PROCEEDINGS OF THE SECOND ENTOMOLOGICAL MEETING 169 
Athesapeuta oryze is another weevil, recently described by 
Dr. Marshall from specimens collected in Madras on paddy, but it is 
not common and seems to occur mostly on wild grasses. 
In addition to these insects, in Mysore we have found a Dynastine yy. Kunhi Kane 
beetle, as yet unidentified, infesting rice plants in fields with standing nan. 
water. It lives in the water, coming up to the surface at times to breathe, 
and can remain under water, after one breathing, for an interval of time 
from one minute up to twelve hours. It damages the rice plants from 
the base upwards. [Specimens were exhibited. | 
This seems to be quite a new pest with very remarkable habits for a Mr. Fletcher. 
Dynastine. I do not know of any other aquatic species of this group. 
It would be interesting to know more about it and its life-history. 
We will take next the insects found boring in the stems of the rice- 
plant. This group does not contain many insects but they are of great 
importance as pests. On my list I have :-— 
Pachydiplosis oryze. 
Schenobius bipunctifer. 
>». tummeritalis. 
Scirpophaga gilviberbis. : 
Chilo simplex. 
Sesamia nferens. 
Pachydiplosis oryz@ is a Cecidomyiad fly, hitherto called Cecidomyia 
oryz@, which seems to cccur chiefly in Madras, Orissa and Bengal. Some 
work on its lifehistorv has been done, both at Pusa and Coimbatore, 
since our last Meeting, and a coloured plate showing its life history has 
been issued. Perhaps Mr. Ghosh will tell us his experiences with this 
insect ? 
In the early part of September 1915 I went to Ranchi to investigate Mr. Ghosh. 
the disease of rice-plants caused by this Cecidomyiad fly and made 
some observations which I have incorporated in a report. Anyone 
specially interested in this pest can see the report. 
The external symptom of the disease is the growth of a long hollow 
structure in place of the main stem. This coloured plate [exhibited] 
clearly shows it. It is caused by the maggot of the fly, feeding inside the 
stem. When the gall appears the maggot has already done the damage 
and has pupated. The fly issues from the gall in the course of a few 
days and then the gall withers. There is thus an end of the career of 
the plant which does not produce any ear. 
There are some obscure points in the life-history of the fly. It is 
not definitely known where eggs are laid in nature and how the maggot 
gets inside the stem. In the Insectary I got some eggs which 
