108 Indian Museum, Notes, [Vol. II. 



"After another interval oi 15 days they again cast their slough aud enter on the 

 third state. In this the black line becomes very intense, as also do the spots, which 

 lengthen and form the so-called ' Koranic verses ' — they do show a certam similitude to 

 some letters of the Arabic alphabet vernacular. They are now 1*2 of an inch in length. 



"They enter the 4th stage by casting their slough after another 15 days, and 

 assume, including the antennae, a yellow colour, which, towards the end of the stage, 

 becomes pinkish grey. The black line and the* Koranic verses' are now very intense 

 in colour, and the insect attains the length of 1*6 of an inch. 



"A great transformation is witnessed on entry into the 5th stage after 15 more 

 days. Ihe female is now 2 inches long, whilst the male is somewhat less. The colour 

 of the head, prothorax, and abdomen is a grey or drab, speckled on the prothorax, and 

 darker along the upper side of the abdomen. The ringed antennae are a deep yellow, 

 the eyes chestnut and striated, whilst for the first time appears an oblong mark under 

 each eye, indigo green in colour, and bordered on each side by yellow. The Arabic 

 letters have now disappeared, whilst the spots on the thigh cases are obsolescent. The 

 young wings, too, now first appear. At first very small, they grow during the period 

 of this stage — 20 days. The contents of the wing-sprouts are at first liquid, and the 

 young wings may be seen forming within the semi-transparency. When they are fully 

 formed, the insect is of a dark brownish grey colour, whilst on the prothorax and else- 

 where may be distinguished the colouring of the next stage. 



" In its 6th and perfect stage the insect presents a brilliant appearance. The female 

 is now 3 inches, and the male 2\ inches, in whole length, from head to tips of wings 

 which overlap the abdomen by *5 of an inch, and are rounded. On casting the slough, 

 the wings dry and unfold, and the body of the insect, at first soft and moist, gradually 

 hardens in the sun. The antennae are '8 inch in length, and of a bright yellow 

 colour ; the head is a brownish yellow, and the eyes, finely striated, are of a deep 

 chestnut. The prothorax is alternately banded with a bright yellow and a rich brown, 

 parallelwise to the body, and the legs are of an ochreish hue. Along the upper rim of 

 the femur runs a deep brown stripe, aud the knee-caps are of the same colour. The 

 tibia, tarsus, and foot are a bright ochre, and the first is armed with 8 black-tipped 

 spurs on the outside and 11 on the inside, while there are a pair of spurs on each side 

 of the ankle-joint and on each side of the foot. The outer wings, or wing cases, have 

 the colours on the prothorax extended to them, and on the back they form a flat 

 surface, tapering to the extremity. They are strongly veined and finely reticulated, 

 and towards the extremities are irregularly brown marked. The inner wings, which 

 are expansive, are hardly coloured. The abdomen is a light brown, darker along the 

 ridge, and in the female there are four spiky processes at its extremity, the upper pair 

 curling up and the lower pair downwards. In the male the lower pair is replaced by 

 one spiky process, larger and stronger. 



"The locust now packs with its kindred, and they form the swarms which 

 ravage the country. After a month or so they assume a red tinge, which gradually 

 deepens and continues until their death, which takes place after the sexual function 

 has been performed in May or June. The proportion of males to females appeared to 

 me about 1 in 6. 



" The whole life of the insect, including the egg-period, is exactly one year." 



Various methods were employed in the Bombay Presidency in 1832-83 



to destroy the locusts, which were to a large extent 

 Remedies. , ° 



kept under by the energetic measures taken against 



them. The Cyprus screen system, 1 was found utterly inapplicable and 

 1 The Cyprus screen |s\stem consists in erecting a long line of screens, each two to 



