CATERPILLARS BEATEN.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVII, Issue 4, 6 January 1937, Page 7

CATERPILLARS BEATEN.

NEW SOUTH AFRICAN WAR. JOHANNESBURG, December 31. The South African Government has found a way of wiping'out a caterpillar plague. South Africa, in building up its forests, introduced large numbers of exotic pines. They were flourishing until the caterpillar of a native moth found that the foliage of the pines made a tasty meal. They were like an army on' the march among the tree tops, defoliating the trees rapidly. Forest experts introduced two parasites known to have a liking for caterpillars, but they fell down on the job. As a last, desperate resort, they decided to "bomb" the pests. Aeroplanes fleW over the * forest, the pilots flying as close to the tree tops as safety would allow. From the 'plahes poison dust, calcium arsenate, was sprayed—l 7 tons of it over a 2000-acre forest. The caterpillars died in their millions. Some weeks have passed since the experiment was carried out. The caterpillars are still dying. Those that are alive go on eating the foliage, but one speck of the poison dust on the foliage is a death dose. Caterpillars are causing thousands of pounds damage to crop* in the Camperdown district, Victoria. Farmers had to harvest on Christmas and Boxing Days to avoid a total loss. The caterpillars appeared mysteriously about a week before that date, and at the same time the heads began to disappear from the crops. Many acres were soon destroyed. Farmers had been congratulating themselves on the excellence of their harvests. In the race to save crops many have had to be cut before they were sufficiently dry. The caterpillars have even attacked the green stooks. But it is an all-wind . . . Thousands of birds which have followed the plague did not go wanting tor a Christmas 'dinner.