132 Indian Museum Notes. [Vol. I^, 



Extent of damage done. — The existence of this pest was known to the Deputy 

 Tahsildar, Revenue Inspector, and the ryots generally. The former, however 

 owing to the very limited sphere of the attack, did not consider it necessary to be 

 shown in the season reports. The pest is not one peculiar to this year, but seems 

 to have been in existence for several years. As may be evident from the descrip- 

 tion of its characteristics to be said further on, the insect appears to be peculiar to 

 the wet crop of paddy. The attack is found on crops transplanted, and not those 

 sown, on tender and not mature crops. The reason why the attack is not extended 

 to crops of paddy sown and those mature may be that in the former case, the crop 

 is comparatively dry, and coming up earlier, becomes over-matured for the insect 

 to do any harm, and in the latter case, the plants become too hairy and hard for 

 the insect. It was therefore not an unusual thing to see side by side fields in 

 which some were attacked and some not. The usual time of appaarance is the 

 mont'hs of November and December. At the time of my visit, any visible sign of 

 attack was confined to a few stray fields of those that were transplanted late in 

 the season, As I was informed, there were, however, evident signs that some 

 time back the attack was much wider-spread, and since the'late rains the affected 

 crops have mostly recovered. The damage done is usually only temporary, as 

 the attack itself is only temporary, and during the succeeding period the effect of 

 damage is greatly minimised, and under favourable circumstances, as when there 

 is plenty of rainfall, the damage done is only inappreciable. The ryots attribute 

 the appearance of the pest to deficient rainfall in October. 



Description and characteristics of the insect, — " Urappuchchi," as locally 



known, is a small sized green larva, about J of an inch long The crop subject 



to its attack, presents a grey and ashy appearance. The worm is not easily made 

 out, for it lives in a tubular coat with which it provides itself. The coat is about 

 f of an inch long, made up of a doubled piece of paddy leaf, in which both ends 

 are cut clean. The doubled leaf is connected together at th^ sides by means of a 

 gummy excretory matter and a hole is bored at the point of doubling, where its 

 head is always to be found, thus forming a tube, in which the worm lives. The 

 worm, while ascending, juts out its head and gets up holding the plant with its 

 front pair of feet. It is usually to be found in the lower portion of the plant above 

 water, where it securely connects the coat with the plant by gummy matter. When 

 in any way disturbed, it shrinks itself well into the coat and at other times thrusts 

 out its head to feed on the fine juicy shoots springing up. If by chance the coat is 

 detached and with it the worm is thrown on the water, the coat serves as a float to 

 enable the worm from sinking down and for lajing hold of any plant or leaf it 

 may come across. To give motion to the float, the larva protrudes its heads and 

 a portion of its body into the water, and gives a few jerks rightwise and leftwise 

 by which the float is moved about, and when its headside comes in contact with 

 a plant or a leaf dipping in water, it ascends as stated before. This instructive 

 provision shows that the pest is a peculiar one to paddy, for I removed some of 

 the larvae from their coats and dropped them in water when they were not able to 

 help themselves and all their jerks did not serve to keep them afloat or to lay hold 

 of a plant. 



The process of feeding does not consist in nipping off the leaves which would 

 necessitate frequent change of positit n and result in considerable damage to the 

 crop, but, as appeared to me, feeding on the sap of fine leaves springing up con- 

 fined ordinarily to one locality, with the result that the top leaves appear deprived 

 of green colour and soon dry up and wither-..,,.. 



