﻿171 
  

  

  A 
  NEW 
  HISPID 
  BEETLE 
  INJURIOUS 
  TO 
  THE 
  OIL 
  PALM 
  IN 
  

  

  THE 
  GOLD 
  COAST. 
  

  

  By 
  S. 
  Maulik, 
  

  

  Professor 
  oj 
  Zoology 
  in 
  the 
  University 
  of 
  Calcutta. 
  

  

  Through 
  the 
  courtesy 
  of 
  Dr. 
  G. 
  A. 
  K. 
  Marshall 
  I 
  have 
  had 
  the 
  opportunity 
  of 
  

   examining 
  specimens 
  of 
  a 
  beetle 
  belonging 
  to 
  the 
  subfamily 
  Hispinae 
  of 
  the 
  

   Chrysomelidae, 
  which 
  is 
  reported 
  to 
  be 
  injurious 
  to 
  oil 
  palms 
  (Elaeis 
  guineensis, 
  

   Jacq.) 
  in 
  the 
  Gold 
  Coast. 
  Concerning 
  this 
  insect 
  Mr. 
  W. 
  H. 
  Patterson, 
  Government 
  

   Entomologist 
  in 
  the 
  Gold 
  Coast, 
  writes 
  as 
  follows 
  : 
  — 
  •" 
  The 
  beetle 
  has 
  suddenly 
  

   become 
  a 
  pest, 
  being 
  reported 
  as 
  having 
  destroyed 
  all 
  the 
  expanded 
  foliage 
  of 
  

   many 
  thousand 
  oil 
  palms 
  in 
  one 
  district. 
  A 
  similar 
  epidemic 
  occurred 
  in 
  

   1909, 
  but 
  entirely 
  disappeared 
  during 
  the 
  following 
  rainy 
  season, 
  since 
  which 
  

   time 
  the 
  beetle 
  has 
  been 
  very 
  rare." 
  From 
  this 
  it 
  would 
  appear 
  that 
  the 
  

   extent 
  of 
  damage 
  is 
  considerable 
  when 
  the 
  insect 
  becomes 
  numerous. 
  Although 
  

   Mr. 
  Patterson 
  does 
  not 
  indicate 
  the 
  nature 
  of 
  the 
  damage 
  there 
  is 
  no 
  doubt 
  that 
  

   the 
  larvae 
  mine 
  into 
  the 
  young 
  shoots 
  and 
  the 
  adults 
  defoliate 
  the 
  young 
  leaves. 
  

   In 
  a 
  recent 
  work 
  (Hispinae 
  and 
  Cassidinae, 
  Fauna 
  of 
  Brit. 
  Ind., 
  London 
  1919, 
  

   pp. 
  10-18) 
  I 
  have 
  reviewed 
  all 
  the 
  Hispid 
  pests 
  of 
  plants 
  useful 
  to 
  man. 
  Only 
  two 
  

   African 
  Hispids 
  have 
  hitherto 
  been 
  noted 
  as 
  harmful, 
  and 
  these 
  attack 
  maize 
  in 
  East 
  

   Africa. 
  

  

  Only 
  four 
  species 
  of 
  the 
  genus 
  Coelaenomenodera, 
  to 
  which 
  the 
  present 
  insect 
  belongs, 
  

   are 
  known 
  from 
  the 
  continent 
  of 
  Africa, 
  viz., 
  speciosa, 
  Gestro, 
  signijera, 
  Gestro, 
  

   thomsoni, 
  Gestro, 
  and 
  costulata, 
  Kolbe, 
  the 
  rest 
  of 
  the 
  species, 
  about 
  28 
  in 
  number, 
  

   are 
  from 
  Madagascar. 
  

  

  The 
  present 
  insect 
  differs 
  from 
  speciosa 
  by 
  the 
  shape 
  of 
  the 
  prothoracic 
  lobe 
  ; 
  from 
  

   signijera 
  by 
  its 
  size, 
  though 
  the 
  lobe 
  is 
  similar 
  ; 
  from 
  thomsoni 
  by 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  it 
  has 
  

   the 
  basal 
  six 
  joints 
  yellow 
  to 
  reddish 
  black, 
  a 
  character 
  which 
  also 
  separates 
  it 
  from 
  

   signijera 
  ; 
  and 
  from 
  costulata 
  by 
  the 
  shape 
  of 
  the 
  prothoracic 
  lobe 
  and 
  the 
  fact 
  

   that 
  the 
  antennae 
  (except 
  the 
  first 
  joint) 
  and 
  the 
  tarsi 
  are 
  black. 
  It 
  is 
  necessary 
  

   therefore 
  to 
  describe 
  the 
  present 
  species 
  as 
  a 
  new 
  one. 
  

  

  Coelaenomenodera 
  elaeidis, 
  sp. 
  now 
  (fig. 
  l). 
  

  

  Body 
  oblong, 
  slightly 
  broadened 
  behind. 
  Colour 
  pale 
  yellow; 
  elytra 
  reddish, 
  

   except 
  the 
  basal 
  and 
  apical 
  areas, 
  this 
  reddish 
  colour 
  disappearing 
  when 
  the 
  specimens 
  

   are 
  preserved 
  in 
  alcohol 
  ; 
  mandibles, 
  eyes, 
  and 
  the 
  five 
  apical 
  joints 
  of 
  the 
  antennae 
  

   black 
  ; 
  the 
  basal 
  joints 
  gradually 
  become 
  red-brown 
  mixed 
  with 
  black 
  from 
  the 
  

   yellow 
  of 
  the 
  basal 
  joint 
  to 
  the 
  almost 
  black 
  sixth 
  joint. 
  The 
  frontal 
  lobe 
  of 
  the 
  

   pro 
  thorax 
  is 
  elongate 
  anteriorly 
  and 
  projects 
  in 
  front, 
  concealing 
  the 
  forehead. 
  

  

  Head 
  : 
  the 
  interantennal 
  space 
  is 
  slightly 
  raised, 
  and 
  the 
  eyes 
  strongly 
  convex. 
  

   The 
  antennae 
  pass 
  a 
  little 
  beyond 
  the 
  base 
  of 
  the 
  prothorax 
  and 
  are 
  sparsely 
  covered 
  

   with 
  whitish 
  hairs, 
  the 
  six 
  basal 
  joints 
  being 
  smooth 
  and 
  shining 
  and 
  the 
  five 
  apical 
  

   thickened 
  ; 
  the 
  first 
  joint 
  is 
  small, 
  the 
  second 
  longer, 
  the 
  third, 
  fourth 
  and 
  fifth 
  

   -equal 
  to 
  each 
  other, 
  and 
  the 
  sixth 
  is 
  intermediate 
  between 
  the 
  thickened 
  apical 
  

  

  