Nasicornus Beetle Fungus 453 



trap heaps, and in other places) amongst the 

 collected grubs about 30 per cent, of sick or 

 dead ones killed by the fungus. That means, 

 in reality, a larger percentage of destruction 

 than the above, as the sickness acts rapidly 

 and the dead bodies soon crumble to pieces 

 and are carried away by the ants. 



" ' It is also worthy of note that this month, 

 August, the men collecting beetles have found 

 difficulty everywhere in that part of the 

 plantation just mentioned, to obtain any full- 

 grown larvae. Not, indeed, that they had 

 totally disappeared ; but those found were all 

 small i.e., a few days old. The older the 

 larvae are the more easily they are infected 

 by the fungus. 



"'At present the labourers specially collect 

 the beetles in the vicinity of the plantation, and 

 already find numerous sick larvae there. On 

 the west boundary, towards the village of 

 Saina, more diseased grubs were found than 

 along the east boundary, towards Vaiusu. 

 This agrees with the prevailing east winds, 

 which the beetle follows, spreading the spores. 



" 'Amongst 193 larvae, collected for the most 

 part beyond the Saina boundary, I found 

 twenty-four sick ones. The disease is already 

 beginning to gain a firm footing there. 



" ' The spreading of the disease in Vaitele 

 took place in the dry season, certainly in a 

 rather moist dry season ; therefore what a much 

 greater result we may expect in the rainy 



