130 
CCCLXXV.—THE COFFEE-LEAF MINER. 
(Cemiostoma coffeellum, Stainton.) 
An enemy to coffee trees in Brazil and some parts of the West Indies 
is found in the caterpillar of a small moth which mines in tne substance 
of the leaves, and causes rusty-coloured blotches on their upper su urface. 
This disease is quite familiar to coffee planters, and the object of the 
present note is not to enlarge on its destructiveness, but to bring 
together what has already been written on the subject for the con- 
venience of reference in official correspondence. The insect in Brazil 
was carefully studied by Mr. B. Pickman Mann, who was engaged as 
Entomologist to the Government of Brazil. His observations, with 
plates, are given in the * American Naturalist,” Vol. VI., pp. 332 and 596. 
Mr. Mann there calls it the “ White Coffee- Leaf Miner,” and in 1872 he 
considered it “ the greatest enemy of coffee culture in Brazil.” 
The injury to the coffee leaves is caused, as already stated, by the 
Seni. or larva. This lives within the oe tissues of the lea aves, 
After the caterpillar has stopped feeding vit changes into a a ade and 
this, after it has emerged from its burrow, and covered with its silken 
web, may easily be found in a: fold of the leaf. The mature insect is a 
moth, beautifully ornamented with silvery wings, these would hardly 
cover the breadth of the little finger nail. The male and female moths 
fly actively, with a jerking flight, and at other times they may be seen 
at rest upon the leaves and branches, but are agi disturbed. They 
belong | » the tribe of the cloth-worm moths ( Tineina), which are all of 
small size, whose wings are fringed with hairs. n account, probably 
ir 
French Ministry of Marine (Paris, 1842). It is there described as a 
species of Elachista. 
The following note appeared in the Kew Report, 1876, pp. 20-21. 
* Cemiostoma coffeellum.—A disease has for many years been known 
to exist in the island of Dominica, and also to a large extent in Brazil, 
This was characterised by the appearance of large discoloured blotches 
upon the leaves, leading eventually to their decay and fall and so 
seriously i sy tithe the health of the trees. Various theories, yet! of 
à priori character, were started to explain the cause, but 
competent investigation has placed the true explanation beyond the 
shadow of a doubt. The leaves eA destroyed by the larve of a minute 
but very prolific moth. They live between the two surfaces of the 
leaves, and gradually consume the intermediate cellular tissues. "The 
moth is, in fact, a member of the same genus as that which mines the 
leaves of the laburnum | in our gardens. This insect is said to lessen the 
coffee crop in Brazil by at least one-fifth. The little pest has been 
found iu the Antilles, island of Martinique, province of Rio Janeiro, and 
over the whole coffee region of Brazil. According to an inclosure in 
