262 COCOA CHAP. 



in Guiana (Surinam and Demerara) and in the Antilles. 

 Dr. Fredholm recently published an interesting study of 

 this insect, from which the following particulars are for 

 the most part borrowed. 1 



The ravages on young cocoa plants especially in 

 the fields, but also in the nursery are sometimes 

 considerable when no precautions have been taken. 

 The young plants are cut at the point of junction of 

 stem and root. When mole-crickets nibble into a root 

 and find that it is not agreeable to their taste, they 

 quickly abandon it, but not before so much damage has 

 been done as to kill the plant. Often a great number 

 of plants are killed in this way by a few mole-crickets 

 in one night. Happily only the young plants are 

 attacked ; when they have reached a height of -f- to 1 

 foot and developed a few leaves, the stem becomes too 

 hard and is no longer to the taste of the mole-crickets. 

 Trees planted out from a nursery are thus left untouched, 

 and on plantations in Surinam a nursery is often kept 

 principally to supply the gaps where the plants have 

 been killed by the mole-crickets. The front pair of 

 legs of the insect are peculiarly adapted for making 

 tunnels in the earth. These tunnels lie near the surface 

 and ramify in several directions. Some of the side 

 galleries dip down 5 to 6 inches or even a foot or more, 

 ending in chamber -like excavations. In these the 

 females lay their eggs, each depositing 50 to 100 at 

 a time. When first hatched the larvae are white, but 

 soon change to a dark fawn colour. They probably 

 take one or two years to develop into the mature insect. 

 As soon as they are sufficiently strong the larvae 

 commence to tunnel for themselves in search of food. 

 They are seldom seen above ground except if forced to 

 leave their habitations by reason of these being flooded, 

 as occasionally happens during heavy rains. 



The mature insects live in the same way, but make 

 more frequent excursions above ground. At times 



1 Fredholm, "The Mole-Cricket" (Proceedings of the Agricultural Society of 

 Trinidad and Tobago, vol. xi. part ii., February 1911). 



