274 



COCOA 



CHAP. 



Fruits as well as twigs are damaged ; also the leaf- 

 stalks, but not the lamina of the cocoa leaves. The 

 fruits show the stings of the Helopeltis as numerous 

 black specks (Fig. 94), and when the young fruits are 

 severely attacked they are wholly spoiled or develop 

 into deformed, almost worthless fruits. The same black 

 spots appear on the young twigs (Fig. 95), many of 

 which may die. Sometimes the tree is covered with 

 dead and dried-up twigs. 



The number of Helopeltis about and the damage 

 done by them depends on the time of the year. In the 

 dry season and the months following it, the number is 

 comparatively small, and accordingly the damage is 



FIG. 94. Fruit slightly damaged by Helopeltis. 



insignificant, while during the rainy season the pest 

 gets worse and worse. In a few weeks the number of 

 insects increases rapidly, and the damage to twigs and 

 fruits quickly becomes very considerable. 



In Java the worst months are March to May (the 

 rainy season begins in January and ends towards May 

 or June), while in September and October it often 

 seems as if the Helopeltis had wholly disappeared. In 

 Ceylon the pest appears to be at its worst in December 

 and January, and least harmful in August (in this 

 country October and November are the months with 

 the heaviest rainfall). 



It has been a subject of discussion how these insects 

 live through the dry season. Green, the well-known 



