73 
sea and anchor them in the beach coves to await shipment as is the 
usual custom. en the number of logs was greatest, abou the 
beginning of August, the presence of worm borers was repor 
Occurrence.—Enquiries amongst local timber firms and Le natives 
elicited the facts that worm borers have appeared at any rate for the 
last seven years and probably long before that, although their 
numbers and the extent of the damage done varies with the seasons. 
All are agreed, however, that the attack which began this year in 
August has been far worse than any that can be remembered. Hach 
river mouth where logs had been collected was eee to show the 
same conditions, namely, a slow river current, a sand bar, and a 
fringe of the mangrove association, and, with one eeeptid all logs 
in such localities were bored. The one exception was afforded by 
some logs anchored at a spot in the Ancobra River mouth where no 
mangrove existed. 
In former years, as now, the worms first appeared between the big 
and the small rains when the river current is sluggish and tides are 
high. In the case of those logs which were up river when the 
outbreak occurred no signs of bores were reported. Similarly those 
logs that were taken straight out to sea were found to have escaped, 
and in those that had been attacked the borers were reported to die 
on exposure to sea water, 
ey fu iti 
1 and 2. pease sections of a ee stem, showing Sites 
made edo. 
3. A Teredo measuring 29 inches long. 
4. Tangential longitudinal section of mahogany log, showing Xylotra. 
5. Transv 
6. Radial peters na section of same. 
The majority of the representatives of local iechet firms were of 
the opinion that old and new timber was attacked equally. Some, 
however, stated that old logs were attacked worse than new, whilst 
others again thought that the new only were attacked. Barked or 
unbarked timber fared equally badly, and a steam launch belonging 
to the Mengel Mahogany Company, which was built of European 
timber, had to be protected with a metal covering. 
28241 A3 
