66 REPORT OF THE AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH INSTITUTE 



Fruit-flies have been reared in large numbers — in 

 thousands in some cases — from various fruits in order to 

 procure parasites and to ascertain the proportion parasi- 

 tized. In the case of Bactrocera cucurbitce the results 

 have been disappointing as parasites were very few and 

 it is perhaps owing to this fact that this fruit-fly does so 

 much damage to cucurbitaceous vegetables. Only in one 

 lot of fruits of Momordica charantia were the maggots 

 found to be attacked by a Braconid parasite to the extent 

 of about 16 per cent., and even this parasite was not found 

 to be present throughout the year. The peach-flies 

 (Bactrocera zonata) showed an insignificant percentage of 

 parasitism and the parasitic grubs were observed to remain 

 in a resting condition throughout the remainder of the year. 



Carpomyia vesuviana was reared from fruits of Ber 

 (Zizyphus jujuba) and was found to be extensively para- 

 sitized. Attempts will be made, at the request of the Royal 

 School of Agriculture at Portici, to introduce this parasite 

 into Italy, whence this fruit-fly was originally described 

 its specific name being derived from the fact that the 

 original specimens were taken on the slopes of Mount 

 Vesuvius. The flies remain in the pupal state for some 

 time, from about February to June or later, but the para- 

 sites emerge about March and probably have an alternative 

 host. 



In order to test the effect of poisoned sprays on fruit- 

 flies long series of flies reared in the insectary were fed 

 with a solution composed of Lead Arsenate 2\ to 5 oz., guv 

 2J lb. and water 4 gallons, and it was found that a strength 

 of 3 to 5 oz. of Lead Arsenate kills the flies in about 36 

 hours. 



A Braconid parasite of Diacrisia obliqua was bred for 

 a generation to note its life-cycle and rate of increase and 

 some work was also done on an Ichneumonid parasite of 

 Spodoptera mauritia. 



Odontotomies assmuthi, the largest of the five Termites 

 known to occur at Pusa, has been under observation for 

 the last four years. From the emergence of adults which 



