209 



Indian Museum, Notes, [Vol. IV. 



III.-INSECTS INFESTING FRUIT TREES. 



I. Psychid caterpillars destructive to vines. — Samples of grapes 

 together with some leaves of the same were forwarded to the Indian 

 Museum in January 1897 by Mr. N. R. Lester, Superintendent, 

 Empress Botanical Gardens, Poona, as suffering from what appeared 

 to him to be fungus growths on the fruits and leaves. 



On examining the vines they were found to be attacked by 

 minute caterpillars of an unknown Psychid moth the like of which 

 had not hitherto been recorded as destructive to grapes in India. 

 From the caterpillars that had arrived in the Museum alive some 

 moths were reared, but owing to their very minute size and the 

 difficulty in obtaining good specimens the identity of the species 

 could not be decided. 



To be quite certain that the vines were not also simultaneously 

 attacked by fungus, the samples were submitted to Dr. D. Prain, 

 of the Royal Botanic Garden, Sibpur, for examination, who wrote 

 upon the subject: ''I have carefully examined the specimens of 

 vines sent with your note of 22nd instant, and, so far as I can make 

 out, there is no fungoid disease present. The pathological effects 

 seem to be the result of some insect blight " 



2. Mango caterpillar. — The Superintendent, Empress Gardens, 

 Poona, reported in August 1897 the appearance of a number of 

 caterpillars with stinging bristles, which were destroying mango 

 leaves in his gardens. 



The specimens forwarded by him, though they arrived in the 

 Museum alive, soon died apparently from the effects of the long 

 journey. They proved to be the caterpillars of a moth belonging to 

 the family Limacodid^. 



3. Ceramhycid larvse destructive to apple tree. — Some 

 Coleopterous larvae said to be tunnelling into the stems of an apple 

 tree in Muktesar, were forwarded in the Indian Museum by 

 Mr. M. K. Bamber, Superintendent, Government Nursery, Muktesar, 

 in January 1897. 



The insects proved to be the immature forms of a Cerambycid 

 beetle, which cannot be further identified without the examination 



