374 



SOME S( i' 111 INDIAN INSECTS, ETC. 



Status. — An important pest, especially of gram. 



Control. — Hand-picking is the only remedy that ran be adopted 

 as a rule. Usually spraying is useless because the caterpillars teed 

 chiefly on the seeds and do not therefore ingest sufficient of a 

 poison-spray spread over the outside of the capsule. 



Remarks, (i) The larva; are highly cannibalistic and will 

 readily eat not only one another, but other caterpillars. 



(2) A Pentatomid bug, Andrallus spinidens (see page 475) was 

 found sucking the larva on linseed at Coimbatore in February 1907. 



(3) As Meyrick points out [Trans. New Zealand Inst., XLIV, 90 

 (1911)] the generic name Heliothis may legitimately be retained by 

 those who prefer it, as the differences between Chloridea and 

 Heliothis are so small as to be negligible in practice. 



CHLORIDEA ASSULTA, (men. 



Heliothis assulta, Guenee, Noct., 11, 178 (1852). 

 Chloridea assulta, Hmpsn., 111. I let.. IX, 92, t. 176. f- 22, B.J., XV. 

 602, Cat. Phal., IV, 47, t. 55, f. 22; Lcfroy, Ind. Ins. Life, p. 4 1 4- 



I ic 236. Chloridea assulta. The small outline figure shows the natural 



Ori inal.) 



Distribution. — Coimbatore. Probably throughout all tobacco- 

 growing tracts. 



Lifehistory. — Not worked out in detail. Stages probably very 

 similar to those of Chi. obsoleta. Larva figured by Hampson (111. 

 Het.l. 



Foodplant.- Tobacco. Hampson gives Physalis peruviana. 

 Status. -Not yet noted as a pest in Southern India but it may do 

 considerable damage to tobacco. 



