THE FIG-MOTH 121 



about seven in the evening the moths begin 

 to appear, and steadily increase in number 

 as the evening wears on. The actual de- 

 position of the ova cannot be observed, for 

 the moths get down amongst the reeds and 

 lay their eggs on the under surface of the 

 fruit — usually in some crack or abrasion — 

 so that the newly hatched larva can more 

 easily make an entrance into the fig. From 

 some ' counts ' made at Tchifte Kaive it 

 appears that after an exposure of one night 

 29 per cent, of figs were infested, after two 

 nights 38*5 per cent., and after three nights 

 44*5 per cent. 



A second and serious source of infection 

 is at the village depots. Before the figs 

 arrive, there seem to be no specimens of the 

 Ephestia in the buildings; but with their 

 arrival the moth appears, and so favourable 

 is the shelter from the heat and the wind, 

 and so abundant is the supply of figs as sack 

 after sack is emptied on to the floor, that soon 

 the moth is more abundant in the depots 

 than amongst the ' serghi,' and the wonder 

 is that a single fig escapes infestation. 

 Fortunately, the time spent in the depots 

 is short, often only a night; were it much 

 longer, the whole crop would suffer. On their 

 way down to the coast again there is little 

 or no risk of the moth, but arriving at Smyrna 



