GREYBACK CANE BEETLE. LEPIDODEBMA ALBOHIRTUM. 19 



On 3rd January emergence holes were observed in the soil outside 

 the cage Avhere some of the beetles had tunnelled up and escaped, and 

 five beetles were resting on the gauze inside. Dissection showed that 

 tliL'se had already laid. The next day I found another hole outside, and 

 though no more beetles had come up in the cage I decided to excavate 

 and examine for the egg-chambers. The first egg-chamber was located 

 10 inches outside the wall of the cage, 6 inches deep, and was full of 

 loose earth among the 26 eggs. We then carefully dug down to a depth 

 of about 2 feet, and gradually worked toward the area that had been 

 covered by the cage. When we got right under the wall of this, at a 

 depth of 12 inches, in hard subsoil, we discovered a great cluster of 

 eggs which was apparently four sets, very close together as if in definite 

 cells — 98 eggs in all; apparently the beetles had disturbed one another's 

 egg-chambers. The sixth set was also 12 inches deep, in the subsoil, with 

 28 eggs; the cell was filled with loose earth as usual. The seventh set 

 was 13 inches deep, against a solid piece of root, 26 eggs, the cell full of 

 earth. The eighth chamber was 15 inches deep, beside a hard root, 

 27 eggs. The ninth Avas 14 inches deep, in hard subsoil, 27 eggs. These 

 Avere all the eggs that we were able to locate ; the other beetles evidently 

 escaped or burrowed outside of the area that we dug. The average 

 number of eggs of the nine sets thus located was about 26. 



With this information we were able to work more intelligently in 

 the field. In an abandoned grub-infested field at Greenhills we dug two 

 trenches; each trench was about 4 feet wdde by 6 feet long and 2 feet 

 deep, two stools of cane being in each of these excavated areas. The 

 results were most surprising ; we found many tiny grubs of various 

 sizes up to a fortnight old, and twelve egg-chambers of the greyback 

 beetles. 



No. 1,10 inches deep and 2 feet from the stool, had 31 newdy hatched 

 grubs ; they Avere just starting to dig out of the chamber. 



No. 2, 8 inches deep, had 24 eggs in a well-formed cell, but filled 

 with loose earth ; this was also 2 feet from the stool, on the other side of 

 the row. 



Xo. 3, a well-formed chamber, 18 inches deep and directly under the 

 stool ; this cell Avas oA^al in form, 1 inch by 1^ inch in size, and fairly 

 smooth inside ; the 32 eggs Avere very large, evidently just ready to hatch, 

 and, AA'ith the loose soil, comfortably filled the chamber. 



Xo. 4 Avas also under the stool, 13 inches deep, and had 28 eggs; the 

 cell as usual Avas filled Avitli loose earth around the eggs. 



Xo. 5 was 12 inches deep, under the stool, and had 32 eggs evidently 

 about a Aveek old. 



Xo. 6, 12 inches deep, right under the stool, 23 eggs; they Avere 

 packed in with the loose soil, and were about a week old. 



Xo. 7, 8 inches deep, right under the stool, Avitli 31 ncAvly laid eggs. 



N"©. 8, 9 inches deep, under the stool, Avith 33 eggs. 



No. 9 was 18 inches beloAV the surface, under the stool, and had 

 27 ncAvly hatched grubs. 



X^o. 10, 16 inches deep, under the stool, Avith 32 eggs, about a Aveek 

 old. 



X^o. 11, 18 inches deep, one foot from the stool, Avith 23 eggs. 



Xo. 12, 9 inches deep, one foot from the stool, Avith 23 eggs. 



