PKOCEEDlNGS OF THE THIRD ENTOMOLOGICAL MEETING 883 



Gall-formers on leaves, for instance, Psyllids and Cecidomyiads, 

 require the same care and treatment as leaf-miners. 



Gall-formers in the petioles of leaves, like Clitea picta on Mgle marmelos. 

 The petioles should be prevented from drying. The use of glass dishes 

 is essential. If necessary, moist earth or wet blotting paper should be 

 used and by the use of perforated brass covers growth of mould can be 

 entirely checked. 



Gall-formers in stems, such as the Cecidomyiads in Cucurbitaceous 

 plants and Buprestids and Curculionids. In order to be able to rear them 

 the galls should be kept moist. Like the leaf-miners they cannot be 

 transferred into fresh stems. 



Borers in iivigs and green stems, for instance, the larvae of Chlumetia 

 transversa and Alcides frenalus in mango twigs. Chilo and Sesamia in maize, 

 rice and allied plants, Scirpophaga in sugarcane, Nupserha in soybean and 

 Phaseolus stems. Many examples can be quoted from among the Bup- 

 restids, Cerambycids, Curculionids, Noctuids, Pyralids and Flies which 

 are among the worst pests of plants. Among them some like Scirpo- 

 phaga and most Buprestids do not fare well if transferred to fresh stems 

 and they are better reared in the stems in which they occur. Of course 

 the stems should be prevented from drying and glass jars are useful 

 for the purpose. The others can easily be transferred into fresh stems 

 and the best method is to bore holes at the ends ol: the pieces of stems 

 intended to be given as food with the pointed end of a pair of forceps 

 or with a gimlet. The larvas are put into these holes and they bore in 

 well. In some cases however the larvae leave these holes and cannot 

 find their way back and in order to make them stay there, the following 

 plan may be adopted. A longitudinal slice is cut but not detached 

 from the stem and a portion of the interior of the stem below this slice 

 is scooped out with a knife to afford enough room for the larva to be put 

 in. The larva is placed there and the slice closed and secured with 

 thread. (PI. 136, fig. 1.) 



For larger borers in woody stems or dry wood, such as the longicorn 

 grubs we find in mango, orange, jak and many other trees, large pieces 

 of stems should be taken and holes bored in them with augers. The 

 larvae are put in these holes, the mouths of which are best plugged with 

 a piece of wood or cork. In the case of those which work in fresh moist 

 stems it is desirable to keep the stems moist as long as possible. We do 

 this by keeping the pieces of stems covered with moist saw-dust. Be- 

 sides keeping the stems moist the sawdust serves another useful piu-pose. 

 When the larvae happen to bore out of the stems they find themselves 

 among sawdust and are not at all inconvenienced even if immediate 

 attention is not forthcoming. In some cases they are actually observed 



