﻿52 
  PROCEEDINGS 
  OF 
  THE 
  FOUKTH 
  ENTOMOLOGICAL 
  MEETING 
  

  

  is 
  devoted 
  to 
  show 
  the 
  periodicity 
  of 
  the 
  chief 
  pests 
  of 
  the 
  paddy 
  crop 
  

   alone, 
  this 
  being 
  the 
  most 
  important 
  staple 
  food 
  crop 
  of 
  the 
  province 
  

   and 
  grown 
  over 
  a 
  greater 
  area 
  than 
  others. 
  This 
  diagram 
  (Plate 
  VII) 
  

   represents 
  nine 
  concentric 
  circles 
  divided 
  of! 
  into 
  twelve 
  parts 
  to 
  

   show 
  the 
  months 
  of 
  the 
  year. 
  The 
  idea 
  is 
  to 
  represent 
  the 
  periodical 
  

   occm:rence 
  of 
  about 
  ten 
  important 
  paddy 
  insects, 
  which 
  I 
  have 
  

   selected 
  during 
  the 
  months 
  of 
  the 
  year 
  ; 
  each 
  insect 
  is 
  allotted 
  

   one 
  of 
  the 
  nine 
  circles 
  and 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  its 
  appearance 
  shaded 
  within 
  

   its 
  orbit. 
  It 
  may 
  be 
  stated 
  at 
  the 
  outset 
  that 
  stray 
  examples 
  of 
  

   almost 
  all 
  the 
  common 
  insects 
  affecting 
  paddy 
  are 
  generally 
  found 
  

   here 
  and 
  there 
  throughout 
  the 
  year, 
  but 
  in 
  every 
  tract 
  there 
  is 
  a 
  

   particular 
  season 
  at 
  which 
  each 
  insect 
  often 
  assumes 
  pest 
  proportions 
  ; 
  

   and 
  it 
  is 
  that 
  particular 
  period 
  or 
  periods 
  of 
  the 
  year 
  that 
  I 
  have 
  

   attempted 
  to 
  indicate 
  in 
  the 
  diagram. 
  ' 
  A 
  casual 
  glance 
  at 
  the 
  diagram 
  

   apparently 
  shows 
  that 
  the 
  paddy 
  entomologist 
  in 
  Madras 
  has 
  work 
  

   all 
  through 
  the 
  year, 
  but 
  his 
  busiest 
  time 
  appears 
  to 
  be 
  from 
  Septem- 
  

   ber 
  on 
  to 
  February. 
  Just 
  a 
  word 
  or 
  two 
  to 
  supplement 
  the 
  information 
  

   that 
  may 
  be 
  gathered 
  from 
  the 
  diagram 
  itself, 
  may 
  not 
  be 
  out 
  of 
  place 
  

   here. 
  The 
  swarming 
  caterpillar 
  (Spodoptera 
  mauritia) 
  which 
  is 
  allotted 
  

   the 
  outermost 
  circle 
  in 
  diagram 
  No. 
  1 
  appears 
  twice 
  in 
  the 
  Northern 
  

   Circars, 
  viz., 
  at 
  the 
  beginning 
  of 
  each 
  crop 
  in 
  June- 
  July 
  and 
  January 
  

   February, 
  and 
  often 
  causes 
  considerable 
  damage 
  to 
  the 
  nurseries. 
  The 
  

   next 
  important 
  tract 
  where 
  it 
  is 
  found 
  is 
  along 
  the 
  West 
  Coast 
  where 
  it 
  

   appears 
  just 
  before 
  the 
  South-west 
  monsoon 
  Rains 
  and 
  is 
  equally 
  des- 
  

   tructive 
  in 
  certain 
  years. 
  During 
  abnormal 
  years 
  the 
  pest 
  is 
  reported 
  

   from 
  other 
  tracts 
  beyond 
  the 
  usual 
  season. 
  The 
  paddy 
  stem-borer 
  

   {Schoenobius 
  bipunctifer), 
  No. 
  2 
  in 
  diagram, 
  is 
  a 
  regular 
  visitor 
  during 
  

   the 
  autumn 
  and 
  cold 
  weather 
  chiefly 
  in 
  the 
  Northern 
  Circars 
  ; 
  it 
  has, 
  

   however, 
  been 
  very 
  rarely 
  noted 
  to 
  do 
  such 
  wholesale 
  damage 
  as 
  the 
  

   swarming 
  caterpillar. 
  It 
  is 
  occasionally 
  bad 
  during 
  the 
  summer 
  months 
  

   in 
  the 
  Ceded 
  Districts. 
  Within 
  the 
  past 
  three 
  or 
  four 
  years 
  the 
  disease 
  

   called 
  ' 
  Yerra 
  tegulu 
  ' 
  or 
  red 
  disease 
  has 
  been 
  noted 
  in 
  the 
  delta 
  tracts 
  of 
  

   the 
  Godavari 
  and 
  Kistna 
  districts 
  and 
  has 
  been 
  mistaken 
  to 
  be 
  the 
  sole 
  

   work 
  of 
  this 
  insect. 
  Recent 
  investigations 
  have 
  shown 
  that 
  besides 
  the 
  

   stem-borer 
  there 
  are 
  two 
  other 
  agencies 
  at 
  work, 
  viz., 
  a 
  leaf-spot 
  fungus 
  

   and 
  another 
  unknown 
  disease 
  associated 
  with 
  what 
  at 
  present 
  appears 
  

   like 
  an 
  eel 
  worm*, 
  both 
  together 
  doing 
  far 
  more 
  harm 
  than 
  the 
  paddy 
  

   stem-borer 
  insect. 
  The 
  leaf-mining 
  beetle 
  of 
  paddy, 
  popularly 
  known 
  as 
  

   the 
  " 
  Rice 
  Hispa 
  " 
  {Hispa 
  armigem), 
  No. 
  3, 
  may 
  be 
  taken 
  as 
  the 
  next 
  

   important 
  insect 
  afiecting 
  paddy. 
  During 
  the 
  South-west 
  monsoon 
  

  

  * 
  The 
  eel-worm 
  is 
  being 
  studied 
  by 
  Mr. 
  Ballard, 
  the 
  Government 
  Entoniologist,- 
  

   Madras. 
  

  

  