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The Hawk-moths. 

 The Hawk-moths are among the large moths which, in the evenings, 

 often fly into rooms. They are stout, strong insects, with large hairy 

 hodies. The sucking tube or tongue is extended to a great length, so 

 that it may reach the sweet fluids at the bottom of flowers with a long 

 tubular coralla. 



The caterpillars of the various species are large, stout, and smooth, 

 with very beautiful and striking colours. Theyare continually brought 

 into the Museum as remarkable objects. Those belonging to the family 

 may usually be readily distinguished by the possession of a hump or 

 horn on the eighth abdominal segment. The pupa; are occasionally 

 met with in digging the ground. They are spindle-shaped, often with 

 a long jug-like handle, which is really the case of the sucking tube. 

 The green caterpillar with oblique white lateral lines and a curved 

 hook towards the end of the body, and which lives mostly on the 

 leaves of the tomato, is a well known form. 



PLAGUE OF CATERPILLARS. 



Not far removed from the Hawk-moths are the insects which have 

 lately given rise in Jamaica to a plague of caterpillars. 



A few weeks ago accounts appeared in the papers that the guinea- 

 grass covering extensive areas in different districts of the southern 

 portion of the island, and also around Kingston, was being destroyed 

 by caterpillars. Specimens of these were sent to the Museum and 

 were allowed to pupate and afterwards the moth was hatched. They 

 are closely allied to the well known "army-worm" of America. The long 

 slender caterpillar lives mainly upon grass, but attacks also corn and 

 sugar-cane. It eats away practically all the young leaves, only the 

 dead stalks remaining In such numbers do they occur that a whole 

 district may be quickly devastated. The pupal stage in similar forms 

 elsewhere is passed through in the ground, but in the Jamaican species 

 the caterpillar makes for itself a kind of chamber by joining portions 

 of the leaves of grass and forming a thin lining by means of fine 

 threads. In this the small, brown, spindle-shaped pupa passes through 

 its metamorphosis, the result being a medium-sized moth. No further 

 accounts have been received from the country for two or three weeks, so 

 that very probably our worst times are over. The excessive develop- 

 ment, at times, of different forms of caterpillars, as compared with 

 other times, is mostly dependent upon peculiarities in climatic con- 

 ditions. 



Since this was first written I have heard from one of my correspondents 

 that the caterpillars which had disappeared seem to be now returning 

 in as great numbers, and are again destroying the grass. No doubt 

 these are derived from the batch of eggs laid by the moths result- 

 ing from the first caterpillars, and there seems no reason why we 

 should not look forward to a regular sequence of such visitations. 



SCALE INSECTS. 



The scale insects or bark-lice are well known to every observer in the 

 tropics and to those concerned in conservatories elsewhere with plants 

 from warmer parts. In many respects they form a very peculiar 

 group, and a wonderful variety of species exists within the family, 

 Coccidw, as it is termed. In appearance and habits they differ greatly 



