﻿8.— 
  REPORT 
  OF 
  CAMPAIGN 
  AGAINST 
  SPODOPTERA 
  MAURI 
  TI 
  A, 
  

   BOISD., 
  {NOCTUIDM), 
  IN 
  MALABAR. 
  

  

  (Plates 
  VIII— 
  XII.) 
  

   By 
  E. 
  Ballard, 
  B.A., 
  F.E.S., 
  Government 
  Entomologist, 
  Madras. 
  

  

  Spodoptera 
  mauritia, 
  Boisd., 
  is 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  most 
  serious 
  pests 
  of 
  

   paddy* 
  in 
  Malabar. 
  Its 
  appearances 
  are 
  erratic 
  but 
  always 
  fatal 
  unless 
  

   timely 
  precautions 
  are 
  taken 
  in 
  dealing 
  with 
  it. 
  In 
  some 
  cases 
  during 
  a 
  

   heavy 
  attack 
  the 
  caterpillars 
  are 
  in 
  such 
  numbers 
  as 
  to 
  cover 
  the 
  roads 
  

   and 
  hands 
  and 
  they 
  even 
  invade 
  the 
  gardens. 
  The 
  main 
  fact 
  of 
  its 
  

   lifehistory, 
  egg 
  and 
  pupal 
  periods 
  and 
  so 
  forth 
  are 
  well 
  kaown, 
  but 
  there 
  

   is 
  a 
  very 
  large 
  number 
  of 
  questions 
  which 
  still 
  remain 
  unanswered. 
  With 
  

   a 
  little 
  organization 
  its 
  control 
  when 
  it 
  appears 
  in 
  pest 
  conditions 
  is 
  

   comparatively 
  easy, 
  but 
  unfortunately 
  it 
  is 
  seldom 
  noticed 
  by 
  the 
  raiyats 
  

   until 
  the 
  larvae 
  are 
  more 
  than 
  half 
  grown 
  by 
  which 
  time 
  the 
  damage 
  

   done 
  is 
  serious, 
  often 
  necessitating 
  either 
  the 
  resowing 
  of 
  the 
  crop 
  or 
  the 
  

   purchase 
  of 
  seedlings 
  from 
  unattacked 
  areas. 
  Up 
  to 
  the 
  present 
  year 
  it 
  

   had 
  been 
  the 
  custom 
  to 
  await 
  reports 
  of 
  the 
  appearance 
  of 
  the 
  pest 
  from 
  

   Tahsildars 
  or 
  raiyats 
  and 
  then 
  to 
  send 
  an 
  officer 
  to 
  demonstrate 
  control 
  

   measures. 
  Although 
  information 
  was 
  often 
  (and 
  in 
  1919 
  almost 
  invari- 
  

   ably) 
  given 
  by 
  wire, 
  a 
  great 
  deal 
  of 
  damage 
  had 
  generally 
  been 
  done 
  

   before 
  the 
  officer 
  could 
  get 
  to 
  the 
  spot. 
  Leaflets 
  explaining 
  the 
  methods 
  

   of 
  controlling 
  the 
  insect 
  and 
  its 
  habits 
  had 
  been 
  issued 
  to 
  the 
  revenue 
  

   authoriti*is 
  but 
  it 
  is 
  only 
  in 
  very 
  exceptional 
  cases 
  that 
  these 
  leaflets 
  

   ever 
  reach 
  the 
  rakjat. 
  They 
  either 
  disappear 
  into 
  the 
  Taluq 
  offices 
  or 
  

   else 
  remain 
  with 
  the 
  village 
  officials 
  carefully 
  filed. 
  My 
  return 
  to 
  India 
  

   in 
  May 
  1919 
  coincided 
  with 
  a 
  very 
  fierce 
  and 
  widely 
  spread 
  Spodoptera 
  

   attack, 
  but 
  little 
  could 
  be 
  done 
  to 
  deal 
  with 
  it 
  at 
  that 
  time. 
  It 
  was 
  

   decided 
  therefore 
  to 
  be 
  thoroughly 
  prepared 
  for 
  the 
  pest 
  this 
  year 
  (1920) 
  

   and 
  for 
  this 
  purpose 
  a 
  programme 
  of 
  propaganda 
  and 
  extension 
  lectures 
  

   was 
  drawn 
  up 
  and 
  put 
  into 
  operation. 
  

  

  Before 
  giving 
  an 
  account 
  of 
  the 
  plan 
  of 
  campaign 
  and 
  the 
  extent 
  to 
  

   which 
  we 
  were 
  able 
  to 
  conduct 
  it 
  " 
  according 
  to 
  plan 
  " 
  it 
  would 
  be 
  

   as 
  well 
  to 
  give 
  some 
  short 
  account 
  of 
  the 
  lifehistory 
  and 
  habits 
  of 
  Spodo- 
  

   petera 
  mauritia 
  itself. 
  (Plate 
  IX.) 
  

  

  " 
  The 
  eggs 
  are 
  deposited 
  usually 
  on 
  the 
  under 
  surface 
  of 
  blades 
  of 
  

   grass 
  or 
  paddy 
  in 
  batches 
  covered 
  with 
  buff 
  covered 
  hairs 
  derived 
  from 
  

  

  * 
  Oryza 
  sativa. 
  

   ( 
  60 
  ) 
  

  

  