19 
or beneath a tuft of lichen or moss, or below the junction of a branch 
with the trunk, &c., having passed fully three weeks in the caterpillar- 
stage. Having found a convenient resting-place it enters the chrysalis- 
Stage, which in the early part of the season is of brief duration, the 
moth emerging to deposit its eggs as already described, so that two or 
even three generations may be developed in one season. 
Caterpillars leaving the fruit late in the season remain in the 
dormant stage during the winter, the perfect insect making its appear- 
ance the following spring. 
PREVENTION AND CURE, 
All loose bark should be removed, moss or lichen should be 
scraped off. Loose growth of every kind should be cut away so as to 
afford the least possible amount of shelter for the caterpillar after it 
oe the fruit, and expose it for a longer period to the attacks of 
irds. 
The period at which the insect may be most easily destroyed is 
during the caterpillar-stage, when advantage may be taken of its habit 
of ascending the trunk to capture large numbers. Bands of canvas, 
calico, or even stout paper, three to five inches wide, are attached 
round the stem in such a way that the upper. margin fits tightly all 
round, while the lower margin is sufficiently loose to allow the 
caterpillar to creep beneath it without difficulty; the insect readily 
takes possession of the shelter afforded by the band, and, secreting a 
light web, enters upon its dormant stage. The bands should be ex- 
amined once a week and the caterpillar destroyed: usually several 
insects will be found under each band. 
Ropes of hay or straw, dipped in a mixture of tar and oil, and 
laid-on the ground so as to surround the trunk without touching: it, 
would doubtless prevent the caterpillar from gaining access to the tree, 
but would do nothing towards destroying it. 
All fallen fruit should be promptly collected and destroyed before 
the caterpillars have time to emerge. 
LEAF-CHAFER. 
I was informed that a small brown beetle frequently attacked the 
leaf of the apple in several districts during the early summer months, 
and in the Waikato I saw large quantities of apples disfigured during 
the early stages of growth, and often curiously warted or even 
distorted, not improbably by the same beetle; but 1 was unable to 
obtain specimens of the insect. i 
In the North it was spoken of as the “ Maori bug,” but this name 
is misleading, being commonly applied to the karamu, so well known 
on account of the unpleasant odour which it emits when touched. 
GRASS-GRUB (Odontria zealandica). 
See under “Olive,” page 35 
