The striped pine scale, Toumeyella pini (King), had three generations per year in south Georgia. Females developed on snoots and males developed on needles of loblolly pine, Pinus taeda L. Generations overlapped and crawlers were most abundant in May, mid-July to early August, and late October to early November. The average fecundity was 1865 crawlers per female. Parasitism averaged ca. 15%, but the predation rate reached 50%. Coccophagus lycimnia Walker (Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae) was the most common parasitoid reared from both males and females. A pyralid larva, Laetitia coccidivora (Comstock), was a frequent predator of females.

The relationship between nutrition of the host tree, Abies amabilis (Dougl.) Forbes, as influenced by nitrogen fertilizers, and the growth of populations of the balsam woolly aphid, Adelges piceae (Ratz.), was investigated. Sixty trees, growing in a greenhouse in two soil types, a nutrient-deficient mineral soil and an enriched humic soil, were infested with woolly aphid larvae. Subsequently, groups of 10 trees received foliar treatments of various concentrations of ammonium nitrate and urea. The following year, 32 young trees in Seymour Valley, B.C., were studied to determine the effect of fertilization of uninfested trees on establishment of aphid larvae.

In the greenhouse, foliar sprays of 1% ammonium nitrate solution resulted in a 23% decrease in population in 10 weeks, as contrasted with a 31% increase in the control population. In the field, larval establishment was 31% to 37% lower on the ammonium nitrate-treated trees than on the control trees. Inasmuch as there was no evidence of increased mortality of aphids in situ, we infer that the fertilizer acts primarily by inhibiting initial settling of larvae on the host trees.

Thanasimus formicarius (L.), a main predator of bark beetles in Eurasia, was studied at constant temperatures of 15, 21, and 25 °C. Morphological data and duration of development are indicated for the egg (2.4 by 0.8 mm; 28–7 days at temperatures from 15 to 25 °C), three larval instars (9–14 days depending on instar and temperatures of 21 and 25 °C), pupa (15 and 33.5 days over the range of temperatures), and adult. Information is also given on head capsule size, sex ratio, fecundity, and length of adult life.

The carrot weevil, Listronotus oregonensis (Le Conte), is an important pest of carrot and celery in eastern Canada (Stevenson 1985). In Quebec, it is univoltine and overwinters as adults (Boivin 1985). At present, the only way to control this pest is with chemical insecticides applied either as granules at seeding time to control the larvae or as foliar sprays to control the adults before they start to oviposit. If integrated pest management (IPM) programs are to be applied to crops attacked by the carrot weevil, additional control methods are needed.

In the district around Belleville, Ontario, the eggs of Mantis religiosa are deposited during the end of August and throughout September. Some embryonic growth occurs after the eggs are laid and before they enter diapause for the winter. Many of the eggs which have over-wintered, however, fail to continue their development so that the percentage of hatch in the following spring is often greatly reduced. This egg mortality varies from year to year. Records obtainrd between 1940 and 1946 by the dissection and incubation of current oothecae collected at the end of March have indicated mortalities ranging from 15.6 to 86.4 per cent. Such mortality has been generally attributed to low winter temperatures although there was also evidence that eggs could be exposed to a temperature as low as−20°C without injury.

The oribatid mite genus Ametroproctus, soil and litter inhabitants in the desert, alpine, and montane regions of western North America, is discussed. Two subgenera are recognized, Ametroproctus s. str. and Coropoculia. Their respective type-species, A. oresbios Higgins and Woolley and C. reticulata Aoki and Fujikawa, are redescribed, and newly discovered immatures of both species are described. Four new species are proposed, A. (Ametroproctus) tuberculosus, A. (A.) aridus, A. (Coropoculia) beringianus, and A. (C.) canningsi. A new generic diagnosis is given, as well as a key to subgenera and species known from North America.

A degree-day model was developed for Alberta populations of Ostrinia nubilalis Hübner. Starting with overwintered fifth-instar larvae, the model calculates the temporal distribution of first- and second-instar larvae which are the stages most vulnerable to chemical suppression. Predictions from three alternative models were compared against field data from southern Alberta. Use of a standard 10°C growth threshold to calculate physiological time scales allowed predictions as accurate as those obtained using either a pooled threshold (11.4°C) calculated specifically from Alberta populations, or a model using two thresholds (12.3°C for fifth-instar larvae to adult and 10.2°C for eggs to second-instar larvae) that incorporated significant differences in growth characteristics observed among life stages. We conclude that standard thresholds are sufficient for degree-day models for northern populations of O. nubilalis. The standard model (t 0 = 10°C) predicts that moth emergence will peak at ca. 145 degree-days after median pupation, and that numbers of eggs, and first- and second-instar larvae should peak at 200, 310, and 450 degree-days, respectively. Model predictions can be used to time sampling effort in support of management decisions.

Sampling techniques for population and mortality factors of the fruit-tree leaf roller, Archips argyrospilus (Wlk.), on apple in Quebec, were developed at Rougemont from 1958 to 1960 with the object of obtaining reliable statistics for life tables on this species. Biometric techniques have not previously been applied for ecological studies of A. argyrospilus, most workers having been primarily concerned with life history, chemical control, and general observations on natural control factors (Gill, 1913; Caesar, 1916 and 1917; Petch, 1916 and 1942; Herrick, 1917; Muesebeck, 1921; Regan, 1923; Viereck, 1924, Venables, 1924 and 1937; Harman, 1928; Hall, 1930 and 1934; Knull, 1932; Chapman et al., 1941; Greenwood, 1943).

A detailed taxonomic definition of the family Ironomyiidae is presented, based on both sexes of Ironomyia nigromaculata White, the only known representative. Attention is drawn to the peculiar blend of primitive and specialized conditions displayed by this species. Most of the characters discussed are illustrated and compared with homologous characters in hybotine Empididae, Platypezidae, and other groups.

Trichogramma minutum Riley was released in the field for suppression of epidemic spruce budworm, Choristoneura fumiferana (Clemens), egg populations in Maine from 1977 to 1981. Commercially reared California-strain T. minutum were released from the ground at single-point sources in 1977. In 1978, using 4-point-source releases, we found that the native Maine-strain performed better than the California strain. In 1979, broadcast and multiple releases from the ground gave slight improvement in parasitism over 4-point releases. In 1981, three closely timed, aerially broadcast releases from a helicopter yielded increases in parasitism rates significantly higher than those in control plots, but not sufficient to suppress epidemic spruce budworm populations. Important variables and suggestions for future aerial releases are discussed.

More than a decade after its discovery in North America, the European woodwasp, Sirex noctilio Fabricius (Hymenoptera: Siricidae), has not been an aggressive tree killer in northeastern North American pine (Pinus Linnaeus; Pinaceae) forests. Concern that S. noctilio has potential to become a more aggressive pest as it spreads south, or as environmental conditions change, is warranted, because it has caused extensive pine losses on other continents that it has invaded. We observed S. noctilio impact and attack behaviour in eight pine stands throughout Ontario, Canada annually for a five-year period (2012–2016). Sirex noctilio impact was variable in unmanaged pine forests; it killed 3–48% of pine stems, and 3–36% of pine basal area. Most S. noctilio-caused mortality was limited to suppressed and intermediate trees. Of the 17% of pines in the entire study that were affected by S. noctilio, many (44%) were attacked in multiple years. Depending on the year, between 46% and 79% of trees remained alive in the year immediately after attack, which suggests that many study trees were at least initially resistant to attack by S. noctilio. Though its impact appears to be limited in most forests for now, we recommend that observations continue in future years.

Parasitoid species attacking sparse, endemic populations of Choristoneura occidentalis Freeman and C. retiniana (Walsingham) are reported from 2 years of host collections at seven sites across southern Oregon. Results are compared with rearings from epidemic populations either from the same region or the same plot. Collections were designed to allow quantitative estimation of host density. Most of the parasitoid species present during epidemics across North America were recovered from the endemic and epidemic populations studied. The major difference is that at endemic host densities Glypta fumiferanae (Viereck) (Ichneumonidae) is rare to absent, whereas ichneumonids of the tribe Campoplegini, especially Tranosema (= Diadegma) interruptum (Ashmead), are common. This is the reverse of the situation at epidemic densities and consistent with results reported from eastern North America. It is suggested that the observed shift in the parasite complex with budworm density has the potential for predicting population trends.

The efficacy of alpha-terthienyl (α-T) for reducing larval populations of black flies was determined in two streams in southeastern Ontario. By 24 h post-treatment, larval black fly population reductions greater than 90% resulted from exposure to calculated dosages of 0.04 and 0.10 mg-L−1 α-T emulsifiable concentrate over distances of 1.0 and 1.5 km, respectively. Significant population reductions were not observed 2.3 km downstream from injection of the 0.10 mg·L−1 dosage, probably because a marshy area upstream from this sampling site slowed the transport and enhanced photodegradation of α-T. Alpha-terthienyl initiated catastrophic drift of benthic invertebrates that was not selective for any functional feeding group. Significant increases in post-treatment drift, relative to pre-treatment densities, were observed downstream from treatment for eight of 10 taxa studied and included filter-feeders, grazers, and predators. Upstream from treatment, significant increases between sampling days were observed for only two taxa. The catastrophic and nonselective impact of α-T on invertebrate drift preclude its usefulness as an alternative to black fly larvicides used currently, although specialized applications for α-T may exist in integrated black fly control programs.

Descriptions are given of adults of three Limoniidae (Tipuloidea) found preserved in Canadian amber (Upper Cretaceous): Trichoneura (Trichoneura) canadensis sp. nov.; Macalpina incomparabilis gen. nov., sp. nov.; and Limonia albertensis sp. nov.

Multiple funnel, Schlitzfalle, and drainpipe traps baited with Linoprax® or Biolure® semiochemical baiting systems for the ambrosia beetle Trypodendron lineatum (Oliv.) were evaluated in similar experiments in British Columbia, West Germany, and Norway. In British Columbia, the Biolure-baited traps caught more T. lineatum of both sexes than did Linoprax-baited traps. The Linoprax-baited traps caught more male T. lineatum in West Germany and Norway but fewer females than the Biolure system. Low percentages of female T. lineatum were often recorded at drainpipe traps.

Adult females of Rutripalpus canadensis sp.nov. (family Rutripalpidae) from Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, Canada, adults of both sexes of Scutolebertia trinitensis gen.nov., sp.nov. (family Lebertiidae) from the Coast Range in northern California, USA, and adults of both sexes of Pseudotorrenticola chiricahua sp.nov. (family Torrenticolidae) from Arizona, USA, are described. The three new species represent the first members of their respective genera to be reported from North America, and their discovery provides new perspectives on the phylogeny and biogeography of mites in these genera.

Since 1919 it has been noticed in a number of peach orchards in the Niagara Peninsula that the larvae of Chrysopa plorabunda Fitch are highly resistant to DDT, whereas those of C. rufilabris Burm. are susceptible. Data obtained in a representative orchard since 1953 are summarized in Table I. Two 60- to 70-tree plots were sprayed with wettable sulphur or captan according to standard commercial schedules. Two adjacent plots were similarly treated with wettable sulphur and also with two applications of 50 per cent wettable DDT powder at 2 pounds per 100 gallons about 10 days apart in early July. Forty trees in each plot were sampled the same days at irregular intervals each season by brushing. This method, described elsewhere (Putman, 1955), is not a very efficient way of collecting chrysopid larvae because they are not easily dislodged from the foliage, but the numbers collected should be proportional to the actual populations. As sampling in this and in three other orchards showed that neither fungicide had any obvious effect on chrysopids, the two fungicide plots were considered as a single non-insecticide plot and the two DDT plots were similarly combined. Each value in the table represents the total number of larvae collected in each pair of plots in three to eight samplings during July and August after the first application of DDT.

This paper reviews the literature on the identification of 3-methylcyclohex-2-en-1-one (MCH) as the antiaggregation pheromone of the Douglas-fir beetle (Dendroctonus pseudotsugae Hopkins) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) and the development of successful management applications using the pheromone. Previously unpublished data from two studies on novel uses of MCH are included. The successful development of antiaggregation pheromone-based treatments for the Douglas-fir beetle is discussed in relation to efforts to develop similar treatments for other bark beetle species, and opportunities for future research on MCH and the Douglas-fir beetle are suggested.

The suitability of a European moth Anaitis plagiata (L.) for the biological control of the weed Hypericum perforatum L. in British Columbia is evaluated. It is concluded that the introduction of the moth is justified as it offers prospects of reducing the weed density without damage to economic plants. A. plagiata is preadapted to dry habitats and ecologically restricted to them. Its high fecundity and two generations a year should enable it to reach an effective population level rapidly and the early spring feeding by the overwintered larvae should damage the weed when it is most vulnerable. It was shown by feeding tests that the larvae are restricted to plants in the genus Hypericum. Furthermore, all the known hosts of the genus Anaitis are restricted to the genus Hypericum which indicates that the insect-host plant relationship is an old and highly stable one. Larval feeding was found to be partly in response to a chemical compound present in the cuticular waxes of the host plant.