BIOLOGICAL NOTES ON TRiSHORMOMYIA PANDANI 

 FELT, ITS GALLS AND ITS PARASITE 



by 



S. Leefmans. 



Place of occurrence. 



During a holiday in July 1919 at Tjibodas (Mountain laboratory of the 

 Botanical Garden at an altitude of 1450 meters on the slope of the Gedeh, 

 Java) my attention was drawn by curious galls on the leaves of Pandanus 

 nitidus Kurz. This plant is in the virgin forest near Tjibodas very abundant. 

 From Dr. Docters van Leeuwen, the present Director of the Botanical 

 Garden, who has been studying since several years the galls on plants of the 

 East-Indies I got the information that he had found the same galls some time 

 before, but, as they were always empty, he did not yet describe them. 



In the forest near Tjibodas I found, that on the older, visible parts of the 

 leaves the galls are always empty, but young galls could be found at the 

 base of the older leaves or on very young leaves. 



Description of the galls. 



Old galls. (Plate IX and X). 



As old galls are most conspicious and are sooner observed than the well 

 concealed young undeveloped ones, I shall describe the old ones first. 



They can reach a total length of 4.5 c.M. even 5 c.M. and a width of 

 1,5 c.M, but smaller ones are also often found. The old galls are oval, of the 

 same colour as the old leaf viz. dark green excepting a longitudinal more or 

 less oval pale-brown (discoloured) spot (see plate X) often with a narrow 

 fissure, which is connected with the excentrally placed „breathing" hole of 

 the larva of n/2 to 214 mM. in diameter. 



In most cases the hole is found at the underside of the leaf. 



