612 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HLST. SOCIETY, Vol. XXIV. 



In another instance a piece of dead wood of an orange tree containing 

 several larvae of Stromatium barbatum, Fabr., was kept under observation in 

 the laboratory in January 1912. Till April 1914 no beetle was found to have 

 emerged, but in July of the same year a few beetles emerged. The piece 

 of wood was then split up to see whether it contained any more larvte. 

 To the writer's surprise the piece was found to contain several grubs 

 nieasuring from 7 m/m. to 35 ni/m. Thus the life history of the beetle 

 does not occupy a fixed period but ranges over a wide limit of time, 

 the shortest may be said to occupy between a year and a half to 

 two years. 



A very common but dangerous practice, invariably observed in gardens, is 

 the leaving of dried branches, old rotten trees, fallen fruits, without attend- 

 ing to regular removal and this is a practice which is always dangerous since 

 all those afford breeding places to many noxious insects. Therefore it is 

 almost imperative to remove and burn the affected parts of plants, rotten 

 trunks, branches and fruits fallen on ground. 



In the case of this longicorn beetle it has been observed that orange trees 

 of very long standing (say 15 to 20 years) are afi'ected, and when once the 

 attack begins it is not possible to extract the grubs from the galleries by 

 thrusting stiff wire as is often suggested, because the tunnels are tightly 

 filled with excrement, nor is it possible to inject any poisonous liquid like 

 Carbon-bisulphide or phenyle. The only course left in such cases is to remove 

 the old and affected trees and plant new ones or to paint a mixture of 

 bees-wax, resin and linseed oil over the wounds and cracks, etc., in the 

 dead parts of the plant and more specially the lower part of the trunk. 



J, L. KHARE, 



Nagpuk Agkioultural College, Lecturer in Entomology. 



Qth AiJril 1916. 



No. XXXI.-THE CALOTROPIS FLY. 



[With a text figure.) 



I believe very little is known of this fly in India. During the months of 

 May, June and July when this Indian milk weed {Calotropis (/igantea) is 

 in fruit it is infested with the maggots of this fly. While engaged in hairy- 

 caterpillar work in Yagati, Kadur District, Mysore State, my attention was 

 drawn to this interesting fly and I was able to make some observations on 

 its habits and life history. The life history so far as I have been able to 

 follow is as below : — 



Oviposition. — This is a very tedious process occupying as it does, not less 

 than 30 to 40 minutes for a female to lay a cluster of 8 to 12 eggs. The 

 Calotropiis fruit is a tough one with a thick rind. The ovipositor of the fly 

 has to pierce from 8 to 12 m.m. to reach the smooth endocarp where the 

 eggs are laid just touching the soft ovary. The fly gets caught in the fruit 

 by the milky juice exuding from the wound while ovipositing and it now 

 submits itself tamely to any treatment or examination. When the ovipositor 

 is extricated from the fruit after egg laying, it takes fully 10 minutes for 

 the fly to free itself from the gummy juice of the fruit adhering to the 

 ovipositor. Oviposition is mostly observed at dusk or in the cool early hours 

 of the morning. 



The Egg. — The eggs are generally dull, creamy white in colour and they 

 resemble the fleshy outgrowth of the carpels of very immature citrus fruits. 

 The eggs are laid in clusters of 8 to 12 in the smooth endocarp of the fruit, 

 touching the soft ovary. The maximum immber of eggs found in one big 

 fruit was 30 in three difl;erent places. The egg state lasts from 4 to 5 days. 

 The egg measures 1"5 m.m. in length, 



