276 LAURENCE D. CLE ARE, JR. 



The habits of the larvae are rather peculiar. They feed almost exclusively at 

 }iight, resting during the day in long cylindrical pockets open at both ends and formed 

 by binding together with silken threads a number of leaflets of the palm. In these 

 " nests " several hundred larvae collect with their heads all pointing in the same 

 direction, and a single nest may weigh as much as two pounds. These nests may 

 be seen on nearly every tree attacked and are frequently the only green parts of 

 the leaves that remain. When the larvae move from place to place they do so in 

 procession. The duration of the larval stage is not accurately known, but it is 

 estimated to be about four weeks. 



The puqjae (fig. 1) are of two sizes, the female being larger than the male and 

 averaging about 25 mm. in length. The ground-colour is at first green, but soon 

 becomes a pinkish brown. Five irregular brown lines, bordered on either side with 

 white, extent^ the whole length of the body along the back and sides. Three of these 

 are dorsal, of which the mid-dorsal is the broadest and best defined. There are two 

 additional brown lines on the underside of the abdominal part and two diagonal 

 brown patches on the wing cases. The thorax is separated from the abdomen by a 

 ring devoid of markings. The pupal period lasts about 14 days. 



Description of the Butterfly.^ 



Male. — The upperside of the wings is as follows : — Fore wings brown, with an 

 orange-yellow bar across the centre ; hind wings brown, suffuscvi with reddish, which 

 is tinged with orange. Thorax brown, abdomen reddish. The underside lighter 

 brown, speckled with white ; one eye-like mark on each fore wing, and three on 

 each hind wing. The wings of the male are more angular in shape and smaller than 

 those of the female. Wing expanse, 2 "5-2 "75 inches. 



Female (Plate x, fig. 1). — Wings more ample and rounded, similar in colour 

 and markings to those of the male, except that the bar across the fore wings is duller 

 yellow and somewhat Y-shaped, and the hind wrings are deeper brown with small 

 reddish patches near the margin. Wing expanse, about 3 inches. 



Spread of the Pest. 



A rather noticeable thing about this attack was the manner in which the pest 

 spread. While the exact place of origin is not known, observations point to 

 La Penitence, south-west of the town, or some spot in its vicinity. The attack then 

 spread from south-west to north-east in direct opposition to the prevaihng winds. 

 The insects never crossed the river, in spite of the wind being in their favour. This, 

 however, was probably due to their feeble powers of flight, thus Kitty village, 

 north-east of the town, remained untouched throughout the whole period, whilst 

 Albert town, separated from it by but a few empty blocks, was by far the worst 

 affected ward in the city. 



Although practically the whole city suffered, there were blocks in the midst of 

 affected areas that remained untouched. It was particularly noticeable that the 

 palms near the sea were but very shghtly, if at all, attacked. In fact, not a single 

 tree of the entire avenue extending along the sea-wall suffered from the pest. It is 



* Guppy, P. L. Circular No. 5. Bd. of Agriculture, Trinidad and Tobago, pp. 19-21. pt. 1. 



