39 



CAUSE OF THE DEYING AND DEATH OP THE "PAEANA". 



Aoeopding to the examination made of many dried plants, 

 finding in them many remains of insects, from tihe numher of 

 nymphs ol the insect that were found at the base of the plants 

 still alive, and from those that were found and collected, there 

 can be made the definite statement that the cause of the damage 

 was the insect Monecphora hicmcta Say. We were informed that 

 there was a large numer of these insects flying among the grass 

 montihs before. 



THE INSECT MONECEHOEA "SAMVITA". 



The insect Monecphora hicincta Say, belongs to the large 

 group of sudking insects or the hemiptera an'd to the family 

 Cercopidae, thus being related to the stink bug, the spiny white 

 fly of citrus of Guantanamo, of the scale insects, of the mealy 

 bug of 'cane, and of many other insect pests of importaiice to 

 agriculture. 



These insects are distinguished particularly by being covered 

 by a juice which they extract from the plant on which they 

 feed, and resembles the human saliva, for which reason we believe 

 it desirable to call the insect by the name spittle insect "'Sa- 

 livita". 



HISTOEY OE THE INSECT IN CUBA. 



-From the year 1910 (Sept. 30th) were received in the 

 Experiment -Station specimens of these insects, which were sent 

 from Perico, Matanzas, by the Sugar Company of Tinguaro, it 

 being reported that they had been present in large numbers and 

 that they were flying over all the plants. Later and on different 

 occasions the writer collected the insect on the lands of the 

 Experiment Station, at Santiago de las Vegas, Havana. They 

 were especially abundant in one lot that having been in grass, 

 was plowed, and on breaking the soil many insects were caused 

 to fly up. In September of last year (1915) they were found in 

 abundance, sucking the juices from the roots of the cane, forming 

 there the ciharacteristic spittle (salivita) disappearing when the 

 diy season arrived. In La Gloria (Guanaja) in the north of the 

 province of 'Camagiiey, were collected adults that flew among 

 the grass. In Baracoa in April of the present year (1916) were 

 also collected by the writer adults in the grass. Also Mr. U. G. 

 Loftin, Entomologist commisioned by the United States Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture to study in Culja the parasites of the moth 



