22 Indian Museum Notes. [Vol. V. 



Kurseong Division, were received in the Indian Museum specimens of 

 a moth said to be doing considerable damage to teak trees in the 

 Bamonpokri plantation. 



The Deputy Conservator of Forests wrote :— 



" The caterpillars first appeared in August last and by October they had 

 completely stripped all the trees of their leaves, and again in January last they 

 destroyed the young leaves."' 



The insect is an Arctiid moth, but the specimens sent had been 

 so badly rubbed and broken that it is quite impossible to identify the 

 species ; they, however, appeared to be a new teak pest and differed 

 widely from the two known species previously recorded in the pages 

 of these Notes. 



2. Hyblsea puera, Cram. — In June 1898, some moths were for- 

 warded to the Museum by Mr. T. T. Bourdillion, Conservator of 

 Forests, Quilon, as doing immense damage to teak plantations of 

 Southern India. 



The specimens were identified with Hyblcea puera y Cram, a 

 common teak pest in India. 



The following is an extract taken from a report furnished by the 

 Forest Ranger :— 



'* The attacks generally begin in April when the teak tree has put on its new 

 foliage and they last for about six weeks, when the caterpillars begin to disappear, 

 but one or two may always be found on the teak, if a search be made for them. 

 The wet weather probably prevents the moth from increasing, and very little is 

 seen of it until September or October, when, if the North-East monsoon is light, 

 its caterpillar may again attack the teak, the attack lasting about a month. Both 

 very wet and very dry weather seem detrimental to the spread of the insect. 



" When the caterpillar begins to pupate it suspends itself by threads at either 

 end to a leaf not necessarily a teak leaf, spins a cocoon round itself and folds the 

 leaf over so that it is quite snug, 



" The caterpillar will eat the leaves of some jungle plants as well as teak, and 

 it has been found in the jungle. 



" The caterpillar when it has once begun feeding, never leaves the tree, though 

 it may shift from branch to branch when its food is exhausted in one place. It 

 does not drop by a thread to the ground when it wishes to change its skin and 

 therefore the system of tarring the stems of the trees employed in Germany to 

 prevent the caterpillars re-ascending them, is inapplicable." 



3. Paliga damastesales. Walk. — From Mr. R. S. Hole, Divisional 

 Forest Officer, Damoh, were received in September 1898 specimens 

 of the larva, pupa and imago of the Pyralid moth Paliga damastesales i 

 Walk, as injurious to teak trees in the forest of Damoh. 



