Specimens of the fiddler beetle have recently been 

 received from Jfr. John Barclay, Secretary of the Jamaica 

 Agricultural Society. This insect, which is technically 

 known as PraijioJes vittatus, is one of the snout beetles and 

 is closely related to the lady-l>ird borer of the sugar-cane 

 (Diaprej^es ahbrcviafus), and the golden weevil of St. Vincent 

 {Diaprepes speiir/leri). 



These belong to that large family of beetles which have 

 the front of the head jirolonged into a snout or beak. There 

 are many species in the tropics, most, if not all, of which are 

 injurious to vegetation in both larval and adult forms. In 

 the Bullcfin of the Depiartment of Jr/rlciilture, Jamaica, 

 Novemlier 1903, p. 249, Mr. E. Stuart Fanton gives an 

 account of the life-history and habits of the fiddler beetle as 

 well as figures of the larva and male and female adults. This 

 insect is a pest of the orange, and mush damage has been 

 attributed to it in the orange cultivations of Jamaica. The 

 larva feeds on the orange root, while the adult feeds on the 

 leaves and fruit. The damage by the larvae is much more 

 severe than that done by the adults. 



The male is black with two bright-red longitudinal 

 stripes on the wing cover.s, and between these a white stripe 

 down the middle of the back. The female is generally more 

 or less covered with whitish scales, which make the longi- 

 tudinal stripes less conspicuous. The male is about J inch 

 and the female about ^ inch in length. 



Following the article on the fiddler beetle is one, 

 also accompanied by figures, on the black wasp (Elis atrata) 

 which is [iredaceous on the grub of the beetle. This wasp 

 was mentioned in the Agricultural ifeics (Vol. II, p. 244), 

 and is closel)" related to a wasp which is very common in 

 Barbados, viz., Dielis dorsata. 



The lady-bird borer of the cane {Diapirepjcs ahbreviatuf) 

 is the suliject of a paper in the West Indian Bulletin 

 (A'ol. IV, p. 37), which gives the life-history of this insect in 

 detail, but does not mention any food of the adult, which is 

 slightly smaller than the fiddler beetle. An added note 

 however, mentions that the adult causes serious injury to the 

 guava in Porto Rico. 



This is a greenish-white insect with pale-brown longitu- 

 dinal stripes on the wing covers. Diaprepes s^jeHf/Zerj is 

 about the size of D. ahbreuiatus, but the colour is a bright 

 golden-yellow in fresh sisecimens, and a dull greyish-white 

 when the golden-yellow scales have been rubbed oft". The 

 longitudinal strii)es are dark reddish-brown. The adult 

 feeds on a variety of plants, among which are the leaves of 

 citrus trees, cabbages, etc. (See Agricultural News, Vol. II, 

 II. 280; Vol. Ill, p. 203.) 



No record is at hand of the food of the larva of the 

 golden wee\il, but it is probably a root feeder. 



EGGS AND POULTRY IN BERMUDA. 



The imports of eggs and poultry seem to be inexplicable 

 considering the ease with which poultry can be raised here. 

 In 1902 there were imported in eggs alone .some 88,000 worth 

 and poultry in iiroportion, and this was done even with 

 a duty on eggs, recently impo.sed, of 6c. jier dozen. The 

 price of this commodity never goes below 30c. per dozen 

 and that for a short time only, soon rising to 50c. or 60c. per 

 dozen. It would seem that here is an ojiportunity for some 

 skilled and enterprising man to establish a jiaying business. 



I am continually receiving letters asking for information 

 as to business conditions in this market and will be glad to 

 give details as to a poultry farm to anyone who may desire 

 it. (U. S. Consular Rejiorts, March 1904.) 



