'234 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



July 25, 1908. 



INSECT NOTES. 



-"i^ffi 



Lepidoptera. 



The order Lepidoptera includes those insects known 

 as moths and butterfiies, of which so many species exist 

 in the West Indies. They may be <listinguished iVom 

 all other insects by the flattened scales which cover 

 the surfaces of their wings. The arrangement of the 

 scales, which is like that of shingles on the roof of 

 a house, may be seen, in the case of the larger speci- 

 mens, with the aid of a pocket lens, or magnifier. The 

 Lepidoptera undergo complete metamorphosis, passing 

 through all the stages of (1) egg, (2) larva or cater- 

 pillar, (3) pupa, cocoon, or chrysalis, and (4) imago or 

 adult insect. 



The mouth [larts fif the larvae of Lepidoptera are 

 adapted for biting, while in the adult insects they are so 

 modified as to fi;>rm a proboscis or tube by means of wliich 

 liquid food is sucked up. In many cases tlie adults of these 

 insects do no feeding wliatever, the whole of tlie food 

 reepured tlirougliout the life cycle being taken in )iy the 

 caterpillar, in whose body is stored up a food reserve sufficient 

 to provide energy fur transformation through the pupal 

 stage, and also for the processes of reproduction. In otlier 

 species, however, the adults feed vigorously, sucking tlie 

 nectar of fiowers, and even puncturing ripe fiuits to suck the 

 juice, and sometimes iKM-oming, in this way, the cause of 

 a consideral)le amount of damage. 



The popidar division 'of the insects of this order into 

 moths and butterflies is based on the structure of the antennae, 

 or ' feelers.' In the butterflies the antennae are kuolilied or 

 club-shaped : that is, they are slender near the head, and at the 

 end they are distinctly ffWollen. The butt.elifiies, too, generally 

 hold their wings vertically above the body when at rest, and 

 the pupa is a 'chrysalis.' The moths -have antennae of 

 various sljapes, buttheseareneverdistinctly knobbed ; the wings 

 are nothclderei-t when at rcst,and the pni)a is generally enclosed 

 in a cocrjon of silk which, by tlie way, is often very scanty. 



The order Lepidoptera includes some of the most trouble- 

 .some pe.sts attacking our crops. Among them may be men- 

 tioned , the cotton v,-orm {A/ii//aiiiit [Aletia] (uyillacea), the 

 .smaller cotton worm {A/ct/.a luridii/n), the moth borer of the 

 sugar-cane (Dintraiit .inrr/tavti/ix), the corn car worm (La- 

 lihi/iima friKjIpevila), thfe boll worm (Uellutliia o/isolcfti, 

 |armigera]), the cuiwovmi Pniildiin oriiit/idi/n/h'), the potato 

 worm (I'roloiiiiiTc dininlnta). 



These all belong t» the poimlar division known as 

 moths, and to tlie moths also belong the following, which, 

 liowever, do not attack crops directly : clothes moth, of 

 which we have, perhajis, more than iine species, grain moths, 

 bee mollis, etc. 



The frangipanni hawk moth (I'seudusphin.r tcti-io) is 

 a large grey and while moth which is .sometimes attracted to 

 the lights in lunises. The larva of this moth, which feeds on 

 the leaves of the frangipanni (]'liimevia) and yellow bell 

 flower (A/Zaiiiandn), is perhaps the largest caterjiillar in the 

 Lesser Antilles, and is more abundant in some of the otlier 

 colonies than in Barbados. 



The larger moth fcorer {Carina li'cus), a South American 

 form that occurs its far north as Trinidad, is a very large 

 insect ; the larva is a borer in the stems of sugar-cane and 

 Ijananas. ■' >■ 



'The arrowroot worm (t'ldpodca ithlimt), at times becomes 

 a pest from the severity of its attacks on arrowroot, and it is 

 ■frequently a nuisauce from its habit of attacking the leaves 

 of caniia. 



For the most part, the butterflies are not such serious 

 pests to agriculture as the moths. The arrowroot worm, 

 however, should be included among the butterflies, and there 

 is in British Guiana a butterfly {BrqssolU ■tophorae), the larva 

 of which attacks the leaves' of the cocoa-nut palm ; and in 

 Dominica, Jlontserrat, St. Kill's and Nevis, there occurs 

 a butterfly which' attacks ripe fruit. This latter species 

 {Didonia liMU) is a South America form. The larva has 

 not yet been reported to be a pest in these islands, but the 

 butterfly feeds on ripe mangos, orange.s, tangerines, etc., 

 inserting the pi-ol)Oscis into the flesh of the fruit and sucking 

 the juice. Any fruit punctured in this way falls to the 

 ground, and several reports have been received of the loss of 

 all the fruit on a tree in a very few days. Didonia biUis is 

 a very pretty insect ; the wings are glossy black, and on the 

 outer margin of tlie hind pair there is a row of Ijright red 

 spots. 



The remedies to be used in the control of the Lepi<lop- 

 tei-a must of course.be suited to their hafiits. The larvae of 

 all the species of this group have biting mouth parts : conse- 

 quently any arsenical poison (such as Paris green) would be 

 etticient if it could be placed within the reach of the cater- 

 pillar while feeding. This method is followed in treating the 

 cotton worm, and others which feed on the leaves of plants. 

 Ill the case of those insects which have the boring habit, such 

 as the moth boi-er of the sugar-cane, it is necessary to cut out 

 the part with the insect in it ; while in the case of cut worms, 

 the poisoned bait, distributed so that it is easily found by tiie 

 caterpillars, must be used. 



For the protection of rij)e fruit from the attacks of the 

 butterfly it woiild be necessary to cover the trees with 

 mosquito net, or other light cover. 



CACAO PRODUCTION IN BRAZIL. 



Now that over-production has put a check on the 

 coffee industry of Brazil, increasing attention is being 

 given to cacao cultivation in the republic. Last year 

 the production of this latter crop reached nearh' 22,400 

 tons. The United States Consul at Rio Janeiro fur- 

 nishes the following information : — 



In spite of temporary set-backs now and then, due to 

 special causes, the production of cacao in ]5razil seems to be 

 growing at a satisfactory rate, the increasing e.\])orts of the 

 product forming one of the ])roniising features of the Brazil- 

 ian agricultural and trade situation. The Governor of the 

 State of I'ara in his last message speaks of the industry as 

 being in the most flourishing condition, and the immense 

 increase in the world's dcinaml seems to be greater than the 

 increase in the AtbrUFs production. At present lirazil leads 

 in the world's prodtuition and the United States in the world's 

 consumption. 



The productive capacity of cacao in Brazil is almost 

 limitless. In PaVa and Bahia the cultivation of the crop is 

 being placed upon a scientific basis and it is probable that the 

 next few seasons will show an immense increase in Brazil'.'* 

 output. 



