COTTON 429 



of these insects in 1913 and 1914 is now of almost general 

 knowledge in Egypt. The disease was found to be easily 

 transmitted to Earias by removing them from the bolls 

 and bringing them in contact with it, but from the larva's 

 method of feeding inside the living bolls it was difficult 

 to produce a general outbreak among boll worms. The 

 same applies also to other contagious insect diseases as 

 applied to the boll worm; the isolated interior feeding 

 habits of the larva having been found up to the present 

 the insuperable hindrance to infective control. 



Natural Enemies destructive to Earias Boll Worm. 



Reference has been made elsewhere to the insects which 

 have been found attacking the Earias boll worm. Mr. 

 Willcocks, 10 in 1906, referred to ants having been found 

 eating holes through the cocoons of the boll worm and 

 devouring the pupae, but it was doubtful whether these 

 accounted for very large numbers of boll worms, as the 

 fields did not abound in ant colonies. 



A small lepidopterous larva was also found by Mr. 

 Willcocks attacking and devouring the pupae; the species 

 was, however, not determined. (There is some evidence 

 to show that this may be an insect known as Cryptoblabes 

 gnidiclla, Mill, whose carnivorous habits have not been 

 previously noted.) 



A hymenopterous parasite belonging to the family 

 Braconidse was also found by the same observer. This 

 was not common, and the perfect insects when emerged 

 were found to belong to the species which was afterwards 

 described under the name of Rhogas Kitcheneri, Dudgeon 

 and Gough (Plate II, figs, i and 2). 



Two specimens of another hymenopterous parasite were 

 found inside the pupae of boll worms. They were said 

 to resemble one of the stages of a Chalcid, but it is 

 possible they may have belonged to Pimpla roborator, 

 Nees (see p. 431). 



In the summer of 1912 the Government deputed the 

 Entomologist of the Department of Agriculture to visit 



10 Willcocks. Year-book of the Khediv. Agric. Soc. for 1905, 



P. 85. 



