PROCEEDINGS OF THE THIBD ENTOMOLOGICAL MEETING 321 



Before leaving beetles, I may add a few remarks on the following 

 insects which have alread}^ been noted as injurious, just to jjoint out 

 their present status in view of our further knowledge of these insects. 



Pempheres affinis. This insect has within the past two or three years 

 distributed itself with Cambodia cotton into tracts where it was not 

 found till now — viz., Madura, Eamnad and Tinnevelly districts. It 

 appears that the weevil exists in different parts where no cotton is grown 

 — for I noted the weevil on Hibiscus esciilentus in North Malabar — and 

 makes itself prominent with the introduction of cotton cultivation. 

 The hfe-history of the insect has been worked out and an account of it 

 will be found in my paper on this insect in the Year Book of the Madras 

 Department of Agrindture for 1918 (pp. 1—13) [Coloured plate exhibited]. 



Alcides bubo. (Plate 13). This insect continues to be a bad pest 

 of Sesbania (agathi) in betel-vine gardens. The plants do not suffer 

 much when they have grown 4 or 5 feet high ; but during the younger 

 stages very serious damage is done. Two or three applications of lead 

 arsenate during the earher stages at intervals of a fortnight checked the 

 attack in the early stages. I am exhibiting a coloured plate showing 

 the different stages of this pest. Two parasites Metastenmmjia juliani, 

 Gii^, and Eurytoma pigra, Gir., have been noted on the grub ; but not 

 to any great extent. In page 97 of the Madras Departmental Year-Book 

 for 1917 is a short paper of mine on the egg-laying habits of this insect. 



Alcides affaber. This is a specific pest of gogu {Hibiscvs cannabinvs) 

 and is also found on Hibiscus esctdentus ; pretty bad occasionally. Alcides 

 leopardvs, 01., mentioned by Fletcher in his book, is apparently a wrong 

 identification for A. affaber, for I have never seen A. leopardus anywhere 

 in Coimbatore. I, however, got some specimens of this latter species 

 breeding on a wild plant in South Malabar a couple of years ago. 



Peltotrachelus pubes — a weevil noted in the Shevaroys on orange 

 This is a minor pest only. 



Apodenis tranqvebaricvs. Recently this insect has been noted in 

 numbers on tender shoots and leaves of mango trees in C'hittur and adja- 

 cent mango tracts. (Reference to my note in Bidleiin of Second Hundred 

 Notes). 



PachytycMvs mungcnis, originally noted on green-gram, is also found 

 on dhaincha as a pretty bad pest, causing prominent swellings of the 

 stem. 



Olenecamptus bilobiis (Plate 10, figure/?), though noted by Lefroy in 

 his Indian Insect Life, is not in Fletcher's book. It is sufficiently 

 important to be grouped as a pest. I have noted this doing damage to 

 cultivated figs in Krishna, Bangalore, and other places. It was once 

 noted on pomegranate also in Salem, Coimbatore. 



y2 



