Bassus arthurellus n. sp. is described making the name available for studies currently underway on the parasitoids of pests of sunflower (Helianthus). Reasons are given for including this species in Bassus F., a genus often considered a synonym of Agathis Latr.

A sequential sampling system for early-instar Douglas-fir tussock moth larvae based on beating 3 lower branches from each of a number of trees is described. The relationship between lower- and mid-crown insect densities is given. The number of samples required to assess moderate insect densities using a fixed level of precision and at low insect densities using a critical density level is presented. The system is designed to be used during the early stages of an outbreak in stands not previously defoliated.

Sampling statistics for adult northern corn rootworms in New York field corn are reported, with particular reference to efficient monitoring for decision-making in pest management. The most efficient sample unit of those examined was a single, entire plant. Sample sizes and associated costs required to achieve fixed levels of precision for estimates of density are reported. Because required sample sizes are density dependent, a sequential-sampling plan providing final estimates of density at preset levels of precision is developed. The method makes no assumption about the frequency distribution of insect counts, which was found to vary from field to field and with time. Disturbance caused by sampling activity may introduce a bias of unknown direction and magnitude in estimates of beetle density. Care in approaching and examining plants; should reduce this bias.

Banchus flavescens Cresson is the most abundant hymenopterous parasitoid of the bertha armyworm, Mamestra configurata Walker, in western Canada. The females attack 1st, 2nd, and 3rd instars of the host. The speed of parasitoid development is adjusted so that the 2nd instar is completed when the host finishes feeding. Banchus flavescens has an obligate diapause and overwinters as a prepupa within a cocoon in the soil. Notes on life history and descriptions of the egg and 5 larval instars of B. flavescens are given.

The generic placement of Tanypus pallens Coquillett, 1902 is changed to Conchapelopia s. str., with a redescription given of the male holotype. As a result Conchapelopia (s.s.) gonoides (Subi.) becomes a junior synonym of Conchapelopia (s.s.) pallens (Coq.). The status of Larsia pallens (Coq.) sensu Roback 1971 with its synonymies are discussed.

Film records of cutworms feeding on cabbage showed that in sampling and continuous feeding, the mandibles, maxillary palps, galeae, labial palps, and labrum contacted the leaf. Sampling involves palpation with the maxillary palps; this is followed by test biting, during which the galeae, labrum, and labial palps make initial contact with the plant. Test biting may be followed by continuous feeding in which all of the mouthparts contact the leaf in characteristic patterns. The actions of the mouthparts are discussed in relation to the function of their chemosensilla.

Females of Diplolepis rosae introduce their ovipositors between the developing leaflets of an expanding bud of Rosa and attach their eggs singly to epidermal cells. The anatomy of the ovipositor is described in relation to the oviposition behavior. SEM and optical microscopic observations of the ovipositor are described, as are the relationships between the sheath and the 2 stylets. Changes in the shape of the eggs as they pass down the ovipositor are also described.

The systemic insecticides oxydemeton-methyl and acephate were injected at 10- and 15-cm spacings, and acephate and dimethoate were implanted at 10-cm spacing in Douglas fir, Pseudotsuga menziesii var. glauca (Beissn.) Franco, to improve seed yield. Nutrients were also injected at 15-cm spacing. All treatments except nutrients and dimethoate increased the yield of filled seeds when compared with the checks. The western spruce budworm, Choristoneura occidentalis Freeman, and spruce coneworm, Dioryctria reniculelloides Mutuura and Munroe, caused most of the damage to cones.

The calling of female blueberry spanworms occurs primarily during the first few hours of the photophase under controlled laboratory and field conditions. Peak calling occurred 2 h after lights-on at laboratory test temperatures of 20,15, and 10 °C under a light:dark regime of 16:8; duration of calling was prolonged at 10 °C. Under continuous scotophase, female calling activity free-runs at a natural periodicity of ca. 27 h. However, under continuous photophase the circadian rhythm is damped to a low level of activity but maintains a ca.24-h periodicity.

The character-state distribution of various external and internal pro- and mesothoracic structures of Hymenoptera is described. Structures discussed are the transscutal articulation, axillae, notauli, median mesoscutal sulcus, parapsidal lines, pronotal lobe, postspiracular sclerite, prepectus, netrion, epicnemium, basalare, pronotal-mesothor-acic attachment mechanism, and 2 mesothoracic muscles, viz. mesotrochanteral depressor and second-phragmal flexor. Ancestral state and transformation of the characters are hypothesized, and shared derived states of higher taxa are determined. Hypotheses of synapomorphy are based on the shared derived states, and these hypotheses used to test previous hypotheses of relationship and classification. Relationships of Symphyta to Apocrita and of Aculeata to Terebrantes are discussed, and various aspects of classification of Symphyta and Terebrantes are examined. Finally, prior use of terms is reviewed for the thoracic structures studied. A single set of terms is selected for use throughout the order based on original use of each term and on hypotheses of homology.

The western Nearctic genera Neothremma and Farula are assigned to the family Uenoidae, previously comprising only the type genus Uenoa from Asia; a new genus Sericostriata with S. surdickae n. sp. from western North America is also added to the family. Traditionally assigned to the Limnephilidae where they have been always anomalous, Neothremma and Farula are shown to share many synapomorphic larval characters with Uenoa; under close examination, characters of the adults support this relationship. Familial and generic diagnoses are provided, reflecting the revised composition of the Uenoidae. Generic keys to adults, larvae, and pupae are given; species are briefly reviewed and keys given to adults; Uenoa arcuata n. sp. is described from Assam, Uenoa janetscheki Botosaneanu is placed as a junior subjective synonym under U. hiberna Kimmins, and Neothremma laloukesi Schmid as a junior subjective synonym of N. alicia Dodds and Hisaw. Phylogenetic relationships among the genera are considered. This study is an instructive example of the importance of larvae in providing data for the systematics of Trichoptera.

Attraction of male Choristoneura spp. to various mixtures of the pheromone components of C. occidentalis Freeman and C. retiniana (Walsingham) released at various rates was evaluated at several sites in western North America. At all but 1 location, male trap capture increased with progressively greater release rates of a 92:8 mixture of (E)- and (Z)-11-tetradecenals (TDALs), previously identified as active components of the attractant pheromone of C. occidentalis. Similarly, trap catch was positively correlated with release rate of an 84:7:8:1 mixture of (E)- and (Z)-11-tetradecenyl acetates and (E)- and (Z)-11-tetradecenols (1:0.1 TDACs:TDOLs), previously identified as active components of the attractant pheromone of C. retiniana. All release rates of TDALs attracted only C. carnana (C. occidentalis and C. carnana probably are subspecies of the same species) in the central Sierra Nevada, but in the southern Cascades all but the lowest release rate of TDALs attracted significant numbers of males classified as C. retiniana in addition to those classified as C. occidentalis. At all locations, 1:0.1 TDACs: TDOLs exhibited complete species specificity, attracting only C. retiniana at all release rates tested. The 1:0.1 ratio of TDACs: TDOLs was the most attractive mixture of these components to C. retiniana. Addition of 1:0.1 TDACs: TDOLs did not significantly affect attraction of C. carnana to TDALs. However addition of TDALs significantly decreased attraction of C. retiniana to 1:0.1 TDACs:TDOLs.

The life history and biology of Ips latidens (LeConte) were investigated using bark-sandwich and whole-log rearing methods. In contrast with other Ips spp., some females initiated galleries under conditions of female-biased sex ratios, and sometimes 2 or more males were present in a gallery. In general, however, I. latidens exhibited typical ipine characteristics. A single male usually admitted 1–3 females into a gallery. Females oviposited at a rate of 2.25 eggs/day and achieved a mean fecundity of 64.4 eggs. The larval stage comprised 80% of the generation time (egg to teneral adult) and analysis of head-capsule widths disclosed 3 larval instars. The mean survivorship within broods was 56.0% after 70 days; the reproductive success of monogamous pairs of beetles was 36.1 teneral adults. Single females constructed 3–4 egg tunnels/gallery system; hence, harem size cannot always be inferred from the number of egg tunnels in each gallery. The mean generation time in the laboratory was 2.07 × greater than for I. pini. By comparing laboratory data on I. latidens with laboratory and field data on I. pini, the generation time of I. latidens is estimated at 64–124 days in the field. In south-central British Columbia, I. latidens probably has 1 generation, and possibly 2 broods, per year.

The diets of 25 species of forest-inhabiting birds were examined in California from 1962 to 1968. Coleoptera and Hymenoptera comprised the bulk of the diets. Coleopterans were, in decreasing amounts, the most common food of the three-toed woodpecker, Steller's jay, American robin, brown creeper, hairy woodpecker (both sexes), dark-eyed junco, downy woodpecker (both sexes), olive-sided flycatcher, western wood-pewee, and white-headed woodpecker (both sexes). Hymenopterans, mainly ants, were the most common food of the northern flicker, Williamson's sapsucker, red-breasted sapsucker, and acorn woodpecker. White-headed woodpecker (both sexes) also ate ponderosa-pine seeds in the fall. Hairy woodpecker (both sexes) fed on the seeds of ponderosa pine and sugar pine. Detailed estimates of foods consumed by item and volume from analyses of stomach contents of 241 specimens are presented.

Development rates of the parasitoid, Trichogramma minutum Riley, were studied to provide information required in timing field releases of T. minutum for suppression of egg populations of the spruce budworm, Choristoneura fumiferana (Clemens). Development was observed in eggs of 2 host species, C. fumiferana and Sitotroga cerealella (Olivier), at constant temperatures of 14, 21, and 27 °C. Parasitoid development varied directly with temperature. Parasitoids developed more rapidly in eggs of S. cerealella than in those of C. fumiferana. Parasitoid males developed faster than females in some host-temperature treatments. Development of T. minutum is apparently rapid enough to allow progeny of parasitoids released early in the spruce budworm's oviposition period to mature and be available to oviposit in budworm eggs deposited later in the budworm oviposition period. Potential release strategies are discussed.

The impact of predation by Calosoma sycophanta L. on an increasing prey population was assessed by recapturing marked adult beetles, periodically observing tagged gypsy moth pupae, and examining gypsy moth pupal remains in different microhabitats. Adult beetles dispersed in random directions but many tended to remain near the trap at which they were originally caught, suggesting a low dispersal potential. About 75% of the adult beetles present in the plot on one day were still present the next day. Capture–recapture estimates suggested that there were at most about 250 male beetles and half as many females/ha in the plot. Calosoma larvae destroyed 70% of tagged gypsy moth pupae under burlap bands on tree trunks near ground level, which was much more than any other mortality factor. Although this percentage was the same when mortality was assessed by looking at pupal remains within 5 m of the ground on tree trunks, pupae higher in trees and on leaves were not attacked as frequently. On average, about 40% of the pupae present in the entire study area were destroyed by Calosoma larvae. Each female beetle in the site would have had to produce about 30 progeny to have this effect. These data suggest that a relatively low number of adult beetles can have a substantial impact on gypsy moth populations.

Fenusa pusilla (Lepeletier) and Messa nana Klug coexist on white birch near Sudbury, ON. Both species often oviposit simultaneously, but their mines are spatially separated because of differences in ovipositional behavior. Most first-generation F. pusilla oviposit in unfolding leaves arising from currently expanding shoots situated distally on the branch, whereas M. nana oviposits in fully expanded leaves arising from older shoots situated proximally on the branch. Leaf tissues damaged by oviposition and larval feeding were examined. Larvae of F. pusilla consume both palisade and spongy mesophyll, whereas larvae of M. nana consume only palisade. It is suggested that F. pusilla develops faster than M. nana because it feeds on leaves of greater nutritional value and digests more cellular components.

The onion maggot, Delia antiqua (Meigen), is the most important pest of Allium spp. in temperate regions of the northern hemisphere (Loosjes 1976; Ellis and Eckenrode 1977). If left uncontrolled, the onion maggot can cause from 20 to 100% crop losses, especially in light organic soils. In the early 1950's, with the development of organochlorine insecticides, onion growers obtained good control of onion maggot populations (Finlayson et al. 1959), but the pest rapidly developed resistance to these toxicants (Harris 1977). The chlorinated hydrocarbons were replaced by the less persistent organophosphorus and carbarnate insecticides (Hanis et al. 1981), but the onion maggot was reported to become resistant to these compounds (Harris et al. 1981; Carroll et al. 1983). Among alternatives to the use of insecticides to control the onion maggot are the entomopathogenic fungi and their metabolites. The potential of mycotoxins as rnicrobially derived insecticides has been investigated by several researchers and reviewed recently by Roberts (1981).

The mountain pine beetle, Dendroctonus ponderosae Hopkins, is one of the most destructive bark beetles found on pine in western North America (McCambridge et al. 1979), particularly in forests of lodgepole pine, Pinus contorta Douglas var. latifolia (Furniss and Carolin 1977). The treatment registered in the United States for the protection of high-value trees in residential areas and recreational areas is 2% carbaryl applied to the bole of the tree with a hydraulic sprayer. Recently, pine oil, a derivative of paper pulp waste, was found to be an effective non-insecticidal repellent against several species of bark beetles (Nijholt et al. 1981).

The larvae and pupae of Stictochironomus marmoreus (Townes) and S. quagga (Townes) are described. Diagnostic features of the larvae of S. marmoreus and S. quagga are found in the relative lengths of antennal segments 2 and 3, in the length of the antennal blade, and in the size of the mental teeth. The pupae can be distinguished by the conformation of the shagreen pattern on tergites II–V and the number of spines in the caudolateral comb on abdominal segment VIII. Preliminary keys to known Nearctic larvae and pupae of Stictochironomus are given.