An aerial dispersal system was developed for inundative release of insect eggs, Anagasta kuehniella (Zeller) and Sitotroga cerealella (Olivier), parasitized by Trichogramma minutum Riley. The equipment was used successfully in field tests over a 4-year period (1982–1985) in a coniferous plantation forest near Hearst, Ont. The release equipment consisted of simple electrical components, mechanical components from a small grain planter, and a centrifugal slinger used for aerial seeding of jack pine. The equipment was mounted on a Bell® 47 helicopter, flown at about 25 m above the ground. A swath width of 15 m was attained using this system. Application rates ranged from 12.3 to 263.0 g ♀ ♀ parasitoids per hectare (0.6–25 × 106 ♀ ♀ parasitoids per hectare) during the 4 years of tests.

From the literature 70 of the 212 chironomid genera known in the immature stage from the Holarctic Region are considered in this paper to be inhabitants of springs or seeps, or both. Three more are known only from adults collected at springs and seeps so that 73 out of 235 genera recognized from the Holarctic appear to be associated with these habitats. Literature records of distribution suggest that 65 of the 73 occur in northeastern North America. Collections from natural and manmade springs and seeps in Labrador yielded 45 genera; 40 of these genera belong to the set of 65 genera noted above. The other five are likely spill-overs into springs and seeps from adjacent habitats. Communities from manmade springs and seeps originating from the earth dykes and dams at Churchill Falls were compared with natural springs and seeps there and in Goose Bay, Labrador. Chironomid communities were similar at the generic level in both man-made and natural spring–seep habitats.

Six small peatlands, comprising three bogs and three fens, were surveyed for spiders in southern Ontario or southwestern Quebec. Collections from the Mer Bleue bog contained representatives of 108 species (54.6% of the total), those from the Crieff fen 97 (49.0%), those from the Wylde Lake bog 77 (38.9%), those from the Oliver bog 76 (38.4%), those from the Richmond fen 59 (29.8%), and those from the Poltimore fen 49 species (24.8% of the total). The family Erigonidae had 24.8% of the total 198 species, Lycosidae had 11.1%, Linyphiidae had 10.6%, and Salticidae had 9.1%, Web-building species outnumbered hunting species by 118 to 80. The majority of species in these peatlands are wide-ranging litter inhabitants, about one-third are tree, shrub, or herb inhabitants, and one-tenth were found only in or on the surface of the peat itself. Nine of the last-named group appear to be restricted to bogs, but none appear to be restricted to fens.

Two systems for releasing the egg parasitoid, Trichogramma minutum Riley, from ground level in forest stands are described: (1) a gridded point-source release using parasitized host eggs attached to cards, and (2) a hand-held leafblower distributing parasitized eggs in bulk. Neither technique affected the emergence of the parasitoids released. Parasitoids emerging from eggs released in bulk had a similar sex ratio, longevity, and fecundity to those not released. Both methods of ground release achieved uniform parasitoid distribution and resulted in levels of parasitism similar to those achieved with aerial releases. Parasitism was greater in the mid- to upper canopy of trees than in the lower canopy. The difficulties associated with each technique and its comparative usefulness in experimental and operational programs are discussed.

Entomopoxviruses (EPVs) are large DNA viruses with structural similarities to vertebrate poxviruses. EPV virions are occluded in large (3–15 μm in diameter) proteinaceous occlusion bodies (OBs). To date, EPVs are reported from 15 species of grasshoppers and locusts. The current information on the biochemical characterization of these EPVs is summarized in our review. The DNA genomes of grasshopper and locust EPVs analysed to date have a G+C ratio of approximately 18.5% and genome size estimates generated by various methods range from 180 to 194 kilobase pairs (kbp). Restriction endonuclease enzyme analysis of a number of grasshopper and locust EPV DNAs shows the virus isolates to be distinct and the technique will be useful in identifying virus isolates. The structural proteins of certain grasshopper EPVs have also been analysed. Forty to 50 polypeptides ranging in molecular weight from 12 to 200 kilodaltons (kDa) have been detected by SDS-PAGE analysis of virions released from OBs and the polypeptide profiles are distinct for many of the virus isolates. The proteinaceous matrix of the OB of EPVs contains one predominant protein referred to as spheroidin. The spheroidin protein from most grasshopper EPVs is approximately the same molecular weight, 107 kDa, when analysed by SDS-PAGE. As with other groups of occluded insect viruses, grasshopper EPVs have a protease activity associated with OBs derived from infected insects. The possible role of this protease activity in the infection cycle is discussed. Finally, the role of various molecular techniques for the detection and identification of EPV infections in laboratory and field populations of grasshoppers and locusts is discussed. The development of EPV-specific monoclonal antibodies and DNA hybridization probes for the detection of virus infections is reviewed. As well, the possible use of polymerase chain reaction and randomly amplified polymorphic DNA fingerprinting techniques for the detection and identification of EPV infections is discussed.

The beetle (Coleoptera) fauna of a black spruce [Picea mariana (Mill.) BSP] – tamarack [Larix laricina (DuRoi) K. Koch] – Sphagnum bog in Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario, was sampled from early June to mid-August with yellow pan traps and emergence traps. The yield was 5734 beetles, in 30 families. Ptiliidae was the most numerically abundant and Staphylinidae was the most taxonomically diverse. Carabidae was second in diversity and third in numerical abundance. The abundance and ecological implications of some individual species are discussed. Few of the species are bog-specific. The faunal composition suggests that the bog is in a late-succession phase and that most of the beetle species are derived from adjacent habitats.

Myzocallis Passerini as here understood consists of the following 30 species: agrifolicola Richards, asclepiadis (Monell), bella (Walsh), borneri Stroyan, carpini (Koch), castanicola Baker, coryli (Goeze), discolor (Monell), elliotti Boudreaux and Tissot, ephemerata Richards, exultans Boudreaux and Tissot, frisoni Boudreaux and Tissot, glandulosa Hille Ris Lambers, granovskyi Boudreaux and Tissot, kuricola (Matsumura), longirostris Richards, longiunguis Boudreaux and Tissot, melanocera Boudreaux and Tissot, meridionalis Granovsky, mimica Richards, multisetis Boudreaux and Tissot, myricae (Kaltenbach), occulta Richards, pepperi Boudreaux and Tissot, picta (Ferrari), punctata (Monell), rostropunctata Richards, spinosa Boudreaux and Tissot, tuberculata Richards, walshii (Monell). A key and notes on the distribution and relationships of each species are given. A host index has been compiled.

Canadian literature on the ecology, behaviour, and life-history is summarized for each of the eight species of sawflies, jointworms, and related insects, one species of earwig, eight of thrips, about nine of springtails, thirteen of mites, and one symphylan that are recorded as harming annual crop plants in Canada.