82 



THE COCO-NUT 



CHAP. 



sign of red beetles except in occasional trees where 

 Oryctes furnished a place to enter. 



Young trees are most liable to damage by fire, both 

 because a grass fire will not reach the inflammable 

 sheaths of tall trees, and because old groves are not 

 likely to be in dry grass. 



The most of the means to be employed in prevent- 

 ing damage by Rhynchophorus have already been made 

 clear. If the eggs are laid in a tree, the metamorphosis 

 may be complete by the time the presence of the insect 

 becomes evident ; and even if the larva chances to gnaw 

 leaves about to grow into sight, and so betrays itself 

 early, it is often impossible to extract it without 

 practically destroying the tree. Every effort must 

 therefore be made to prevent the laying of the eggs, 

 and the measures by which this is to be done follow 

 from a knowledge of the ways in which the tree becomes 

 susceptible. 



Trees attacked by Rhynchophorus may die as a 

 direct and immediate result if the larvae happen to 

 destroy the growing point. This does not usually 

 occur, the larvae more often missing the embryonic tip, 

 and the tree escaping from the first attack with less 

 than fatal injury. Such trees are unquestionably left 

 more subject to subsequent attacks. They are also 

 obviously rendered less productive ; for nuts are made 

 by the use of food manufactured in the leaves, and 

 when the leaf-surface is reduced the number of nuts is 

 necessarily diminished. So the planter who waits to see 

 if trees will recover from an attack by the red beetle can 

 expect them at best to be for some time weakened, and 

 liable to renewed attack. 



Worse than this, from such trees a crop of beetles 

 escapes to seek a chance to attack other trees. The 

 attempt to save one tree may thus result in the loss of 

 many. It is better policy to destroy a tree as soon as 

 it is known to be infested by the red beetle, without 

 even waiting for the maturing of nuts already so 

 old that they would surely ripen if given a chance. 



