Three new species of Micropeplidae are described from Latin America, Micropeplus newtoni from Mexico, Peplomicrus mexicanus from Mexico, and Peplomicrus pecki from Colombia, bringing the total number of New World species to 21. A revised key to aid in the identification of the Micropeplidae of Latin America is presented. New distributional data are given for 10 other species of the family and revised distributional maps are given for the North American species Micropeplus sculptus, M. laticollis, and M. robustus.

During courtship in Lytta nuttalli Say the male assumes the active role. Mounted above the female, he repeats a cycle of three stereotyped, stimulatory activities: antennal manipulation, abdominal vibration, and attempted genital insertion. The male uses both his antennae together to stroke alternately the tips of the female’s antennae, which he holds upright with his fore legs. With rapid lateral vibrations of his abdomen, he brushes the ends of the female’s elytra and her eighth tergum with the long bristles on his eighth sternum. He also repeatedly probes the end of the female’s abdomen with his aedeagus, attempting to establish genital contact. Abdominal vibration is performed alternately with genital insertion attempts; antennation usually is carried out at the same time as the other activities. Courtship lasts for a few minutes to 1 hour or more. Copulation is initiated by successful genital insertion and is executed with the male and female aligned end-to-end. Its average duration is 8 to 10 hours. Abdominal vibration seems to be unique to Lytta, whereas the dorsal orientation during courtship and the genital activity are similar to those observed in many other Meloinae. Though antennal manipulation is common in Meloinae, the method employed by L. nuttalli is different from that in other meloines. Anatomical modifications related to courtship are discussed.

Previous studies have shown that some varieties of rutabagas in the field have resistance to the cabbage maggot, Hylemya brassicae (Bouché) (Swailes, 1959). It was evident that at least two factors were involved in resistance: (1) larvae encountered difficulties in initiating feeding and (2) larvae encountered resistance to growth. The latter factor was considered in the present study.

Three benzoylphenylurea insecticides, diflubenzuron, triflumuron, and teflubenzuron, were toxic when applied to eggs of Phyllonorycter blancardella (Fabr.) 0–2 and 4–6 days post-oviposition. Most treated eggs hatched but larvae died in the early instars. High larval mortalities also occurred when treatments were applied to foliage prior to oviposition. Treatments applied to larvae, especially older larvae, were less toxic than those applied to eggs. In the field, control was similar whether insecticides were applied during egg deposition, first hatch of eggs, or against early-instar larvae. Applications during egg deposition are suggested as optimal for control. Control of spotted tentiform leafminer with insect growth regulators was equivalent to that obtained with deltamethrin or methomyl.

Residues of diflubenzuron and triflumuron, applied pre-bloom, persisted until leaf drop 19 weeks later. Residues of teflubenzuron persisted for 9 weeks. Populations of spotted tentiform leafminer were suppressed throughout the season and residues of all insect growth regulators except teflubenzuron applied in May were toxic to larvae into October.

DDT and DDD emulsifiable formulations were tested against aquatic invertebrates in small plots in rapids in the St. Lawrence River. Pollution was minimal; less than 0.0044% of the river discharge was treated in each rest.The weakest dosage of DDD, 0.8 p.p.m.-minutes, disabled many Trichoptera and Diptera; the strongest, 12.0 p.p.m.-minutes, did not eliminate any one Order of insects except perhaps Plecoptera. A dosage of 6.0 p.p.m.-minutes was selected for tests on a larger scale against shadfly larvae (mainly Trichoptera). Net-spinning Trichoptera were more sensitive than case-bearers. Of the non-insect organisms, amphipods were relatively sensitive but their populations were rapidly restored by immigration. Oligochaetes and molluscs were least affected.The use of small plots in a large river required special equipment and techniques: a larvicide dispenser (to be described separately), the use of concentrated milk as a dye to aid in the survey of plot boundaries, the transfer of disabled organisms to fresh water to compare recovery rates, and a formula combining data from samples of both disabled and surviving organisms to estimate per cent kill.

The bertha armyworm, Mamestra configurata Walker, causes periodic but severe damage to canola crops in North America, particularly in the Canadian provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba. This paper provides information on the tachinid flies (Tachinidae: Diptera) recorded from bertha armyworm in North America. A key to adults is provided for separation of the genera, and each species known from bertha armyworm is characterized with respect to recognition, biology (including hosts), and distribution. The species included are Athrycia cinerea (Coquillett), Blondelia sp., Chetogena claripennis (Macquart) species complex, Chetogena tachinomoides (Townsend) (new record), Eurithia consobrina (Meigen), Exorista mella (Walker), Lespesia archippivora (Riley), Panzeria ampelus (Walker), Phryxe pecosensis (Townsend), Phryxe vulgaris (Fallén), Spallanzania hebes (Fallén) (new record), Winthemia rufopicta (Bigot), and Winthemia quadripustulata (Fabricius). Eurithia consobrina is a Palearctic species that has been introduced into Canada for control of M. configurata but is probably not established; it is included here in the event it is introduced again and establishment is achieved.

The research objective of this study was to develop a pheromone-based detection system for the nun moth, Lymantria monacha (Linnaeus), an important defoliator of spruce, Picea A. Dietrich, and pine, Pinus Linnaeus (Pinaceae), forests in central Europe. In northeastern Germany, comparative analyses of rubber- and polyurethane-based dispensers impregnated with a 20:20:1 blend of (±)-disparlure (cis-7,8-epoxy-2-methyloctadecane), (±)-monachalure (cis-7,8-epoxy-octadecane), and 2-methyl-Z7-octadecene revealed that polyurethane-based dispensers afforded higher captures of male L. monacha. Species specificity and optimal dose of the pheromone dispenser were tested in deciduous rather than coniferous forests in central Europe to better reflect nonhabitat settings, such as North American ports, in which detection surveys would be conducted. Baiting Unitraps with 2, 20, 200, or 2000 μg [based on (±)-disparlure] of the L. monacha volatile blend resulted in increasing, species-specific captures of male L. monacha with increasing volatile dose. (±)-Disparlure, previously used for detection of L. monacha, tested at the same four doses indiscriminately attracted male L. monacha and male Lymantria dispar (Linnaeus). Polyurethane-based dispensers loaded with at least 200 μg of the L. monacha volatile blend are recommended for sensitive detection surveys of L. monacha in North America.

Adults of the merchant grain beetle, Oryzaephilus mercator Fauvel, were found most frequently in bran, shelled sunflower seeds, rolled oats, and brown rice in a series of tests of up to 18 different household foods and oilseeds. Walnuts and flaxseed ranked next among the preferred foods. Wide fluctuations in preference occurred with bran, bread crumbs, and soda crackers. In a test of sunflower seeds, rolled oats, and bran all were equally preferred. Few beetles were found in wheat germ flakes, cornflakes, whole rapeseed, and raisins, and one or none in flour, a mixture of flour and brewers’ yeast (95:5, w/w), pancake mix, shredded coconut, and crushed or pulverized rapeseed. The same foods, in pulverized form, contained few or no beetles, indicating that food density affects insect distribution.

Diagnostic characters of Antispila nyssaefoliella Clemens and A. cornifoliella Clemens are discussed. Antispila freemani is described as a new species. Adults and male genitalia are illustrated for these three species.

Twelve historically unfamiliar Ephemeroptera species described from Canada over 65 years ago were studied. Diagnostic characters are given that validate Acerpenna akataleptos (McDunnough) (Baetidae), whereas certain larval specimens of the genus Acerpenna Waltz and McCafferty cannot yet be associated with any species. Cinygmula confusa (McDunnough, 1924), syn.nov., (Heptageniidae) is shown to be a junior synonym of Cinygmula par (Eaton, 1885), and Serratella serratoides (McDunnough, 1931), syn.nov., (Ephemerellidae) is shown to be a junior synonym of Serratella molita (McDunnough, 1930). New distribution records are given for Ironodes flavipennis Traver (Heptageniidae), Cinygmula gartrelli McDunnough, Heptagenia adaequata McDunnough (Heptageniidae), and Siphlonurus autumnalis McDunnough (Siphlonuridae), including the first substantiated records for the latter three from the United States. A first larval description of S. autumnalis is provided. Ephemerella fratercula McDunnough (Ephemerellidae) is apparently rare, but its previously doubtful North Carolina record is confirmed. All larvae previously reported as Neoephemera bicolor McDunnough (Neoephemeridae) cannot be placed to any nominal species. Parameletus croesus (McDunnough) (Siphlonuridae), Plauditus rubrolateralis (McDunnough) (Baetidae), and Rhithrogena gaspeensis McDunnough (Heptageniidae) are distinctive species but are known from few records.

Lipoptena pudui n. sp. was taken from the cervid Pudu pudu (Molina), in central Chile. This is the first ked-fly known from this species of pygmy South American deer. The new species is closely related to L. guimaraesi Beq. and is characterized chiefly by the long narrow palpi and the non-constricted pronotum. A revised key to the New World species of Lipoptena is presented.

For many years, trap nests have been used to study hole-nesting bees and wasps (aculeate Hymenoptera) and to monitor their diversity and abundance (Krombein 1967; Danks 1971; Godfrey and Hilton 1983; Frankie et al. 1998). Trap nests are valuable for environmental assessment (Tscharntke et al. 1998) and for agriculture through improved pollination by bees (Bosch 1994; Stubbs et al. 1997; Hallett 2001) and biological control by wasps (Harris 1994). Frankie et al. (1988) indicated that shaded environments might be preferred habitats for some solitary bees that use tree holes for nesting. Shading could offer protection from natural enemies as well as wind, rain, and sunlight, resulting in stabilized humidity and temperature. As far as we are aware, ours is the first experimental study to consider the effect of shading of trap nests.

The influence of male and female body size on copulation duration and probability of insemination was determined for Anthocoris whitei Reuter allowed to mate at two temperatures. Copulation duration decreased significantly with increasing male length or increasing relative size (male length divided by female length). Female length had no effect on copulation duration. We interrupted copulation at 20 or 40 min at both 25 and 15 °C to determine the interacting effects of male size, temperature, and copulation duration on probability of insemination. Insemination probabilities increased with increasing male size, increasing temperature, and increased duration of copulation. Large males were more successful than small males at inseminating females at cool temperatures and for severely shortened copulations. Results are consistent with the hypothesis that males of this species experience physical difficulties either in achieving intromission or in forcing sperm through the aedeagus, and that larger body size in males lessens these difficulties.

The cabbage maggot, Hylemya brassicae (Bouché), is one of the main factors limiting the production of high-quality rutabagas, Brassica napobrassica Mill., in the irrigated districts of southern Alberta. This crop is damaged late in its growing season; there is little damage to cruciferous crops in early spring except that occasionally early-transplanted cauliflowers are killed. This suggested the possibility of some change in the cropping practice if the flight and oviposition periods, recorded herein, were accurately known.

With winged and wingless males being currently found in Southern Quebec, the pea aphid, Acyrthosiphon pisum (Harris), cannot be regarded as a subspecies of the European species, on the basis of males being supposedly winged in North America and East Africa and wingless in Europe and Asia. The host relationships are apparently different as is also the occurrence in Europe of red forms of the aphid.

The variicornis-group of Gryon is proposed for 15 Neotropical species of which 12 are new to science: atrocoxalis (Ashmead) / Grenada & Trinidad, W.I., Brazil, Colombia/; cultratus n. sp. /Brazil/; david n. sp. /Panama/; goliath n. sp. /Panama/; helavai n. sp. /Panama/; hercules n. sp. /Brazil/; masoni n. sp. /Trinidad, W.I./; neotropicus n. sp. /Colombia, Ecuador/; peckorum n. sp. /Ecuador/; rothi n. sp. /USA/; scutellatus n. sp. /Brazil/; sinop n. sp. /Brazil/; titan n. sp. /Brazil/; tridentatus n. sp. /Ecuador/; and variicornis (Fouts) /Guyana, Panama, Nicaragua, Brazil, Colombia/. The systematic position of the group within Gryon is discussed.

Hylastes opacus Erichson is a recently introduced bark beetle in North America (Bright and Skidmore 1997; Hoebeke 1994; Rabaglia and Cavey 1994; Wood 1992). It is widely distributed in the Palearctic region, where it usually breeds in stumps and roots of dead or dying pines (Pinus) and occasionally other conifers (Hoebeke 1994). Like many species of bark beetles, H. opacus uses host volatiles as cues to search for suitable host material for feeding and establishment of broods. Hoebeke (1994) reported the attraction of H. opacus to ethanol-baited logs of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) and red pine (Pinus resinosa Ait.) in New York, United States of America. In Sweden, Schroeder and Lindelöw (1989) observed H. opacus responding to (−)-α-pinene and to ethanol released separately, but a synergistic increase in response did not occur when these two compounds were released together. In later experiments, Lindelöw et al. (1993) found that traps baited with ethanol alone, ethanol + (−)-α-pinene, and spruce turpentine caught significantly more H. opacus than unbaited traps. In these experiments, (−)-α-pinene alone was not attractive, and when (−)-α-pinene was combined with spruce turpentine and ethanol, it reduced catches of H. opacus. In 2002, while investigating attractants for the pine shoot beetle, Tomicus piniperda (L.) (TM Poland, P de Groot, S Burke, D Wakarchuk, RA Haack, and RW Nott, unpublished data), we unexpectedly found significant numbers of H. opacus in one of our experiments. Here we report that H. opacus is strongly attracted to nonanal.

Fifty-seven species of 27 families of mites associated with apple trees in Annapolis Valley, Nova Scotia, were recorded. Five species were phytophagous, 34 species were presumably predacious, and 18 species were presumably scavengers and fungus feeders.

Several ecological factors governing populations of the larch sawfly, Pristiphora erichsonii (Htg.), have been studied in Manitoba and Saskatchewan since the present outbreak began about 1939. It soon became clear that soil moisture, parasires and predators, and the growth habits of tamarack were among the most important components of the environmental resistance. Data from ohservations and experiments were gathered by several investigators of the Forest Insect Laboratory, Winnipeg. Manitoba, and are still largely unpublished. In this paper, an attempt is made to appraise the over-all effect of these factors on abundance of the larch sawfly.