Nine sampling units for estimating southern pine beetle population within a tree are compared according to unit size, strata size, and number and type of sampling allocation. As a measure of performance of different sampling schemes or different unit sizes the ratio of the variances of the estimate is used, i.e. relative efficiency.

Relative efficiency decreases as unit size increases, where equal surface area is sampled. Unequal stratification, which allocates smaller area to the upper and lower strata, results in higher relative efficiencies than equal stratification. Thus, unequal stratification is recommended. Samples should be allocated to these strata according to the optimal sampling ratios.

Seven species of Culicoides were collected from aerial sweeps about man or from aspiration of biting midges from man in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. Hourly sweep netting indicated C. biguttatus was diurnal in this region and was apparently limited in its dispersion. Culicoides sanguisuga was the most widely distributed species of those collected in the region. A checklist of the 15 species of Culicoides now known from New Brunswick and Nova Scotia is included.

The new genus Archepandemis, with type-species Parapandemis borealis Freeman, 1965, is described. Two new species, A. coniferana from British Columbia and Alberta and A. morrisana from New Brunswick, are distinguished from A. borealis by characters of maculation and especially of male and female genitalia.

Acephate (Orthene 75S) was applied to Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii Mirbl. [Franco]) in spring 1976 to determine its efficacy for protecting current year’s foliage from western spruce budworm (Choristoneura occidentalis Freeman). Results showed budworm mortality for both treatments exceeded the checks by at least 91% at all sample periods. A significant degree of foliage protection was also achieved as measured by mean twig length and mean number of missing needles per twig. Samples of new growth were analyzed for residues of acephate and methamidophos (an active metabolite of acephate) by gas-liquid chromatography. Results showed that high levels of insecticide persisted for about 10 days, then dropped over a 5-day period to lower levels for the rest of the study, about 35 days.

One-day-old adults of the Indian meal moth, Plodia interpunctella (Hübner), were irradiated (I) with either 35 krad (a partially sterilizing dose) or 50 krad (a sterilizing dose) and combined with untreated (U) adults at numbers of 1, 5, 10, 15, or 25 treated males or females per pair of untreated adults. At 25 males per pair, egg hatch was reduced to 4.8 and 22.2% at 35 and 50 krad, respectively. The use of the same number of I females reduced egg hatch to 0.8 and 9.4%, respectively. The calculated degree of competitiveness showed that both males and females were more competitive after treatment with 35 krad than after treatment with 50 krad and that treated females were more competitive (based on percentage egg hatch) at both doses than corresponding males. Irradiated females were fully competitive at most release ratios, but I males were not fully competitive even at the higher release ratios, although the decreases were not large enough to seriously affect their use for field control.

Total foliage consumption per larva of Heterocampa manteo (Doubleday) was 334 ± 49.3 cm2 of leaf area. Approximately 85% of the consumption occurred during the fifth larval stadium. There was no significant difference in consumption by H. manteo when fed northern red oak, Quercus rubra L., or white oak, Quercus alba L. Foliage consumption at 27 °C, 24 °C, and 21 °C did not differ significantly; but larvae reared at 15.5 °C consumed 42.6% less foliage. Larvae parasitized by Diradops bethunei (Cresson) consumed 61.3% less foliage than non-parasitized larvae reared at the same temperature. Two methods of predicting defoliation are discussed based upon larval foliage consumption data.

Tarsonemus waitei Banks, 1912, T. setifer Ewing, 1939, and T. pauperoseatus Suski, 1967, are shown to be conspecific (new synonymy). Tarsonemus bakeri Ewing, 1939, thought to be conspecific with T. setifer for the last 25 years, is shown to be specifically distinct. Both sexes of these species are redescribed and reillustrated, and character state variability expressed within populations of T. waitei is discussed. The waitei species group, previously called the pauperoseatus group, is redescribed for these and other species. A provisional key to the known member species of this group is given. This group is judged to be insufficiently distinct from some of the other species of Tarsonemus to warrant recognition as a subgenus.

An improved bioassay using closed glass units was developed for the sex pheromone of the male Queensland fruit fly, Dacus tryoni (Froggatt). Female responsiveness in glass units was quantitated and compared with that in cages, using probing with the ovipositor as the "key response". The median effective dose of pheromone required to elicit a response in 50% of the females (BR50) was much lower in glass units (< 1 male equivalent) than in cages (2.7 male equivalents), and the females also responded more rapidly. As the bioassay is adaptable to a wide variety of laboratory modifications it may be suitable for studying the sex pheromone of other Tephritidae.

The radiosensitivity of a wild-type (+/+) laboratory strain of Tribolium confusum Jacquelin duVal was compared with that of an extra-large (xl/xl) strain known to differ in only a single locus. Differences in both longevity and fecundity between the two strains after irradiation were very highly significant (p < 0.001), but real differences between strains in these biological characteristics may have produced the differential response. When differences in longevity and fecundity were corrected for the unirradiated control, there were only minor differences in response between the two strains. Thus, physical size alone apparently did not greatly influence the comparative radiosensitivity for the two strains of this species.

Xenoborus Reuter is synonymized with Tropidosteptes Uhler. Tropidosteptes brooksi n. sp. is described from Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, and Quebec. The species was collected on Fraxinus spp.

The genus Leptoteleia of the New World is revised. Twenty-five species are recognized, of which 23 are new to science: L. alexandrae ♀ (Brazil), L. americana ♀ ♂ (USA), L. andreai ♀ (Cuba), L. annarum ♀ (Brazil), L. ferdinandi ♀ (Dominican Republic), L. jarmilae ♀ (Ecuador), L. josephi ♀ (Dominican Republic), L. kareli ♂ (Jamaica), L. lubomiri ♀ ♂ (Dominican Republic), L. majkae ♀ (Panama), L. marcelae ♀ ♂ (Brazil, Paraguay), L. mariae♀ ♂ (Argentina), L. marketae ♀ (Brazil), L. martae ♀ (USA), L. miladae ♀ ♂ (Brazil), L. monicae ♀ (Dominican Republic), L. normani ♀ ♂ (USA), L. petrum ♀ (Bélize), L. radeki ♀ (Dominican Republic), L. stani ♀ ♂ (Dominican Republic), L. vaclavi ♀ (USA), L. verae ♀ (Brazil), and L. zdenae ♀ ♂ (Peru). The two previously described species, L. oecanthi (Riley) ♀ ♂ and L. arndti Dozier ♀, are redescribed. Generic diagnosis of Leptoteleia and the key to New World species are given. The higher classification, interrelationships, and distribution of Leptoteleia species are discussed.

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.

Pupal survival, mating, and sperm transfer in tobacco budworms, Heliothis virescens (F.), irradiated as diapause pupae, decreased proportionately with increasing doses of 3, 5, and 7.5 krad. Also, the fertility of tobacco budworms irradiated as nondiapause pupae and of the F1 progeny of such males decreased with increasing dose. When the female partner received eupyrene sperm, insects irradiated while the pupae were in diapause were fertile as were their progeny. Therefore, it does not appear plausible to irradiate diapause pupae of our strain of tobacco budworms to obtain sterile insects for a release program.

Three new species of Oxyporus are described from North America, O. ashei from North Carolina; O. kiteleyi from Québec, Massachusetts, and Georgia; and O. neomexicanus from New Mexico. All species are illustrated and a key is presented for the determination of all the species of the genus from America, north of Mexico.

Attractant traps, such as Pherocon ICPY®-MAGO trap and Pherocon®-AM Standard trap, were effective in monitoring emergence of the western cherry fruit fly, Rhagoletis indifferens Curran. Among the aerial traps tested, ICPY-MAGO, Pherocon-AM Standard, and Saturn yellow colored rectangles and spheres were equally effective. The ammonium carbonate traps were significantly inferior. A management program that utilized aerial traps as monitoring devices reduced the amount of spraying from 20 to 100%, depending on the fly population in the orchard, and resulted in a substantial saving of spray costs.

The process of re-emergence of Dendroctonus frontalis parent adults was investigated using emergence traps placed systematically along the bole of infested loblolly pine, Pinus taeda. Daily collections of the traps showed the re-emergence pattern by height through time. Re-emergence/100 cm2 (Y) was described as a function of time (X) by the model Y = C(18X)B−1 exp (−A(18X)B) + ɛε for intervals along the infested bole. Peak re-emergence occurred shortly after peak attack density and continued 16–20 days. Highest re-emergence density occurred at the midportion of the infested bole and tapered to the ends. The same model was used to describe re-emergence as an average process for the entire tree. For convenience in evaluating expected re-emergence totals over a time span, the cumulative form of the model was fit to the data. The proportion of re-emergence was studied using bark samples taken at the beginning and end of the process and was found to be 97% of the attacking adult population. An empirical distribution function was developed and the probability of re-emergence described using the function Y = ABCXB−1 exp (−AXB) + ɛε, where Y = the probability of re-emergence at a time X in days given that a beetle was present on day 1 of the process. The cumulative form of this model was also provided.

Using laboratory bioassays parent adults were tested and found to respond to the attractant mixture of frontalin, trans-verbenol, and loblolly pine turpentine.

Re-emergence may play several functions in the population dynamics of D. frontalis: conditioning host trees through mass colonization; establishing brood populations through multiple re-emergence, thereby efficiently allocating egg populations; identifying new hosts and aggregating populations through pheromone production; and maintenance of continuity in pheromone production at the active portion of the infestation, thereby identifying the location of trees under colonization. The prolonged re-emergence period was suggested to be of survival value to the insect in that local short term disasters would affect only a small proportion of the re-emerging population. The number of re-emergences and proportions of re-emergence were suggested to be related to oviposition per parent adult and hence attack density.

The following new taxa of Quediini (Staphylinidae) are described: Heterothops giulianii spec, nov. (California), and Acylophorus (Acylophorus) zdenae spec. nov. (Illinois, Louisiana, Texas). A revised key to North American species of Heterothops Steph. is presented as well as revised couplets for the keys to the genera of Quediini and species of Acylophorus. A lectotype is designated for Quedius compransor Fall.

Additional data on taxonomy, bionomics, and geographical distribution of many species are presented.

Analysis of samples taken during different stages of the cleaning process for certified timothy seed following harvest showed high densities of European skipper eggs in the waste. These eggs could represent a source of infestation of this insect as the waste is not destroyed but used as lawn seed or discarded on the farm.

A common regression equation, representing data collected from four widely separated areas, was constructed to determine number of eggs of the Douglas-fir tussock moth based on individual egg mass weights. The regression is designed for use in any egg mass sampling scheme where a knowledge of the potential early instar population is required. The regression equation is also given for each area.