Journal of the Entomological Society of British Columbia

Downes, W.

English

Fifty years of entomology on Vancouver Island

Llewellyn Jones, J. R. J.

6 E:'ITO~lOLOGICAL Soc. OF BRITISH COLl;~IBIA. Pnoc. (1948)' VOL. 45, JULY 28, 1949 
AN EXPERIMENT WITH LARVAE OF LAMBDINA FISCELLARIA 
SOMNIARIA HULST 
J. R. J. LLEWELLYN JONES 
Cobble Hill, B.C. 
As long ago as 1905 it was recognized 
that there was a close connection between 
the oak looper, then known as Therina 
somniaria Hulst, and the hemlock looper, 
Therina fiscellaria Guenee. 
In the Bulletin of the British Colum-
bia Entomological Society, 1906, No.3, 
September, page 3, in an article entitled 
ccTherina somniaria at Victoria," Dr. J. 
Fletcher is quoted as saying that, during 
an outbreak the previous year, larvae of 
somniaria were observed feeding on west-
ern hemlock, spruce and Douglas fir. Also 
the Rev. G. W. Taylor is reported as con-
sidering somniaria Hulst, to be a variety 
of fiscellaria Guenee. 
More recently a paper has been pub-
lished by H. W. Capps entitled "Some 
American Geometrid moths of the sub-
family Ennominae heretofore associated 
with or closely related to Ellopia Treit-
schke" (Proc. United States Museum, 93 
(3159):115-150, Washington, 1943) in 
which the writer regards somniaria Hlst., 
as a regional race of fiscellaria Guenee 
and places them in a new genus Lamb-
dina Capps. H e states that examination 
of the genitalia confirms his arrangement. 
The oak looper therefore becomes Lamh-
dina fiscellaria somniaria Hlst., and the 
western hemlock looper Lambdina fircd-
Laria lugubrosa Hlst. 
In support of this view, I submit the 
following notes on an experiment carried 
out last season with larvae of somniaria, 
obtained during a severe but local out-
break in the Saanich District of Victoria 
on Garry oak, Quercus garry ana Douglas. 
Eleven hundred larvae were obtained 
in varying stages of growth. Of these 
two hundred were placed in a container 
and fed with western hemlock, Tsuga he-
terophyLla Sargent. The larvae readily 
accepted this and fed to maturity. Sixty-
three imagines were obtained during Sep-
tl~mber and Octoher, a percentage of 31.5. 
Of the remaining 900, which were allow-
ed to continue feeding on G arry oak, 473 
imagines were obtained, a percentage of 
52.5. 
Both groups of insects showed the same 
range of colour variation, but there was 
an appreciable difference in the size of 
the imagines. Those which had been giv-
en hemlock were smaller and more close 
the normal size of fisccllaria lugubrosa 
HIst. 
A verage measurements were as follows: 
1. Fed on oak 1. 7 5 inches. 
2. Fed on hemlock 1.50 inches. 
The converse experiment was not so 
successful due chiefly to the lack of heal-
thy specimens. Some 70 larvae of the 
hemlock looper, L. fiscellaria Lugubrosa 
Hlst., were received from Mr. G. R. 
Wyatt, early in August from th e Sarita 
Ril'er area on Vancouve r Island. They 
were heavily parasitized and also were suf-
fering from a virus in fection, consequent-
ly mortality was great. Only one imago 
was obtained, a rather small sized male. 
The larvae survived long enongh how-
ever to satisfy me that they would readily 
accept nak as a food plant. About 20 lar-
vae were supplied with oak, which they 
promptly ate. 
In conclusion, it would seem reasonable 
and, I deem, desirable, to accept H. W. 
Capps' re-arrangement of this group, about 
which, in the past, there has been some 
disagreement and speculation. 


An experiment with larvae of Lambdina fiscellaria somniaria Hulst

Spencer, G. J.

26 ENTO~IOLOGICAL Soc. OF BRITISH COLU~lBIA , ?ROC. (1948), VOL. 45, JULY 28, 1949 
head out and leaving only a tube. It is at 
this time, when the larvae are nearly ma-
ture, that the untidy blotches of faeces 
pushed from the entrance hole are most 
obvious. 
With one exception, all the larvae seen 
had these habits. The individualist was JI1 
the open, during the day, feeding on the 
upper surface of a hollyhock leaf. 
At Vernon, hollyhock was the only ob-
served host. Heinrich (1921. Some Le-
pidoptera likely to be confused with the 
pink bollworm. Jour. Agric. Research 20 
(11):807-836, pIs. 93-109. Noctuelia, p. 
829-830), recorded N. rufofascialis lar-
vae from the pods 0 f A butilon, M alvas-
trum, Wissadula, and Sida, all malvaceous 
INTRODU CTION INTO BRITISH COLUMBIA OF TWO 
SPECIES OF JAPANESE CERAMBYCIDAE (Coleop' 
tera) .-Semanotus japonicus Lacordaire.-On April 3, 
1917, the late Max H. Ruhm ann collected a fine cer· 
ambycid a t the outskirts of Vernon, B.C., on the flow-
ers of a native shrub. This specimen was given to 
the late R alph Hopping of Vernon, specialist on the 
Lepturini, who marked it as a new species but re-
mained suspicious and did not describe it. While ex-
amining materials in the collections of the California 
Academy of Sciences recently , I recognized it as S. 
japonicum. Dr. E. C. Van Dyke tells me that in Japan 
the species breeds in a cupressi ne tree, Cryptomeria 
plants, at Brownsville, Texas. He report-
ed that the larvae pupate in a thin cocoon, 
either in the empty seed pod or on the out-
side of the plant. H e gave no figures of 
the insect, but it is possible he was dealing 
with the typical subspecies. All the speci-
mens seen at Vernon were smaller and 
more brightly colored than the typical 
form, white and red instead of ash gray 
and reddish brown . The larval colors 
were almost exactly those of the adults. 
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS-I am indebted 
to Dr. T. N. Freeman of Ottawa, Ont., 
for identifying the reared moths and cit-
ing Heinrich's paper j and to Mr. Ben Sug-
den of Armstrong, B.C., for the illustra-
tions. 
japonica. Since there are a number of Japanese far-
mers in the Vernon district, it is probable that the 
Ruhmallll speci men emerg-ed from furniture or crating 
lumber in some settler's effects. 
Callidium rufipenne Motschulsky. Professor G. J. 
Spencer h as kindly allowed me to record that in 
March , 1927, at Vancouver, B.C., he reared a series 
of small reddish cerambycid from some wood of Jap-
anese origin. One of the se beetles is now in the Lins-
ley Gressitt collection in the California Academy of 
Sciences, and agrees perfectly with Japan ege examples 
of C. rufipenne.-Hu!(h B. Leech , Calif. Acad. Sci ., 
San Francisco, Calif. 
NEW LITERATURE 
CATALOGUE OF THE ODONATA OF CANADA. NEW-
FOUNDLAND AND ALASKA.-Francis C. White-
house. Reprinted from th e Tran saction s of the Royal 
Canadian In s titute, Vol. XXVII, No. 57, October, 
1948. 
In the author's word s in his introduction, I'th is is 
a recapitul ation of the recorded data on the odo ll ate 
fauna occurring north of the international ooundary; 
givi ng di s tribution; life zones within the territory cov-
ered; a li s t of the papers from which the records a re 
taken , or are cited, in the text; flight periods, and 
selected refe rences to descriptions and figure s .. for 
full bibliographies of species described prior to 1910, 
the reader is referred to th e indispensable pages of 
Mutton ski's Catalogue, to which the second numbers 
in thi s list refer." The fir st numbers are presumably 
the author's own, since he does not state their source. 
One hundred and eighty -six species are recorded 
from Newfoundland and Laurador, every province and 
the Northwest Territories, to the Yukon and Alaska; 
British Columbia is represented as the Mainl and, Van-
couver Island and the Qu ee n Charlotte Islands. The 
zones u sed are those of Merria m. " Capitals are used 
where the species find s optimum condition s in the zone 
indicated; lower case where the species extends only 
part way into the zone or is sca rce there." Thi s last 
featur e constitutes a very useful item in any cata]o~ue 
and so do the High t pe riods wh ich have been taken 
from all records; whe re these " are too scant to repre-
sent the fli ght period fully, then first and las t dates 
are gi ven in suggestioll that the imag-o life centres 
1I p Oll these." 
Th e list of references includes over 156 titles, the 
latest di s tributional li sts of the various spe cifi ed areas 
being printed in heavy ty pe. At the end of the cata-
logue is an index cont ailling ge nera alph abetically ar-
ranged with species in eac h genus also alphabetically 
arranged. 
Beyond a couple of trifting typographical erro rs, the 
compiling, editing and priJlting is perfect to the last 
punctuation mark , which is a real achie vement in so 
detailed a n undertakin g. The paper is heavy a nd ser-
viceable as it would need to be) or it wou ld be worn 
to shreds in the hands of any worki n!( odonatis t. 
The author pays a glowing tribute to Dr . E. M. 
Walker, Dean of Canadian students of Dragon fiies, 
who se past efforts constitute at least 80 percent of 
the m a terial in this Catalogue. In the opinion of the 
reviewer) all entomologists ill Canada owe an equally 
heavy debt of gratitude to Mr. Whitehou se for this 
extremely painstaking and inclusive piece of work . 
-G. J. SPENCER 


Catalogue of the Ondonata of Canada, Newfoundland and Alaska, by Francis C. Whitehouse

Hardy, George A.

El"TOMOLOGICAL Soc. OF BRITISH COLUMBIA, PROC. ( 1949). V OL. 4 6. MAY 15, 1950 13 
LITERATURE CITED 
H oll and , G. P .. 194 9. A revi sed check list of the fl eas of British Columbia. Ent. Soc. B. C. 
Proc.45:7-14. 
Hubbard . C. A., 1947. Fleas of western North America. Iowa State College Press; pp. i-ix + 
1- 533; 5 plates; many text figures. 
Jellison. W. L .. 1945. Siphonaptera : the genus Oropsylla in North America. Journ. Parasitol. 
25 :413-428: plates I-III. 1947. Siphonaptera: host distribution of the genus Opisocros-
lis Jordan. Trans. Amer. Microscop. Soc. 66 :64-99: plates 1. II. 
Jrllison. W. L. and G. M. Kohls. 1939. Siphonaptera: a list of Alaskan fleas. Pub. Hlth. 
Repts. 54 :2020-2023. 
J ordan. K .. 1933. A survey of the classificat ion of the American species of Ceratophyllus s. lat. 
Nov. Zool. 39 :70-79. 
Munro , J. A. and I. McT. Cowan. 1947. A rev iew of the bird fauna of British Columbia. B. C. 
Provo Mus. Special Publication No.2 : pp. 1-285 ; figs. 1-42. 
Simpson. G. G .. 1945 . The principles of class ification and a classificat ion of the mammals. Amer. 
Mus. Nat. Hist. Bul. 85 :i-xvi + 1-350. 
NOTES ON THE LIFE-HISTORY OF THE GARRY OAK LOOPER, LAMBDINA 
FISCELLARIA SOMNIARIA Hlst. 
(Lepidoptera Geometridae) 
G. A. HARDY 
Provincial Museum . Victoria . B. C. 
The following notes on the life his-
tory of this notorious species which has 
caused such devastation to the Garry 
oak. Quercus garryana Doug!. in Vic-
toria and vicinity during the past two 
years. were made from reared specimens. 
Ovum. Laid September 18,1947, in 
a jar in which pieces of lichen and moss-
covered bark were placed together with 
bud-bearing twigs. Two pairs of moths 
each taken in coitu were put into sepa-
rate jars. One female laid 115 eggs, 
scattered indiscriminately on the lichen, 
moss , twigs and sides of jar, singly or 
in small groups and clusters without any 
evident order or sequence. The other 
female deposited 78 eggs in like manner. 
The ova were kept throughout the win-
ter in an equably cool room temperature. 
The egg is elongate, oval. sli ghtly 
flatten ed at the end by w hich it was 
fixed to the substratum by an adhesive 
fluid. It is quite smooth and shiny. 
Colour a pastel shade of blue or green 
matching that of the lichens or moss on 
which the eggs are commonly laid . To-
wards hatching time the egg assumes a 
dark leaden hue. Size I mm. by 0.75 
mm. 
1st Instar. Ova hatched May 2, 
1948. Length of larva, 3 mm. Head. 
black or fuscous; bod y, alternately 
ringed with fuscous and light bluish 
bands; egg-shell not eaten. When dis-
turbed the larva spins a light silken 
thread to which it clings. Stadium, 6 
days. 
2nd Instar. May 8. Length 6 mm. 
Similar in every way but size to the 
preceding instar , but wi th the bands 
showing a tendency to break up into a 
different pattern. Stadium, 10 days. 
3rd Instar. May 18. Length 10 mm. 
General colour a pale blue-grey. The 
fuscous bands now resolve into a more 
restricted and definite pattern; head, 
fuscous. Most of the segments are blue-
grey with four small blackish spots ar-
ranged on the dorsal surface in the form 
of a square; underside of each abdominal 
segment 2 to 6 bearing large dark central 
spot. Three dark parallel interrupted 
lateral lines give the appearance of 10 
black hyphens or dashes on each side of 
body. Stadium, 13 days. 
4th Instar. May 31. Length 25 mm. 
General colour and p<>Uern as in third 
14 ENTOMOLOGICAL SOc. OF BRITISH COLUMBIA , PROC. ( 1949) , VOL. 46 , MAY 15,1950 
instar. but with markings more decided. 
There is a certain amount of variation in 
the size and intensity of the black mark-
ings on the dorsal surface and especially 
the lateral hyphens which are sometimes 
fused to form solid black lines but 
slightly interrupted between segments . 
Head pale sea-green , with small black 
dots arranged in four vertical rows, two 
on each side. The larva ceased feeding 
on June 19 , three days before the pupal 
stage was assumed and spins a very thin 
webbing either between two leaves, 
among the moss on the trunk, or on the 
grou nd at the base of the tree. Length 
of larva just before pupation, 40 mm. 
Stadium , 22 days. 
Pupa. Pupation Jun e 22. Length of 
pupa 28 mm., width 4 mm.; wing cases 
fuscous ; abdominal segments beige with 
small black dots; anal segment black ; 
cremaster consisting of two stout ter-
minal hooked setae and two to six 
smaller ones at the base. The pupa is 
held in place chiefly by the entanglement 
of the cremaster among the fibres of the 
web spun by the larva . Pupal period , 
24 days. 
Imago. First emergence on July 16. 
There was considerable variation in 
length of instars among individuals. 
Under natural conditions the larvae 
averaged 25 mm . on July 22 or about 
the same stage of development which 
had been reached on May 31 by those 
under control. The larvae remain very 
quiet except when feeding; they rest 
along the midrib on the underside of the 
leaves or on moss and bark often with 
the h ead shielded from daylight. 
Summary. Ova laid under confined 
conditions on September 18, 1947 , were 
kept in an equably cool room tempera-
ture throughout the winter. The larvae 
emerged May 1, 1948 , and were fed on 
Garry Oak, Quercus garryana, complet-
ing their life cycle in 75 days from time 
of emergence from the egg. The first 
instar was completed in 8 days ; second 
instar. 10 days; third instar , 13 days ; 
fourth instar, 22 days and pupa, 24 
days. Each instar was progressively 
longer than the preced ing one. The last 
instar , however, included three or four 
da ys devoted to spinning and lying 
quiescent prior to pupation . 
BIOLOGY OF ANISOLABIS MARITIMA (GENE) THE SEASIDE EARWIG, ON 
VANCOUVER ISLAN D (Dermaptera, Labiduridae) 
RICHARD GUppy 
Wellington, B. C. 
Introduction - Anisolabis maritima 
(Gene ), a large and fearsome appearing 
apterous earwig , inhabiting a restricted 
zon'e at the line of highest tides , is not 
like! y to escape notice for very long 
where it occurs in settled districts. E. 
R. BuckelI has given a resume of its 
known range, and an account of its 
discovery on Vancouver Island by 
Professor G. V. Spencer in 19261, and 
it will not be necessary to go over this 
information here. The species in 20 
years or more does not seem to have be-
come very generally distributed on the 
British Columbia coast. It is now very 
abundant on the shore of Vancouver 
Island from Departure Bay where it was 
reported first to at least as far as the cove 
beyond Neck Point, a distance of only 
six or seven miles along the tortuous 
shore line. 
After fair! y careful search at several 
points along the coas t , I found speci-
mens in only one other locality, a few 
small islets known as Dayman Id . lying 
close to Kuper Id . I made unsuccessful 
searches at Separation Point, near Cow-
ichan Bay; Dodd Narrows, south of 
Nanaimo; and French Creek, near 
Qualicum Beach. It is interesting to 
note that Professor Spencer found them 
on a small island, possibly Snake Id., 
three miles from Departure Bay. It ap-
pears that these earwigs are more apt to 
travel by water than along the shore. 
There is a record in the Report of the 


Notes on the life-history of the Garry oak looper, Lambdina fiscellaria somniaria Hlst. (Lepidoptera: Geometridae)

Cunningham, Cyril R.

E~TOMOLOGICAL Soc. OF BRITISH COL UMBIA, PROC. (1949) , VOL. 46, MAY 15, 1950 19 
SHIP INSPECTION IN THE PORT OF VANCOUVER 
CYRIL R. CUNNINGHAM 
Division of Plant Protection, Science Service, Department of Agriculture, Vancouver, B. C. 
Each day ships of many nations ar-
rive at Vancouver and New Westmin-
ster to load grain and cereal products for 
export to the United Kingdom, India, 
South America, the Orient, and many 
other parts of the world. Each day 
thousands of citizens view these ships 
steaming majestically up the harbour to 
their allotted berths without giving a 
thought to the fact that the application 
of entomological knowledge is an in-
creasing necessity before loading of these 
products can be commenced. 
A few years ago the British Ministry 
of Food were very much concerned over 
the fact that a number of cargoes of 
grain were arriving in Britain badly in-
fested with granary weeviL Tribolium, 
Cadelle, and other grain insects. Some 
cargoes were so badly damaged that the 
grain could not be used for human con-
sumption. The shortage of grain in 
Europe at that time, combined with the 
terrific losses, prompted the Ministry to 
request that the Canadian Government 
inspect all ships' holds prior to loading, 
to make sure that cargo areas were insect 
free and in fit condition to carry wheat. 
The government consented to carry out 
this suggestion and a marked difference 
in the condition of grain cargoes on ar-
rival at destination was immediately 
evident. Consequently, it was decided 
to extend this service to all ships loading 
cereal products for any part of the 
world. Inspectors of the Division of 
Plan t Protection, Science Service, 00-
miI1lon Department of Agriculture, 
board each vessel as soon as docking 
operations are complete. Vital informa-
tion regarding previous cargoes, loading 
areJs. construction details, prior fumiga-
tions. and many other facts are obtained 
from the captain or chief officer before 
actual inspection of the ship. Armed 
with this knowledge, each hold is en-
tered and a thorough examination is 
carried out. Most of the trouble has 
l 'olltril?utioll Xo. 75, Diyision of Plant Protection, 
Sci~'lIr-e ~el'\-i('e, Dominioll Departmellt of Agriculture, 
III t;:. wa. Ontario. 
been found to be due to improper clean-
ing of holds. It is quite common for a 
ship to load wheat in, say, Australia. 
and to carry this cargo to Britain, then 
to proceed to Canada and carry a similar 
cargo back to the United Kingdom. 
This process may be continued for pos-
sibly two years, each time a residue of 
wheat being left in the holds eventually 
to become in fested. Unless meticulous 
cleaning is carried out after each cargo. 
especially between the ribs of the ship, 
box beams, bilges. etc.. trouble is sure to 
develop. 
An actual inspection is carried out 
thus: Hold No.1 is normally entered 
first and a careful examination made of 
bilge bays. areas between ribs of ship, 
fore and aft bulkheads and ceiling square 
in the centre of the lower hold. The 
tWeen-deck area is then entered and box 
beams. hatch coamings and rib areas are 
scrutinized. The same procedure is car-
ried out in holds 2 and 3. Holds 4 and 
5 vary considerabl y by virtue of the fact 
that the tunnel which houses the propel-
ler shaft penetrates both these holds, 
necessitating a very careful inspection of 
both sides and top of same. The average 
time required to complete an examina-
tion of a ship varies from one to four 
hours, depending largely on the cleanli-
'ness of the ship and the prevalence of 
insects or grain residue in particular. In 
winter the operation is considerably 
lengthened due to the dormant condition 
of any insect life that may be discovered. 
Should very light evidence of insects be 
found. a good physical cleaning is or-
dered. Sometimes rather heavy evidence 
is found in one or two remote corners. 
This type of infestation is taken care of 
by spot spraying with a combination of 
DDT and 5 per cent pyrethrum mix-
ture. Of course, in cases where heavy or 
general infestations occur, a "Detention 
Notice" is given to the ship's captain or 
chief officer and fumigation ordered. 
However. should the holds be found in-
sect free a "Release Certificate" is issued. 
The release certificate must be presented 
20 ENTOMOLOGICAL SOc. or: BRITISH COLUMBIA, PROC. ( 194 9), VOL. 46, MAY 15 . 1950 
to the elevator opera tor before grain may 
be loaded. This2rocedure eliminates the 
danger of any ship being loaded without 
inspection. 
Until recently hydrocyanic acid gas 
was used exclusively as a ship fumigant, 
and about a year ago methyl bromide 
was tested at Montreal. giving results 
which proved it to be superior to HCN, 
and thus the adoption of its use in Van-
couver seemed a certainty . During Sep-
tember , 1948, the writer visited Mont-
real to view the work being conducted 
with methyl bromide in that port. In-
struction was given by H . A. U . Monro, 
in charge of the Fumigation and R e-
search Laboratory operated by the Divi-
sion of Plant Protection in that city. 
Fortunately. eight ships were fumigated 
during the visit , so that ample oppor-
tunity was given to become familiar 
with the procedure. T est insects (gran-
ary weevil ) were used on each ship and 
some interesting data w ere obtained. 
Upon return to Vancouver, fumiga-
tion companies were instructed in the 
use of methyl bromide as a space fumi-
gant. They were, however, rather re-
luctant to change to a gas 3.1 times 
heavier than air, in view of the aeration 
problem. Further to this , it mea nt a 
considerable outlay of money for expen-
sive equipment such as blowers and fans. 
But this reluctance was soon dispelled 
and the first ship was fumigated with 
methyl bromide on November 20, 1948. 
Granary weevil cultures were started 
in Vancouver to provide test insects for 
most fumigations carried out. Four sets 
of these test insects, comprising new and 
old eggs, 1st. 2nd, 3rd and 4th instar 
larvae and adults were placed in each 
hold . In order to get an indication of 
the effectiveness of the gas at any given 
level. adults were inser ted in small cap-
sules which were tied at five -foot inter-
vals to a wire forty feet in length. After 
fumigation, test insects were removed 
and mortality counts of adults com-
pleted , the immature stages and eggs, 
with contrpls, being forwarded to 
Montreal for incubation . The Cadelle, 
due to its resistance to HCN and methyl 
bromide. is an excellent test insect, but 
du e to the difficulty in rea ring is limited 
in its use. The above procedure, to-
gether with the collection of infested 
wheat from ships' holds prior to and 
after fumigation, gives a complete cross 
sect ion of the en tire operat.ion and pro-
vides material on which to base future 
recommendations. 
Before gas is released into the ships' 
holds. temperatures are recorded , and 
from 1 to 2 lb. of gas used according to 
the following table: 
Fan circulation 
Above 60°F. 
51 °F. to 60°F. 
32 °F. to 50 °F. 
Below 32°F. 
1 lb. per 1,000 cu. ft. 1 ° hr. 
10 " 
Desirable 
Essential 1" " " " .. 
1% 
2 " 
12 " 
12 " 
A few statistics round out the general picture of vessel inspection at 
Vancouver: 
Number of ships inspected for the '1948-49 fiscal year . to date __ _ . . 310 
Number of ships fumigated with HCN ____ _______ ._ _ ___ _ ._____ __ ______ ___ 37 
Number of ships fumigated with methyl bromide . __ ____ . ___ .. _____ __ __ ._ 18 
Total number of ships fumigated with both gases ___________ .______ _____ 55 
Number of ships spot sprayed ___ _____ __ . _____ ___ .... __ .. __ . ______ _ . __ ____ ___ __ ___ 21 
Number of ships requiring treatment. either spraying or fumigation 76 
Number of ships free of infestation ____ ___ _ __ ____ __ .. _____ ______ __________ ___ __ 234 
R egarding insec t interception, the 
granary weevil still appears to retain its 
position as the worst offender. with 
Tribolium running a close second. It 
is hoped that by constant instruction . 
ships' officers will eventually realize that 
"good housekeeping" in relation to 
ships' holds will pay big dividends in 
cutting to a minimum the chances of in-
festation , thereby saving thousands of 
dollars and endless trouble to everyone 
concerned. 


Ship inspection in the Port of Vancouver

McLeod, J. H.

Biological control investigations in British Columbia

Notes on the cabbage seedpod weevil Ceutorhynchus assimilis and its parasites

Hatch, Melville H.

Observations on the study of beetles in British Columbia

Notes on the population and parasitism of the larch sawfly, Pristiphora erichsonii in British Columbia

Richmond, H. A.

28 E N TOM OLOG ICA L SOCIETY OF BR ITISH C O LUM BIA, PROC. (1 953), VOL. 50, M AY 1 S, 19 54 
FOREST INSECT SURVEYS 
H . A. RICH MON D* 
Laboratory of Forest Bi ology, Victoria, B.C. 
P r obably no sing le phase of ento-
m ological activities offe rs a wide r ft eld 
fo r va rie ty in obj ect and m ethods 
t han surveys, fo r each survey must 
va ry according to its size, purpose, and 
the circumstances governing it. Thi s 
pape r deals in gene ra l wi t h the Fo rest 
Insec t Survey in w hi ch w e a re p res -
ent ly engaged in Ca nada and speciftc -
ali y w ith it s ope ra ti on in Briti sh 
Columbi a. 
Th e Fo rest Insect Survey in Canada 
had its incepti on in 1935 when an 
o rga ni zed a ttem pt was m ade t o keep 
an annual check on the sp read and 
dis tribution o f th e E u ropean spruce 
sawfly in East ern Ca nada . S ince tha t 
tim e the survey has expanded in size 
and purpose and today it ope ra tes 
from Newfoundland to Briti sh Colum -
bia. No longe r restri cted to the 
recording o f species distribution and 
insec t outbreak s, it no w includes w ith-
in its function general ecological con -
sid era tion of our for es t insec t popula-
tions. In brief, its ob jects may be out-
lined as fo llows : t o r epo rt annua ll y on 
th e flu ctua tions o f insect popul a ti ons 
encounte red in the fores t on a scale 
suffi ciently broad to be representat ive 
of the entire fo res t a rea; t o a mass 
r ecord s a s complete as possible on 
pa rasites and their hos t s ; t o fo llow 
t~e course o f di sease .o f insec t s, pa r-
tI cula rl y of those speCIes known to be 
our mor e important fo rest dest rovers' 
t o loca te incipi ent outbreaks as earl; 
a s poss ibl e ; t o loca te and , i f possible , 
control a nv newly a rrived fo re ia n pest 
before se rious damage o r di spe;;'al has 
occurred ; to p rov ide inform a ti on on 
li fe hi st ori es, hab its and id en t ifi cat ion 
of imm ature form s and to ga th er such 
specia li zed da ta as may be vita l t o 
some specific resea rch undertaking . 
\Vithin the las t vea r the survey ha s 
expand ed to incl tlde the procuring o f 
data rela tive to ce rtain specifi c tree 
diseases . 
I n its imm edi ate appli ca ti on the 
survey provides information on the 
current s t a tu s of fo res t insect s over 
* Officer-in-ch arg-e , F ores t Insect L aboratorv, Di v i-
s ion of Fores t Bialog-y , Canada Depart ment of Agri-
cultu re, 409 F ederal Bu ildi ng, Victori a , B.c. 
specific a reas, pe rmitting those con-
ce rned to t ake such a ction as may be 
expedien t to p revent o r reduce pos-
sible losses. On a long -term basis the 
survey provides mu ch impo r ta nt data 
fo r specia li zed projects and po in ts up 
m any problems r equiring inte nsive 
s tudy. Jt is th erefo re as mu ch a tool 
to th e se rvice as it is a n end in itsel f. 
]n th e ope ra ti on of a contine nt -
w ide sur vey, methods and procedure s 
mu st fit local conditions a nd hence no 
on e standard method ca n be a pplied. 
In th e beginning the survey was 
prima ril y qua li ta tiv e in nature . The 
ge ne ra l me thod of sampling t he insec t 
population on a t ree was to spread a 
sheet of stand a rd size on t he g round 
below the tree and to strike the limbs 
above w it h a pole of standa rd leng th . 
Dislodged la r vae fe ll to the shee t, were 
collec ted, placed in a m ailing con-
ta ine r w ith food and a comple ted en-
cl osure slip, and mailed t o a reg'ional 
labo ra to ry fo r iel entifica tion and rea r-
ing. Data from such coll ec ti ons were 
qu an t ita tive onl y in a ve ry g ross way. 
A lthoug h referred to a s the ea rliest 
m e thod o f sam pling, it is s till used 
q uite widely in random sampling fo r 
defoli a to rs ove r ex tensive a nd remote 
r egi()n s. As the va lue and appli ca tion 
of sur vey data became evi de nt , ne w 
a nd specia li zed sampling me thods 
were developed to meet peculia r re -
quirements and situa tions. III ma nv 
a reas , sampling is now bein g do ne oil 
pe rm a nent sample pl o ts se lec ted as 
r eprese nta tive of the fo rest sta nd of 
th e region. Sa mpling from the same 
plo t may be done three o r fo u r t imes 
a season. Th e use of pl ots has been 
de veloped on a rathe r res t ri cted basis 
pending a th oroug h appra isa l of th e 
relative merit s of random obse rva-
ti ons in contras t w ith simil a r da ta de-
ri veel from represe nta tive plots. W o rk 
o f thi s na ture is possible onl y in a reas 
rea dil y access ibl e, free from cutting 
and with assurance of a degTee of 
perm anency . A n 0 th e r sa mpling 
m eth od has been the cutting o f mea-
sured branches o r t w ig sam ples and 
recording the number of la rvae pres-
ent . Collecting m oss fo r egg' ((Iunts 
ENTOMOLO GICA L SOCI ETY O F B RITISH C OLU MBIA, PR OC. (1 953 ) , V OL . SO, M AY 15, 195 ·1 29 
a nd ~a l11 pling of th e fu rest Huo r fOI-
hiiJc rn a tin g- in sects a re ot her spe cia l 
m et h" d s em ployed. 
PTClhabl y t he g rea t es t di fficul ty in 
samplin g fu r de fo li ato r s on th e west 
c()ast is t he size a nd he ig ht of trees 
;\ nc1 t he imposs ibili ty of reachin g up 
t he 1" >I e e\'e n a sh () rt di s tan ce_ Tn 
a n effort t o cope \yith thi s p roble m , 
resea rch of r ece n t yea rs sugges t s the 
pract ica l appli ca ti on of th e co ll ec tion 
;lI1d measurem ent o f fI-ass fall from 
t he fee din g popul a ti on . Tn thi s p ro-
cedure . po r tab le ca nyas trays are 
es ta l.1 i shed he lo w represe nta ti ve t r ees 
in the ;Irca conce rn ed and th ro u g-h th e 
a ccu mulati on of fr ass o ve r a «(e il nite 
pe riod correlated with th e increase in 
hody we ig ht of th e la rva e in the sam e 
pe ri ()ti , a n ind ex of t he feed ing popula -
t ion is obta in ed _ 
A lthoug h t he surny IS st ill in its 
ea rl y de vel opment w e ha ve learned 
I1lu ch from it , but no doubt it s g rea t -
est va lu e will be ev id ent in the future 
as m ore ria ta a re a m as sed . Illu st ra tive 
o f th is is th e rela tionshi p of one 
speci es o f in sect to a noth er in the 
chronologica l sequen ce in t heir cycli c 
r ecurrence. Th ere is r eason to be-
li eve tha t during t he gene ra l popul a -
t ion in crease of defo lia to r s in th e w est, 
t he huild-up of th e ya rious species 
mav foll ow a fairl v de fini te pa tt e rn. 
Tn - "t he r 'words th e in crease of a 
ce rt a in spe cies m ay presage th e la t e r 
r ise in populat ion of a nothe r a nd per -
haps mo re impor ta nt species . Tf ami 
w hen increased kn owledge pe rmit s a n 
acc ura te pred ict ion of eve nts befo re 
th e v happen we will have pa ssed a n 
itTIj)"rt; lIlt mil es ton e on the way to-
wa rd copi n t; with our fo rest insect 
prnbl em s. . 
\ Vith t he ex te nsion of r a ndom sur-
VE'YS, howeve r , a 1)oint o f d imini shing 
return is eve ntua ll v reached when 
success ive ly less ne~v in fo rma ti on I S 
obt a in ed tor equ a l expenditu re of 
effn rt . lVIo re a nd m ore a ttenti on is 
now l)e ing direct ed t o se lected p rob-
lem s tn provide m ore cr it ical in fo rma-
t ion li n popula ti on trends , control 
fac to rs, a nd da m age ca used by infesta -
ti on s. Tn the W est, su ch wo r k has 
centred about the west ern heml ock 
loope r and ba rk bee tles . 
S in ce m a jo r ou tb reaks su ch as t he 
h em lock loope r occur at in te rva ls of 
12 or 15 yea r s, opportuniti es a re infre-
qpe nt fo~ the st ud y of even ts in th e 
in sect complex th at lea d up t o such 
ou tb rea ks. 'vVe a re, in fact , only be -
g inning to accumu late data re la ti ve t(~ 
", uch phenomena. T he ea d y record s ot 
in sect ou tb l-ea k s were fo r t he most 
l,a r t ve ry ge ne ra l in nat ure, conce rn-
ed onl y w ith t he sDecies responsible 
fo r t he da mage am( rest ri cted t o th e 
(m e or t wo yea rs w hen th e in sec t w as 
m()st p reva len t. \ ;\1 hil e p robab ly quit e 
adeq uate a t th at tim e, these ead y 
re co rd s g ive littl e hi sto ri cal o r sci en-
t ifi c backg round info rm a ti on with re-
spect to the ri se a nd fa ll o f the out -
b rea k . T he inclu sion of da ta on the 
as socia t ed species of no apparent im -
1',) rt a nce wa s obviously impossible 
w ith t he limited pe rsonn el e m ployed 
in t he ea rl y days of entom ology in thi s 
(ountr v. 
T he ~urvey in w hi ch we a rc eng aged 
nla ces eq ua l em pha sis on insects 
\v he th er th ey be o f mino r o r mai o r 
i m]1nrt il nce economi C1 lly. Knowledge 
1)[ t hese so-call ed minor associates 
m ay event ually supply t he k ey to long 
t e rm predi c tion s of popu la ti on trends 
n f 'I tlt er pes i:s : t o a n unde rs tanding- of 
th e surviva l o f paras it es durin g- iJc ri ods 
of 10w popula ti on o f its p re fe rred hos t , 
o r t he zoning of t he fo res t fo r possible 
di strihuti on of ce rtain mai o r pes ts. 
O n e mi gh t speculate :It grea t leng th on 
future possibiliti es o f su ch w ork. 
Sin ce impo r ta n t outhreak s recur bu t 
a few tim es in th e li fe o f a ny w orke r , 
fe w w ork ers today will live t o reali ze 
th e full sig'nifi cance o r va lue of su ch 
~urvevs . Our s u cce~;s()r~ will bene fi t 
from -th e full er , deepe I- und er st anding 
th at mu st acc ru e from long-term , in-
t ense SUf\·CYS . 
Wi t h thi s g ene ra l r eview o f th e 
surv ey. m en t ion sho uld now be made 
of so ;:ne thin g- o f t he m echa nics o f its 
Cl oerati on. The sam Dlin g of insects, 
l he est abli shment of plots, m a p;Jing , 
r epo r t in g a nd t he m a ny ph ase ~ of 
work in t he fi eld a re h ::t nc1l ed bv a 
~f)ec i a 11 v t r a in ed non -techni cal staff of 
i -~ s~ct r~l11 g-e rs _ An im po rtant req L1ire -
men t in fi eld w ork is fa milia rity of 
the pa rti cula r region c0l1 12c rnccL the 
30 ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF BRITISH C O I. U MBIA, PROC. (195 3), VOL. 50, MAY 15, 1954 
iore!'ts o f that a rea , personnel engaged 
bv either the Forest Service ,w in-
d~lstry, m ethods of travel, etc. 
Pe rm a nence of staff is therefore essen -
tial to g ive continuity from yea r to 
vea r a nd to produce m ax imum 
e fficien cy. For the se a nd o the r r easons 
a range r staff as m entio ned is consid-
ered best. Rangers are chose n w ith 
grea t ca re since it is exac t ing work 
requiring a m a n of very special t em -
pe ram ent. Th ere are nineteen r ange rs 
employed in British Columbia. 
Th e B ritish Columbia coas t does not 
lend itself t o easy survey m ethods due 
to the almost total lack of roads . 
\~l ith approxim ately 7,000 mil es o f 
sho re line, many pa rt s cannot be 
reached mo re f requently than once in 
two yea rs. It has become evid ent to 
many of the la rge r operators that 
regular sampling ca n he achi eved o nl y 
ir their pe rsonnel in that ;) rea ;)ss is t. 
A rr;) ngements have been 111 ;)(\e in 
several region s whereby the co m pa nies 
con cerned conduct l1Cri odic sa mpling 
t hroughout the yea r o n plots o ri g in -
;:lh - estahli shed in co -ope ration w it h 
th e For est Inse ct Laborato ry. 
Associated with th e fi e l(i staff of 
ra ngers is th e p rofess iona l s t ::H at the 
laboraton' vv ho receive, ide n t ifY, and 
rear the 'Jivin g- l;nvae t l1t"o tl g h 'tn th e 
compl et ion of the ir life cvcle from 
which fina l r eco rds a rc - compil ed . 
Specia li zed r ea rings and studi es of 
ce rtain specific groups of in secl's are 
u nd e r take n I)v the lahoratory pe r so n-
nel for li fe- hi story stud ies, pa ras ite 
a nd dis ease wO I-k, taxonom ic da ta m-
othe r related nrohlems, 
Direct ing' a ll su rvev act ivities hoth 
in th e field a nd ill th e lab" rat ,)r v is 
the sur vey h ead fo r t he p rovin ce , ' He 
lll Ust he a comhined f()n: ~'ter. e nto-
mologist, and ecologist. Thnlu ,!.,!· h hi m 
the work of th e range r st;lff is ()r g';tn -
izerl o n a sound sc ient ific h;ls i :~ , CUI--
r en t r epo r ts are a na lvzed 1.-, ,- 11lcir 
s ig'nificlnce a nd the 'wo rk of the sur -
vev is ro -o rdin ated \\· ith the research 
s;;t ff , Thus the su rvey nol fll :: \' Sl1P -
plies in f()r11l:lt i() 11 () n -ah l1 n<l:l nrc,. di 's -
t rihl1ti o ll , etc" hut it ;) Iso y ield s 
yaluahle (1:1t:l fo r those l1nd e rt-aking' 
~pec i a l r esea rch in \'es tig;iI ions. < 
Tn o rd e r tn achi e ve co n tinu it \-
th rCJlI vhnut tlie se rvi ce. to pro11l{, te 'a 
maximum of effi ciency, and to unify 
procedures a nd m ethods, the Canada-
wide surv ey is headed by a divisional 
surv ey co-ordina to r. Th e over-all 
cAlcie-n t ope ra ti o n o f the survey a nd 
th e develoDment o f specia li sts needed 
in it s ope ra tio n at the yari o us centres 
;! re hi s I-esponsibili ties. 
During a typical yea r th '" survey in 
j;ritish Columhia ha ndl es some 25 ,000 
individu a l rea rings which. in turn, en-
tn il a simil ar num be r of separ::t te rear-
ing sheets, each r eco rel coilta ining' the 
pertinent in secta ry a nd fidd data. A 
pe l-i odic ana lys is of so la rge a volume 
r;f reco rd s, if do ne 111anually, would be 
imposs ibl e with out a g reat ly expand-
ed staff. To cope w ith this a standa rd 
punch-card system of recording was 
establi shed across Ca nad a in 1952. 
Henccfo l- th a l\ in fo rm ation, includ -
ill g the ident ity of th e insec t , wil\ be 
eoclecl ancl punched on the cards. T he 
mec hani ca l so rter ca n handle 400 ca rd s 
pe r minut e . sort in g fo r as many as 12 
column s s i11lultaneous lv. Hence it wi ll 
I)e possih le to draw out in fo rm atio n as 
required w ilh a minimum of effo r t a nd 
1 im e fo r as man v vea r s as o ne m a\" 
\\ ' ish, Th e in s tallation of thi s equ iri-
m ent in a ll ma in sun"e\" ce ntres 
;ICT'()SS Canach a nc! the dev elopm e n t of 
a 5la nd a rcl pu nch ca rel ;l11d fie ld reco rel 
shee t cons ti t u te a ll important step in 
r () undin g' (l u t ;) n adequate fo rest in sert 
sllrvev. < (o r unle ss the info rm at io n is 
r eac1 i(v usa ble its reccl1"d ing wo uld 
see11l futile a t 1 he outset. 
A lm ost svnonY11l OUS wit h survey:; 
is the proh le m o f po pulation samp lillg , 
The dc\-e lopmellt of su rv e\-s in Canada 
and the 1. -Ilil eci ~tates a nd t he appli ca .. 
ti on of these (ttta to specifi c pr,)h l e l1l ~ 
;l11d r csea r eh proj ects ca ll {j rs t fo r a 
stud\- of the ha s ic p rohlem oJ' P\) pula -
(ion sa m plill g, Ohviol1sh- it will he 
l11a ll : - ve; lr5 hef"re techll iqu es of 
k ll ()\\' n va lu e C:lpahle (If hein g: l1,; cd h:' 
Iloll -speci a li sts C IIl I)e de\'el"ped for 
e;lc h illlporLl ll t ill sect. 'III the 111(';) 11 -
lime m e l hod" pl1re h ' empiri c; ti i ll lIa -
ture 11I l1 S[ he e ll1pln\'e r! "'hi r li ill 111 :ln\-
cases are of dn uhl rlll s ig: ni fic; ll1cc , ,\ -" 
quali fied ill vestigators dcvel "p the lie ld 
()f samplin g' technique~ so 111 : \\" we C'x'-
pe ct a rl v;111 ce lllent in th e ' 11<:' ld o f 
i Il sect Sl1 rV e\-5. 


Forest Insect Surveys

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