Abstract Two new species of podapolipid mites (Trombidiformes: Heterostigmatina) are described from subelytral spaces of carabid beetle (Coleoptera: Carabidae) hosts from Alberta, Canada. Eutarsopolipus husbandi sp. nov. , a member of the pterostichi species group, is parasitic on Pterostichus adstrictus Eschscholtz, 1823 and is closest to two European species, E. pterostichi Regenfuss, 1968 and E . vernalis Regenfuss, 1968. Eutarsopolipus paraplatyni sp. nov. , a member of the biunguis species group, is parasitic on Platynus decentis (Say, 1823) and is closest to the North American species E. platyni Husband and Husband, 2002. We provide a table of diagnostic features of the enigmatic pterostichi group. These two new species bring the total number of Eutarsopolipus spp. known from Canada to seven and the total number of named species in the world to 103.
Abstract The willow mason wasp, Symmorphus bifasciatus (Linnaeus) (Hymenoptera: Vespidae), is a Palearctic and Oriental species, which we verify as having been introduced to North America at least as early as 2010. Since then, it has become established across Canada, a fact which came to light through Bees@School, a community science initiative in which solitary bee nests were deployed across Canada from 2019 to 2023. Using DNA barcoding, with identifications subsequently confirmed by morphological identification of barcoded specimens, we detected S. bifasciatus 80 times throughout the sampling period.
Abstract Cabbage root maggot, Delia radicum (Linnaeus) (Diptera: Anthomyiidae), has been an economically serious pest, damaging a wide range of Brassica crops, across Canada since the late 1800s. A robust body of research literature exists, encompassing a range of control options that have been explored across commodities within Canada. Despite this body of work, pesticides remain the most commonly used option for control of D. radicum . Insecticides registered for use against D. radicum in Canada are facing increasing restrictions or deregulation, making D. radicum more difficult to manage. This review provides an overview of the research conducted in Canada up to 2022 and discusses various management approaches that need to be explored to lessen our current reliance upon insecticides for D. radicum control.
Abstract Critical examination of artistic embellishment on maps is useful for understanding values, fears, and political leanings of the past. The 1750 “Porcupine Map” by Moses Harris, published in The Gentleman’s Magazine (London, United Kingdom), depicted Halifax Harbour to encourage British emigration to Nova Scotia. Compared to earlier regional maps, changes reflected in the Porcupine Map, such as removing depictions of Indigenous Mi’kmaq, suggest efforts to make the colony feel more familiar to British readers of the time. Although the titular porcupine illustration has received significant interest, the map also features three prominent insects labelled as “The White Admirable,” “The Orange Underwing Tyger,” and “The Musk Beetle.” These common names refer to species occurring in Britain but not in Nova Scotia. We posit that “The White Admirable” depicts the American white admiral, Limenitis arthemis Drury (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae), and “The Orange Underwing Tyger” represents the St. Lawrence tiger moth, Arctia parthenos Harris (Lepidoptera: Erebidae). Although less detailed, “The Musk Beetle” illustration resembles the brown prionid, Orthosoma brunneum Forster (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae), a conspicuous long-horned beetle native to North America. Including these detailed depictions of insects but mislabelling them as European species may be due to human error, artistic licence, or an overlooked expression of imperialistic propaganda.
Abstract Quebec is Canada’s leading producer of lowbush blueberries (Ericaceae), a crop reliant on honey bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae) for pollination. Intensive pollination services may adversely affect bee health. Few studies have examined the impact of increasing colony density and its carryover effects. This study compares control colonies used for honey production with colonies placed at two pollination densities (2.5 and 5 colonies/ha) in Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean over two years (2022–2023). Colonies were assessed at the start and end of pollination and one month later. We evaluated colony strength, Varroa destructor (Mesostigmata: Varroidae) infestation, pathogen loads (including Vairimorpha spp. (Nosematidae), and viruses such as deformed wing viruses A and B (Iflaviridae) and acute bee paralysis virus, Israeli acute paralysis virus, Kashmir bee virus, chronic bee paralysis virus, and black queen cell virus (all Dicistroviridae), and pesticide residues. Pollination was associated with reduced colony strength gain, higher proportions of colonies infested with Varroa , and increased deformed wing virus B loads. Colony strength was most affected by increased density in the carryover assessment. No pesticide levels exceeded bee toxicity thresholds in nectar and bee bread. This is the first study to evaluate colony density effects on honey bee health in lowbush blueberry systems.
Agriculture relies heavily on the ecosystem services provided by beneficial insects, and supporting their populations in these areas is important. We tested for differences in bee communities between pastures and unmanaged (natural) grasslands in Manitoba, Canada. Pastures were either grazed by cattle or cut for hay. Hayed pastures were planted with an enhanced seed mix to benefit both bees and livestock. Nevertheless, enhanced hay fields were dominated by alfalfa. We found that natural and grazed sites supported more bees than hay sites did. Grazed sites tended to support oligolectic (plant specialist) bees, whereas natural sites supported more polylectic (plant generalist) bees. Bee capture rates were positively associated with overall field size. Associations between bee functional traits (diet, nesting, and sociality) and environmental variables are discussed. Our results indicate that grazing may be an important management tool for conservation of oligolectic and ground-nesting bees. In addition, polylectic and stem-nesting bees may use natural landcover types more than agricultural landcover types, and increasing the amount of natural landcover for insects should be a priority.
The agricultural extension system in Alberta, Canada, has undergone significant shifts in recent decades due to a reduction of provincial government oversight. This change highlights the need to assess the effectiveness of currently available extension tools and to explore opportunities for collaboration and growth across the system. The present study employs a scientific survey targeting professionals involved in agricultural entomology extension to identify key challenges and areas for improvement. In addition, we develop a visual map of online entomology resources in Alberta to facilitate user access to information. Although traditional communication methods remain valuable, there is potential to expand the use of digital tools for entomological extension activities. Survey respondents report cost and the loss of chemical control options as the primary pest management challenges, as well as funding, access, and coordination of efforts as significant barriers to extension. Physical or cultural barriers to access extension information and limited public knowledge about insects pose additional hurdles to effective extension. The survey findings offer valuable insights into opportunities to enhance agricultural extension in Alberta, such as the adoption of standardised evaluation methods and the establishment of a centralised information hub. We provide a freely available online hub that consolidates online extension entomology resources in Alberta.
How best to rapidly assess the diversity of terrestrial arthropod communities has attracted considerable debate. In particular, what sampling methods should be combined to capture maximum species richness and sampling efficiency in surveys of arthropods. We tested the efficiency and complementarity of a standardised combination of six commonly used sampling methods (Malaise trap, flight intercept trap, pan trap, pitfall trap, Berlese funnel, and sweep net) at 13 locations across Canada. About 55% of species were collected by only one method; Malaise traps, sweep nets, and flight intercept traps contributed the highest diversity. We suggest the combined use of these collecting methods, possibly extended by other methods, for studies that seek to survey the canopy and soil fauna.
There is growing interest in monitoring multiple insect species simultaneously by using traps baited with pheromones of multiple species. We tested potential interference among pheromones using blends targeting multiple species of cerambycid and elaterid beetles. The six-component blend of cerambycid pheromones has proven effective in attracting many species in the subfamilies Cerambycinae and Lamiinae. Seven elaterid species were trapped with a nine-component blend of sex attractants in an earlier field experiment. Traps were baited with the cerambycid blend, the elaterid blend, and the combined blend. Three elaterid species were similarly attracted by the elaterid and combined blends, whereas three other species were significantly less attracted by the combined blend. The variable influence of cerambycid compounds on attraction of elaterids to their sex attractants may reflect the nature of the hosts of their larvae. Specifically, larvae of species not influenced by the cerambycid blend feed on roots of deciduous agricultural plants. In contrast, larvae of the species antagonised by the cerambycid blend develop in woody tissues of plants, as do larvae of most cerambycids. These results suggest that these elaterids have evolved to detect cerambycid pheromones, allowing them to avoid aggressive competition with cerambycid larvae and even predation by cerambycids.
The mosaic of dead, live, and dying lodgepole pine trees, Pinus contorta (Pinaceae), in post-mountain pine beetle, Dendroctonus ponderosae (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), outbreak stands may increase native bark and woodboring beetle populations capable of imposing further pine mortality within the same stands. In summer 2017, we set up three types of nonbaited insect traps (landing, emergence, flight intercept) in 27 post-mountain pine beetle outbreak stands in Alberta, Canada, showing levels of mountain pine beetle-caused pine mortality that ranged from 2% to 83%, to investigate the abundance of three functional groups of beetles (bark beetles, woodborers, predators). The percentage of beetle-caused pine mortality had no effect on beetle abundance in each functional group, but the bark beetle abundance decreased as the proportion of healthy pine trees increased in post-outbreak stands. The lack of significant relationships between insect abundance and pine mortality was likely due to host tree availability, growing interspecific competition, and predation. Compared to pine mortality, live tree composition might be a better predictor of bark beetle abundance. The low beetle abundance overall suggested stand conditions seven years post-outbreak could not facilitate increases in native bark and woodboring beetle populations in the novel habitat of mountain pine beetle in Alberta.
Four species of Lygus bugs (Hemiptera: Miridae), Lygus lineolaris, L. keltoni, L. elisus, and L. borealis, are native pests of many crops throughout North America. In eastern Canada, a European parasitoid, Peristenus digoneutis (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), occurs adventively from intentional releases made in the 1980s in the northeastern region of the United States of America. In the Canadian prairies, P. mellipes and P. howardi are common native parasitoids that attack the first and second generations of Lygus, respectively, albeit at low levels. Therefore, relocation of P. digoneutis has been considered to enhance biological control in western Canada. We investigated the potential for competition between the native and exotic Peristenus spp. in laboratory settings. Our results showed that no statistically significant effects of simultaneous or sequential competition occurred on the success of parasitism by the native species, particularly for P. howardi. Minor reductions in parasitism by P. mellipes were observed only when the exotic species was added one day before the native species. From these findings, we conclude that the risk for competitive displacement of native Peristenus spp. by P. digoneutis is low. The potential benefits of having a parasitoid with two generations and the likely additive mortality effects on Lygus bug pests should outweigh the low environmental risks of introducing P. digoneutis.
Bird blowflies, Protocalliphora spp. (Diptera: Calliphoridae), are prevalent ectoparasites of altricial bird nestlings across the Holarctic region. Yet, their spatial and temporal dynamics of infestations, species composition, and interactions with parasitoids remain poorly understood. We present a 16-year (2004-2019) multisite study of Protocalliphora infestations based on 2673 tree swallow (Passeriformes: Hirundinidae) nests collected across a 10 200-km2 gradient of agricultural intensity in Quebec, Canada. Nest infestation prevalence and parasitic load varied markedly across space and time but recurred synchronously at approximately 75% of sites, suggesting regional and local process influences. Yearly rates of Nasonia wasp (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae) parasitoidism of bird blowfly puparia were high but variable (48-90%), likely contributing to the temporal fluctuations in Protocalliphora prevalence and load. Substantial interannual shifts in relative abundance of P. bennetti, P. metallica, and P. sialia emphasise the importance of species-level identification in bird blowfly ecological studies. Large overlap in puparia size among species challenged the utility of traditional diagnostic traits for species identification. Dormancy or mortality of Nasonia occurred in 3-16% of Protocalliphora puparia, depending on year. These findings highlight the importance of long-term, multitrophic, and spatially explicit monitoring in unravelling the drivers of host-parasite-parasitoid dynamics.
Time and effort required to extract macroinvertebrates out of aquatic net sweep samples can be a major limiting factor in the ecological study and monitoring of wetlands. Several methods for facilitating specimen extraction have been published, but systematic comparisons are lacking. We opportunistically compared six methods for extracting macroinvertebrates from wetland net sweep samples that we collected in Alberta, Canada. We applied elutriation, flotation using four different media, and a new behavioural extraction method using a submerged inverted funnel. We measured the length of time each method took to extract all perceived macroinvertebrates and the proportion of Coleoptera and Hemiptera that each method successfully extracted. Elutriation and flotation using a 600 g/L sugar-water solution extracted the greatest proportions (> 95%). Elutriation was faster than flotation with our samples. The faster behavioural method extracted only approximately 50-70% of specimens; however, it produced clean samples for subsequent sorting. Overall, we recommend elutriation for reliable extraction of Coleoptera, Hemiptera, and other macroinvertebrates from wetland net sweep samples. Refinement of our behavioural extraction method may lead to an effective field-based alternative to time-consuming laboratory-based extraction methods.
The present study documents the first recorded instance of phoretic interaction between Lustrochernes grossus (Banks, 1893) (Pseudoscorpiones: Chernetidae) and Mallodon dasystomum (Say, 1824) (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae). The pseudoscorpions were discovered beneath the elytra of the longhorn beetle. This phoretic association constitutes the third documented record for the genus Mallodon Lacordaire, 1830. In addition, a compendium of Cerambycidae species associated with phoretic pseudoscorpions is provided.
Xyleborini (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae) ambrosia beetles occur worldwide and are most abundant in tropical regions. Extreme inbreeding and the beetles' symbiotic fungi make them well-suited for long-distance colonisation of new areas, with single pioneer females capable of creating new populations. Xyleborine colonisation events have been addressed for tropical locations but not for temperate regions. In this study, we focus on the seven endemic Nearctic Xyleborus Eichhoff species and test the hypothesis that these species are monophyletic. We reconstructed multigene phylogenies using Bayesian and parsimony analyses for these species and for a sample of Xyleborini species with worldwide distributions. Both analyses demonstrate that the Nearctic Xyleborus species are collectively polyphyletic and occur in four lineages: (1) X. celsus Eichhoff, (2) X. xylographus (Say), (3) X. planicollis Zimmermann + X. viduus Eichhoff + X. impressus Eichhoff, and (4) X. intrusus Blandford + X. pubescens Zimmermann. Three of these clades likely derived from Eastern Palearctic-Oriental or Nearctic species, whereas X. celsus's origin is ambiguous. Two clades, (X. impressus + X. planicollis + X. viduus) and (X. intrusus + X. pubescens), have radiations in the Nearctic that are limited compared to those of Xyleborini radiations in the tropics. Factors contributing to the low species diversity are discussed.
The first Eodichromatidae (Odonata, Cephalozygoptera) specimens from the Ypresian Allenby Formation near Princeton, British Columbia, Canada, are described. They belong to the genus Labandeiraia Petrulevi & ccaron;ius et al. (Eodichromatinae) based on the distinctive distal undulate curvature of the long veins and numerous intercalary veins, as seen in L. americaborealis Petrulevi & ccaron;ius et al. from the coeval Green River Formation of Colorado, United States of America. Labandeiraia burlingameae n. sp. is described based on an almost complete hyaline forewing. It is distinct from L. americaborealis by its colouration and number of postnodal crossveins. A darkly infuscate forewing preserved in close proximity is similar but lacks its basal portion and has poorly preserved crossveins. Its preserved portions agree with both L. burlingameae and L. americaborealis. If this wing belongs to L. burlingameae, its colour difference might result from sexual dimorphism or polyphenism, which are not known in any eodichromatid. If the wing belongs to L. americaborealis, it has a forewing/hind wing colour difference, also not known in any Labandeiraia species, and would be its first known forewing. The specimen might also belong to a third, closely related, undescribed species. These possibilities cannot be distinguished, and we treat the species as Labandeiraia sp. A.
Terrestrial isopods (Isopoda: Oniscidea), also known as sowbugs or woodlice, are one of the few groups of crustaceans with fully terrestrial members. Sowbugs are readily transported by human activity, with many species having been introduced worldwide. Although nonnative sowbugs have been present in Canada for more than 150 years, the study of sowbugs in Canada has been largely overlooked, especially in the Prairie Provinces. We conducted the first survey of sowbug species in Alberta, with additional collections from British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Ontario, and Newfoundland. We compiled an updated Canadian species checklist of 32 species from 12 families, including seven new species records for Canada since the previous 2001 checklist. Species with older records tend to occupy more provinces than species recorded more recently. Nine sowbug species occur in Alberta: all are nonnative and originate from Europe or Asia. Our collection of Nagurus cristatus (Dollfus, 1899) (Trachelipodidae) from Edmonton represents the first record from Canada. We support our identifications with molecular data (cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 barcode region). Further surveys of sowbugs in the Prairie Provinces may uncover additional species; we encourage reporting of sowbug bycatch from arthropod surveys and note the utility of community science platforms for conducting sowbug surveys.
Understanding how invertebrates respond to disturbance is essential for anticipating the effects of anthropogenic developments. In western Canada's boreal forests, linear corridor disturbances constructed for oil and gas exploration, called seismic lines, are pervasive. Previous research indicates that butterfly abundance and species richness increase along conventional seismic lines (6-12 m wide) in peatland boreal forest and that at least one butterfly species preferentially uses these seismic lines as travel corridors. Here, we investigated how a butterfly assemblage's abundance, species richness, and movement responded to seismic lines in the dry, sandy Richardson area of Alberta, Canada's boreal forest. We used Malaise traps at five sites to compare butterfly abundance, species richness, and movement direction on conventional seismic lines to 50 m into the adjacent interior forest. Butterfly abundance and richness were 7.8 times and 1.5 times higher, respectively, on conventional seismic lines than in the forest interior. Butterflies were also 6.5 times as abundant flying across seismic lines than flying along them. These results demonstrate that conventional seismic lines are locally increasing butterfly abundance and diversity in boreal forests, while also further affecting butterfly movement behaviour compared to undisturbed boreal forest habitat.
Stenodrilus (Coleoptera: Omethidae: Telegeusinae) is a monotypic genus, with its single species described from Chiapas, Mexico. Two new species of the genus are described from Honduras, Stenodrilus howdenorum Roza new species and Stenodrilus megalocephalus Roza new species. These are the first records of the family in the country and the first records of the genus in Central America. The new species are diagnosed, described, and illustrated, and a distributional map and identification key for the species of Stenodrilus are provided. The morphology of the genus is discussed in the subfamilial framework.
