The larch sawfly, Pristiphora erichsonii (Htg.), is a serious defoliator of trees of the genus Larix and particularly of Larix laricina (Du Roi) K. Koch in eastern Canada. According to Reeks (1954), four outbreaks occurred in the Maritime Provinces between 1883 and 1942. Following the last outbreak, few specimens of the insect were found in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island until 1960 when an outbreak started near Fredericton, New Brunswick. Since, outbreaks varying in degree from moderate to severe have persisted throughout this province.

In the course of a study on the ecology and population dynamics of the insect it was found necessary to verify and separate the various developmental stages of the larvae.

Priesner (1979) reported five types of receptor in the trichoid sensilla on the antennae of male spruce budworm, Choristoneura fumiferana. One responded maximally to (E)-11-tetradecenal (Ell-TDAL), the primary component of the natural sex pheromone (Sanders and Weatherston 1976). Two other receptors showed maximum response to (E)- 11-tetradecen-1-yl acetate (E 11-TDACET) and (E)- 1l-tetradecen- 1-ol (E11-TDOL), respectively, both of which are present in female glands, but neither of which has been found in significant amounts in the emitted pheromone. The other two receptors showed maximum responses to (E)-9-tetradecenal (E9- TDAL) and (E,E)-9, 11-tetradecadienal (E9, E 11-TDDAL), respectively, neither of which has been reported from gland extracts or the emitted pheromone.

Ascalaphidae occur in Canada. Here, we document the presence of Ululodes quadrimaculata (Say) in southern Ontario, which was suspected by Kevan (1979).

SPECIMEN MATERIAL. Ontario: ESSEX COUNTY: Harrow, ♀, VIII.1974 (W. Elliott; UG). LAMBTON COUNTY: Pinery Prov. Pk., ♂, 4.VII. 1977 (B. Marshall & W. Maddison; #770112b, ROM). MUSKOKA DISTRICT: Georgian Bay, Island #421, ♀, 5.VII. 1963 (J. P. Bogart; UG); Gravenhurst, ♀, 20.VIII. 1975 (D. J. Aspinall; UG); Muskoka, ♀, VIII.1957 (D. Barr; ROM).

The predaceous mirid Deraeocoris nebulosus (Uhler) is found on more than 50 species of ornamental trees and shrubs where it feeds on several important pest species (Wheeler et al. 1975). It is a common mite and aphid predator in commercial apple orchards in Virginia (Parrella et al. 1978). Wheeler et al. (1975) described the nymphal stages and biology, but made no mention of the egg or oviposition site. We describe the egg and oviposition site which we discovered while studying various predators of the European red mite, Panonychus ulmi (Koch), in Virginia apple orchards. Eggs and oviposition sites of other predaceous mirids associated with apple have been described (Kullenberg 1942; Collyer 1952, 1953; Sanford 1964; Horsburgh and Asquith 1968, 1970).

Cassida azurea Fab. was incorrectly identified as C. hemisphaerica Hbst. in the paper entitled “Biology of the tortoise beetle, Cassida hemisphaerica (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae), a possible biological control agent for bladder campion, Silene cucubalus (Caryophyllaceae), in Canada”, Can. Ent. 108: 945–954, 1976. Thus, all references to C. hemisphaerica in that paper, with the exception of those in sections Geographic Distribution and Recorded Host Plants, should read C. azurea.

Receptive fields of the infrared receptors located in sensory pits adjacent to the mesocoxal cavities of Melanophila acuminata were measured using a goniometric apparatus and plotted on a Mollweide homolographic projection. The receptive fields extend mainly in a lateral and ventral direction. The total receptive area in units of solid angle is 5.80 steradians but the simultaneous field of perception of infrared radiation of all the sensilla in a pit is only 0.42 steradian. Based on these findings and on other evidence we believe that the infrared-sensitive sensilla function during flight and are used by these beetles for detecting point sources of heat, such as forest fires, from long distances.

The disruption of insect mating with sex pheromones by the air permeation technique is a complex problem influenced by a number of variables. Not least among these is the actual atmospheric concentration of pheromone during the course of the experiment. While closely related to the measured release rate from a formulation, the atmospheric concentration should be regarded separately since a number of other factors may intervene, e.g., chemical instability, foliage adsorption, and the differential effects of formulation weathering in the laboratory and the field.

The present study was conducted in conjunction with small scale field trials involving an aerially applied hollow fiber formulation of the sex pheromone of the spruce budworm, Choristoneura fumiferanu (Clem.), I1 -tetradecenal (97:3::E:Z). (Hereafter referred to as pheromone.)

During studies on different aspects of cricket (Orthoptera: Gryllidae) biology in Hawaii, we observed many toads, Bufo marinus (L.), in areas inhabited by the field crickets Teleogryllus oceanicus (Le Guillou) and Modicogryllus conspersus Walker. The research reported here was intended to determine if B. marinus is a predator of these crickets and, if so, the relative amount of predation on each. We also tested the possibility that B. marinus locates crickets by orienting to cricket acoustical signals.

The wharf borer, Nacerdes melanura (L.) (Fig. I), is widely distributed throughout the world. It has been recorded in England, New Zealand, Denmark, Germany. Siberia, Japan, and the Bahama Islands (Balch 1937). Walker (1936) reported N. melanura from Syria, Shanghai, Korea, Japan, South Africa, Brazil, Argentina, Costa Rica, and the United States. In the United States, it has been found in most coastal states, and also in Michigan, Indiana, Missouri, Kansas, and New Mexico. In Canada, it is known to occur in Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, and British Columbia. The life history of the wharf borer in Canada has been outlined in detail by Balch (1937) and Spencer (1957).

The common June beetle, Phyllophaga anxia (LeConte), is an indigenous pest of agricultural crops in North America (Hammond 1948; Ritcher 1949). A bionomic study and survey for natural enemies of P. anxia was conducted in southern Quebec from 1975 to 1977. Pasture soils were searched for immature stages of P. anxia, and any natural enemies found in situ were collected. A prepupa and pupae of Pelecinus polyturator (Drury) were found in the pasture on several occasions. Previously, P. polyturator had been reported as a parasite of grubs of Phyllophaga spp. (Davis 1919; Petch and Hammond 1925, 1926; Brues 1928; Hammond 1944), and its distribution ranges from Canada to Argentina (Masner 1979).

Tussock moths of the family Lymantriidae are an important group of forest defoliators that characteristically have periodic outbreaks. The sex pheromone of the female Douglas-fir tussock moth, Orgyia pseudotsugata (McDunnough), has been identified as (Z)-6-heneicosen-11-one (Smith et al. 1975) and shown to be sexually stimulating to males of seven tussock moth species in two genera, Orgyia and Dasychira (Daterman et al. 1976; Grant 1977). Laboratory tests demonstrated that this compound could disrupt mating of both the whitemarked tussock moth,O. leucostigma (J.E. Smith), and rusty tussock moth, O. antiqua (L.), when the adults were maintained in an atmosphere containing the chemical (Grant and Frech 1976). Subsequently field tests in small plots treated with the same material released into the atmosphere at a rate equivalent to 20-50 mg/ha/day demonstrated that pheromone communication of whitemarked tussock moths and a conifer-feeding tussock moth, Dasychira plagiata (Walker), could be disrupted in their natural habitat (Grant 1978). Similar disruption was obtained with field populations of the Douglas-fir tussock moth (Sower and Daterman 1977). The present report describes the disruptive effects of (Z)-6-heneicosen-11-one in the field on the pheromone communication of another species, the rusty tussock moth.

A toy called “Star Beam” (Burgess Batteries, Freeport, Ill. 61032, U.S.A.) is made of 145 cm long, 3 cm diam., transluscent, polyethylene tube illuminated by a battery-operated flashlight with a 2.5 watt bulb and two D cells (Fig. 1). The Star Beams were adapted for use as insect light traps by covering the tubes with a thin coating of Stikem Special® clear adhesive (Michel and Pelton Co., 5743 Landregan St., Emeryville, CA 94608, U.S.A.), spread with the thumb and the index finger. When hung at night in the crowns and fronds of coconut palms in Jamaica, West Indies, these traps attracted insects which were caught in the adhesive. After picking off the desired insect specimens with a brush or a small spatula, the adhesive was wiped off the tube by moving the black basal collar (see Fig. 1) to the tip of the tube and back. New adhesive could then be applied again. The plastic flashlights, including the reflectors, had to be replaced after several nightly 4-h trappings due to damage caused by humidity, condensation, and oxidation of the metal parts.