INVESTIGATIONS IN INDIA. 17 



on this island, and the fruit produced is inferior in size and quality. 

 When picked, the rind is perfectly green, although the flesh may be 

 fully matured. This failure of the fruit to color — a condition noticed 

 in other countries lying near the equator — is doubtless attributable 

 to the excessive dampness of a tropical climate. 



The orange trees examined on this island were found entirely free 

 of the citrus white fly. Through the kindness of Dr. E. E. Green, 

 Government Entomologist, his extensive collection of Aleyrodidse 

 from all parts of Ceylon was e?camined, but without evidence of 

 the citrus white fly. When we consider the above data it does not 

 seem at all likely that the citrus white fly occurs in Ceylon. 



INVESTIGATIONS IN INDIA. 



General. 



The journey was continued from Ceylon to India, which was 

 entered at Tutucorin, the southernmost seaport of imi)ortance. 

 Thence the writer proceeded by rail to Calcutta, his object in visiting 

 this city being to obtain all possible information as to the distribu- 

 tion of citrus trees throughout the Indian Empire. Calcutta is the 

 one cit}^ which the naturalist seeking information about this country 

 will first desire to reach. In addition to the natural advantages' 

 resulting from the fact that it has been the headquarters of the Gov- 

 ernment and that it is the largest city with very much the largest 

 white population of any Indian city, it contains the Indian Museum, 

 the largest if not the oldest institution of its kind in the Orient. 

 This buUding is especially rich in natural history material. Many 

 investigators are employed at this Government institution for research 

 work and to classify and bring to the notice of the public information 

 on the natural history and resources of this great yet little known 

 country. 



Through the kindness of Dr. F. Anondale, Director of the Indian 

 Museum, access was had to the entomological collections contained 

 therein. An exammation of material of the family Aleyrodidse 

 brought to light some severely infested orange leaves which were 

 labeled as collected in the northwestern Himalayas about 1893, it 

 being stated on the label that duplicate material had been sent to 

 WUliam Maskell, the late eminent entomologist of the New Zealand 

 Institute. It happened that about 1894-95 MaskeU described a new 

 species of Aleyrodes as occurring on orange in the northwestern 

 Himalayas, calling it Aleyrodes aurantii. Hence it was at once evi- 

 dent that the material found in the Indian Museum was identical 

 with the Aleyrodes aurantii of MaskeU. Prof. Quaintance, of the 

 Bureau of Entomology, in examining the Maskell collection, came to the 

 conclusion that the Aleyrodes aurantii of Maskell was the same species 

 as Aleyrodes citri R. & H., the citrus white fly of Florida. The writer's 



