﻿PHOCEEDINGS 
  OF 
  THE 
  FOURTH 
  ENTOMOLOGICAL 
  MEETING 
  91 
  

  

  Oxycarenus 
  is 
  never 
  found 
  on 
  buds 
  or 
  green 
  bolls. 
  Only 
  old 
  and 
  Mr. 
  Ghosh. 
  

  

  opened 
  bolls 
  are 
  found 
  to 
  be 
  infested 
  with 
  it. 
  I 
  would 
  not 
  include 
  it 
  as 
  a 
  

  

  pest. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  a 
  pest 
  when 
  squashed 
  into 
  the 
  lint 
  in 
  the 
  gins. 
  Mr. 
  Fletcher, 
  

  

  About 
  a 
  month 
  ago 
  I 
  saw 
  it 
  in 
  buds 
  but 
  not 
  in 
  large 
  numbers. 
  Mr. 
  Ballaid. 
  

  

  From 
  the 
  very 
  large 
  numbers 
  in 
  which 
  it 
  is 
  present, 
  if 
  it 
  is 
  a 
  pest 
  Mr. 
  Husain.' 
  

   it 
  ought 
  to 
  ruin 
  the 
  whole 
  crop. 
  I 
  think 
  that 
  most 
  of 
  these 
  insects 
  do 
  not 
  

   cause 
  damage 
  by 
  sucking 
  or 
  fungus 
  injection, 
  but 
  by 
  their 
  salivary 
  

   secretion. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  West 
  Indies 
  a 
  Dysdercus 
  injects 
  bacteria.. 
  I 
  rather 
  suspect 
  Mr. 
  Ballard. 
  

   the 
  Capsid 
  I 
  mentioned 
  of 
  doing 
  this. 
  

  

  We 
  seem 
  to 
  know 
  very 
  little 
  of 
  the 
  effect 
  of 
  the 
  sucking 
  of 
  these 
  Mr. 
  Fletcher. 
  

   bugs 
  on 
  the 
  vitality 
  of 
  the 
  seed 
  by 
  its 
  attack. 
  Experiments 
  which 
  we 
  

   carried 
  out 
  on 
  these 
  lines 
  were 
  inconclusive. 
  

  

  I 
  should 
  have 
  thought 
  mature 
  seed 
  too 
  hard 
  to 
  suck. 
  Mr. 
  Ballard. 
  

  

  We 
  could 
  not 
  keep 
  Oxycarenus 
  alive 
  artificially 
  on 
  green 
  or 
  dry 
  seeds. 
  Mr. 
  Ghosh. 
  

  

  I 
  was 
  in 
  St. 
  Vincent 
  when 
  Cotton 
  Stainer 
  {Dysdercus 
  sp.) 
  was 
  a 
  serious 
  ^^' 
  Hutson. 
  

   pest. 
  It 
  was 
  found 
  that 
  these 
  bugs 
  could 
  puncture 
  bolls 
  up 
  to 
  full 
  size, 
  

   and 
  carried 
  a 
  fungus 
  which 
  rotted 
  the 
  seeds. 
  It 
  was 
  controlled 
  by 
  eradi- 
  

   cating 
  the 
  alternative 
  food-plants, 
  Eriodendron 
  and 
  other 
  Malvaceae. 
  

   There 
  was 
  a 
  campaign 
  throughout 
  the 
  Island 
  ; 
  10,000 
  Eriodendron 
  trees 
  

   and 
  thousands 
  of 
  other 
  trees 
  were 
  cut 
  down. 
  Now 
  the 
  bug 
  is 
  com- 
  

   pletely 
  under 
  control. 
  Cotton 
  is 
  compulsorily 
  pulled 
  up 
  and 
  there 
  is 
  a 
  

   close 
  season 
  of 
  two 
  months. 
  In 
  Ceylon 
  we 
  grow 
  very 
  little 
  cotton, 
  from 
  

   150 
  to 
  200 
  acres 
  only, 
  but 
  steps 
  are 
  being 
  taken 
  to 
  increase 
  the 
  acreage, 
  

   and 
  there 
  is 
  sure 
  to 
  be 
  trouble 
  with 
  pests. 
  Dysdercus 
  cingulatus 
  does 
  

   damage, 
  also 
  Nysius 
  ceylanicus 
  and 
  Oxycarenus 
  on 
  open 
  bolls. 
  There 
  

   is 
  no 
  record 
  of 
  the 
  percentage 
  of 
  damage. 
  Pink 
  boll-worm 
  is 
  well 
  

   established 
  and 
  measures 
  against 
  it 
  will 
  have 
  to 
  be 
  taken. 
  E 
  arias 
  fahia 
  

   is 
  present. 
  

  

  Regarding 
  the 
  nature 
  of 
  the 
  damage 
  done 
  by 
  Capsids 
  in 
  feeding, 
  * 
  •'^"^^ews. 
  

   I 
  think 
  mechanical 
  injury 
  is 
  small, 
  but 
  in 
  the 
  case 
  of 
  Helojpeltis 
  theivora 
  

   the 
  saliva 
  contains 
  an 
  enzyme 
  which 
  produces 
  reactions 
  in 
  the 
  plant 
  

   juices 
  which 
  cause 
  precipitation 
  of 
  part 
  of 
  their 
  contents, 
  which 
  the 
  bug 
  

   sucks, 
  leaving 
  the 
  other 
  constituents. 
  This 
  causes 
  a 
  decrease 
  in 
  con- 
  

   centration 
  of 
  solutions 
  at 
  the 
  point 
  of 
  attack, 
  and, 
  by 
  the 
  laws 
  of 
  osmotic 
  

   pressure, 
  a 
  flow 
  of 
  substances 
  to 
  the 
  area 
  around 
  the 
  seat 
  of 
  injury, 
  the 
  

   area 
  around 
  the. 
  puncture 
  being 
  denuded 
  of 
  these 
  substances. 
  With 
  

   regard 
  to 
  fungi 
  and 
  bacteria, 
  after 
  the 
  proboscis 
  is 
  removed 
  there 
  is 
  an 
  

   exudation 
  of 
  sap 
  at 
  the 
  point 
  of 
  puncture. 
  The 
  spores 
  in 
  the 
  air 
  get 
  in 
  

   by 
  settling 
  on 
  this 
  juice 
  and 
  thence 
  to 
  the 
  seed 
  sap. 
  This 
  is 
  how 
  the 
  

  

  