926 rEOCEEDINGS OF THE THIRD ENTOMOLOGICAL MEETING 



Since there is no previous record of this insect as a pest and since 

 there is nothing also regarding the life-history or habits of the insect, 

 I believe the following notes may be of some use in adding to our know- 

 ledge of this beetle. 



So far as I know, sixteen species of this genus, Longitarsus, have till 

 now been recorded from different parts of India, and of these Longitarsus 

 nigripennis is one. The previous record of its locality in his description 

 of the species by Motsohulsky is simply " India " with no mention 

 of the exact locality. Jacoby has described some species latterly and 

 these are from Pondicherry, Madura, Calcutta, North Kanara and 

 Belgaum. 



The species of this genus are comparatively small in size, no" more 

 than 3 mm. in length, and are extremely active in habits. Their hind 

 femora are very much thickened, thus showing the great saltatorial 

 powers these insects possess. I have very rarely found them flying ; 

 they commonly leap or hop from place to place and cover great distances 

 in such a way. This species (L. nigripennis) is 2*^ mm. in length. The 

 head is comparatively very small and more or less covered by the fairly 

 prominent prothorax. The antennae are long and the eyes prominent. 

 The hind femora are extraordinarily stout compared with the size of 

 the insect. The head and prothorax are of a pale fulvous-yellow colour 

 when fresh ; in dry specimens this appears reddish-brown ; the elytra 

 bluish-black. The antennse and legs are of a pale brownish colour ; but 

 the hind femora have a shinmg bluish-brown colour ; the eyes are dark. 



Damage done by the insect. Yo\i will find from the title of this paper 

 that I have called this the " Pollu flea beetle of pepper."' This means 

 that the insect is associated with a disease of pepper called " PoUu " 

 which really means ' hollow ' or empty. The turning hollow of the grow- 

 ing pepper-berry is often caused by this beetle. There are, of course, 

 other causes which bring about this ' PoUu ' condition but I shall confine 

 myself only to the insect side of it. The small cream-white grub of this 

 beetle burrows into the ripening green berries of pepper and eats away 

 the inner contents, which causes the seedlessness or hollowness of the 

 berry called ' Pollu.' The external indication of such an attack on the 

 growing pepper-vine is generally the presence of a group of two to 

 four darkish berries in a spike of pepper, the rest of the spike being 

 healthy and green. Infested berries are commonly- found in groups 

 of two, three or four. An examination of the inside of one of these 

 blackened berries will disclose a short stout pale white grub. Generally 

 only one of these three or four berries shows the grub and this is explained 

 by the fact that this one grub is responsible for the damage of all the 

 three or four berries in the group, the larva feeding on the inner contents. 



