No. 5. ] Miscellaneous Notes, 43 



Extensive injury to mangoes by a magg-ot which is likely to be the 

 larva of the Dipterous insect Dacus ferrugeneus Fabr. referred to in 



Mango Maggots. *^^®^® ^''^^'' ^^^' ^^' P* ^^^' ^^ reported from 



Berhampore. Baboo N. G. Mukarji writes : — 

 ''They annually visit one of the famous orchards of this district the 

 Katgola garden — and spoil almost every fruit of the Maldah varieties 

 which ripen later than those of the country varieties.''' The observation 

 is of interest as some doubt has elsewhere been expressed as to whether 

 really sound fruit is attacked by this insect. 



Specimens of a Chrysomelid beetle found by Mr. C. G, Rogers in 



,, , ,. ^. Deoban, North-West Himalavas, also a Taehinid 



Melasoma popnli, Linn, ... i 



fly parasitic on it^ were forwarded in July 1893 by 



the Director of the Imperial Forest School, Dehra Dun. The Chrysomelid 

 proved to be unnamed in the Indian Museum collection, but a careful 

 comparison of it with Olivier's description of Melasoma populi, Linn; 

 which has been recorded as feeding upon willow trees in Europe, did not 

 disclose any appreciable difference between the two forms. It may be 

 looked on, therefore, as belonging to this species. The parasite is a Dip- 

 terous insect which seems to be most nearly related to the genus Masi- 

 cera, as represented in the Museum colleetion ; the specimen, however, is 

 in too poor a state of preservation for satisfactory identification. 



The following information is taken from a series of rough, but most 

 interesting notes made by Mr. Rogers. The larvse of the beetle were 

 first noticed on 9th June 1 893 in Deoban, 9,000 feet above sea level, in the 

 North- West Himalayas. They ranged from 0"10 inch to 05 1 inch 

 ia length. The head was black, the body yellowish white with black 

 markings. On the back were numerous paired glands from which little 

 transparent globules of strong pungent smelling fluid were extruded when 

 the insect was touched. After a while the globules were drawn in again 

 into the glands, but could be again extruded two or three times over, 

 before the insect became exhausted. The odour, which is compared to 

 that of prussic acid, scented the whole bush where they were feeding, 

 and -was a very characteristic feature of the insect. The larvse which 

 were kept in captivity moulted but once before pupating. Pupse were 

 formed between 14th and 21st June. The chrysalis had much the same 

 general markings as the larvse. It remained partially enclosed in the 

 larval skin. In nature the pupae were found suspended from the under- 

 surfaee of leaves and branches of the food plant. Beetles began to 

 emerge on 32nd June and continued to appear in the rearing box until 

 37th June, They afterwards lived for about a week in confinement, but, 



