The woodwasp, Xiphydria canadensis Provancher, is a rare insect restricted to northeastern North America. Provancher (1875) based his original description on a single female collected at St. Hyacinthe, Quebec. In his recent revision, Smith (1976) saw only five females. On 7 August 1977, I collected a specimen of this large and distinctive species on the north side of Hwy. 60, at Mile 12.7, just west of the Park Museum in Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario. This collection constitutes the first record for this species in Ontario.

Sympiesis yuekseli n. sp., a larval parasite of a new species of Phyllonorycter Hbn. from Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada, is described and illustrated.

An apoidean community in southern Ontario was intensively sampled over two seasons. One hundred and forty-one species in six families were collected. The species–abundance relationship exhibited a log-normal distribution. Flight activity began before late April and continued past late September. Most species were active for only a brief portion of that period. The most abundant species were known to be primitively social. Thirty-six of the species were parasitic bees. A number of other specialized parasitoids of the orders Diptera, Coleoptera, and Hymenoptera were recorded.

The potential usefulness of Nosema locustae Canning as a microbial agent for grasshopper control was first demonstrated by Henry (1971) and Henry et al. (1973). These authors found that a 50–60% reduction in grasshopper density (as compared with untreated populations) could be achieved, and they speculated that 35–50% of the survivors would be sufficiently infected so that their fecundity would be reduced. The value of incorporating such an agent into a grasshopper pest-management system is obvious: By suppressing high insect densities to manageable levels, the need for conventional chemical insecticides could be reduced and perhaps even restricted only to “hot spot” areas. The objectives of the study we report here were to: (1) Determine if N. locustae was infective to the predominant species of grasshoppers in Saskatchewan; (2) if so, monitor the development of the disease within the populations; and (3) determine if the pathogen could survive over the winter and infect next year's populations. Because this was a preliminary experiment, we did not attempt to determine any effect the pathogen might have on population reduction.

A simulation model is described for the population dynamics of the European red mite, Panonychus ulmi (Koch). The model incorporates the following features: (a) development rate is dependent on effective daily temperature; (b) division of each population component into distinct daily age classes; (c) emergence of individuals from each population component is dependent on a log-normal probability distribution, and a temperature related development vector to accumulate a measure of the temperature effect on development. Validation runs on a mini-computer in 1976 and 1977 adequately described actual population curves determined from daily orchard sampling. A model of this type which can be used with small computers should prove useful in investigating the main factors affecting the population dynamics, and control strategies for this and other pests.

A sterile insect release may reduce the rate of reproduction in the pest population exposed but has no carry-over potential to succeeding generations. Serebrovskii (1940) suggested the use, in release programs, of semi-sterile insects of such genetic make-up that their reproductive potential is low. The advantage claimed is that this trait would be inherited and would lower the reproductive rate in succeeding generations (Curtis 1968; Rai et al. 1973; Knipling and Klassen 1976). The genetic factor most widely suggested for producing this type of continuing semisterility is the chromosomal rearrangement called a translocation (Fitz-Earle 1976; Robinson 1976). In laboratory and field cage tests, it has been demonstrated that chromosomal translocations reduced the reproductive rate in several insect species in the generation in which the translocation is introduced (Robinson 1976). However, in such experiments, the effect of a single release of individuals on population levels in subsequent generations has not, to date, been demonstrated.

Adult emergence curves of the Nantucket pine tip moth, Rhyacionia frustrana (Comstock), and 27 members of its parasitoid complex were compared for four generations in the Georgia piedmont. Based on numbers of emerging adults, parasitism of the three 1975 R. frustrana generations was 42%. Two parasitoids, Lixophaga mediocris Aldrich and Compoplex frustranae Cushman, comprised 45 and 23% of all parasitoids, respectively.

Emergence curves of R. frustrana and parasitoids showed considerable overlap. It appears unlikely that foliar applications of broad spectrum insecticides for control of R. frustrana can be timed to prevent heavy parasitoid mortality.

Eleven species of parasitoids were reared directly from host larvae or pupae. Examination of host remains showed that some species of parasitoids may be either primary or secondary. The habits of Haltichella rhyacionae Gahan and Spilochalcis flavopicta Cresson were found to be more diverse than previously reported and include internal secondary and primary parasitism, respectively.

Telenomus californicus Ashmead is a major egg parasite of the Douglas-fir tussock moth, Orgyia pseudotsugata (McDunnough), throughout the host's range. This parasite is effective at finding host egg masses. Even when host insects are sparse, over 90% of egg masses may be attacked and 50% of the total egg complement destroyed (R.R. Mason and T.R. Torgersen, unpub.). In the southwest an undetermined Tetrastichus species can also be a significant egg parasite of the tussock moth. Because host finding might involve some degree of kairomonemediated behavior we were interested in any effect that synthetic pheromone, applied to disrupt mating of the host, might have on parasitism by these valuable species.

Forty-one species of spiders were found in a Quebec apple orchard. The most abundant species were Theridion murarium, Araniella displicata, and Philodromus rufus. Spiders in general were rather low in population density throughout the study, and they declined by two-thirds in the final year, owing probably to several factors including the use of broad spectrum insecticides for the control of particular orchard pests.

Several authors have observed that Rhagoletis pomonella (Walsh) is usually less prevalent during hot dry summers than during cool wet summers (Rivard 1968). Neilson (1964) showed that the emergence of R. pomonella, under laboratory conditions, was affected by the relative humidity of the air. When the relative humidity was 20 or 40%, high mortality occurred during metamorphosis and fewer adults emerged.

The object of this study was to measure the influence of soil moisture on success and time of emergence in a laboratory experiment. The information is needed to improve the forecasting system for apple maggot control in apple orchards (Trottier, in press).

Pea aphids can avoid ladybug predators by dropping from the food plant when disturbed. Once off the plant the aphid must find another food plant. If temperatures on the ground are high, the aphid may die before finding a new food plant. In Kamloops, B.C., summers are hot and dry, compared with Vancouver where the climate is warm and moist. Pea aphids from Kamloops generally exhibit back-up behaviour and rarely drop from the plant when approached by a ladybug. By contrast, Vancouver pea aphids readily drop from the plant when disturbed by a predator. Adult aphids from Kamloops are more tolerant of heat under moist conditions at 37.5 °C than Vancouver adults but under dry conditions and at 42 °C, both groups have similar survival times. First instars of both aphid biotypes die sooner at high temperatures than adults. Mortality of aphids on the ground is sufficiently high to select against dropping behaviour as a first line defense against predators in areas with hot, dry climates.

The fall webworm Hyphantria cunea Drury is a polyphagous lepidopteran which has been recorded on over 200 host species. In New England, although it occurs on a large number of species, the most frequently exploited host is black cherry, Prunus serotina Ehrh.

Two nuclear polyhedrosis viruses were fed to larvae of the Douglas-fir tussock moth, Orgyia pseudotsugata. Mixtures of the two viruses in varying proportions and separate doses of the two with a varying time interval between were administered. Larvae dying of polyhedrosis were examined to determine the proportions of the two viruses found in the bodies of the insects. The multicapsid virus (BV) showed a tendency to predominate over the unicapsid virus (SV), particularly in massive doses. In small doses, SV appeared in mixed infections even when the proportion of SV in the infective dose was small. When BV was administered 24 h in advance of SV, the development of SV was inhibited completely. At shorter intervals of time between doses, mixed infections occurred.

Analysis of neurotransmitter levels in individual insect brains has been hampered by the unavailability of a suitable tissue homogenizer. Commercially-available homogenizers are expensive, often fragile, and generally ill-designed and cumbersome for handling microlitre volumes. This report describes the fabrication of an efficient, inexpensive microhomogenizer suitable for routine processing of small amounts of soft tissue using an idea suggested by Meek (1976).

Archaeological excavation on the Augustine Mound, New Brunswick, Canada is adding new insights into Canada's prehistoric people as well as into entomology. This human burial site (Cfd1-2) consists of an artificially constructed mound of earth, approximately 11 m in diameter and 0.8 m into the gravel subsoil of a river terrace. The site has been dated between 2000 and 2500 years ago, based on cross-dating to other archaeological sites in Eastern North America and on one carbon date of 2330 ± 110 B.P. (F1-344) which was unfortunately from a disturbed context. The artifacts placed with the dead indicate some form of close cultural contact between the people of Atlantic Canada and the American mid-west (Turnbull 1976). The most unusual aspect of the site is the quantity of preserved organic materials recovered from the graves. Many fragmentary pieces of hide, and copper beads (the likely agent of preservation) were found with the dead.