The sexual behavior of 11 species of Pyrota is described. Analysis of the functional significance of anatomical secondary sexual characters in these species and a survey of similar modifications in others indicates that the general pattern observed is characteristic of the genus. Adults exhibit little aggressive behavior, and courtship involves prolonged physical contact between the sexes. Male courtship activities follow a regular cyclic pattern, as he alternately mounts above the female to perform one series of acts (palpation, dorsal antennation, and rocking) and orients behind her to perform another (leg grasp, palpal insertion beneath her elytra, lifting of her body, posterior antennation, abdominal curvature and stroke, and genital hold). Copulation entails abdominal pumping by the male.

As a prelude to comparative studies, a new classification of the Meloidae is proposed. Characters of sexual and related behavior at the subfamilial level and anatomical characters associated with them are discussed in an evolutionary context. Nemognathinae and, by inference, Eleticinae have simple courtship behavior, copulate dorso-ventrally for short periods of time, and do not prepare sites for oviposition. Meloinae have more elaborate courtship, copulate in a linear position for extended periods, and oviposit in specially prepared cavities in the ground.

Compared with that in other Meloidae, courtship behavior in Pyrota is both complex and highly distinctive. Interspecific differences, considered in detail for six species, involve variation in the precise manner of performance of acts and their temporal relationships. Systematically the ethological data are in reasonable accord with those from other sources except that the courtship behavior of P. concinna is more divergent from that of its presumed relatives than would be expected on the basis of anatomical and ecological characters. An explanation of this discrepancy is proposed in terms of the evolutionary reinforcement of ethological differences functioning in interspecific reproductive isolation.

Foliage feeding by the pear psylla suppressed root development in seedlings of Pyrus communis, P. ussuriensis, and P. pyrifolia. Reduction in the size of the root system was greatest in seedlings with the heaviest infestations. Psyllid populations were established more readily on seedlings of P. communis than on the oriental seedlings of P. ussuriensis or P. pyrifolia.

Experiments and observations on Oriental fruit moths in cages and in a peach orchard showed that both males and females may mate more than once. The maximum recorded number of matings was 7 for males and 5 for females. Mating usually occurred in the late afternoon and early evening during the daily flight and egg-laying period. Males seldom mated oftener than once in 24 hours and they transferred only one spermatophore to the female per mating. In cages, males mated approximately 1.4 times each when confined with equal numbers of females. Of the females taken in bait traps in a peach orchard, an average of 2.9% had not mated, 78.8% had mated once, 14.6% twice, and 3.7% more than twice. The mating behaviour of the Oriental fruit moth was shown to be similar to that of the codling moth.

A synopsis is given of what is known from the literature of the genus Asiphonaphis in North America. Four species have been described: pruni, anogis, utahensis and carolinensis. There is evidence that the species described as A. carolinensis is the same as A. anogis. Measurements are given of series of fundatrices, alate and viviparous females, males and oviparae of A. pruni collected in Manitoba.

Measurements and analyses of juniper fragments on bagworm cases reveal striking regularities that suggest the behavior that may produce them. Fragments are always attached at their extreme upper ends, and the great majority are oriented with their apical ends directed downwards towards the lower end of the bag. The proportion so oriented increases towards the cop of the bag, as does the average length of the fragments. Binomial analysis reveals no evidence of contagious orientation of adjacent fragments. It is suggested that the bagworm may not deliberately “decorate” its case, but that these fragments represent the remains of foliage anchored against the bag, so that the bagworm may feed with minimal exposure from its protecting case.

This study deals with the larval morphology of the six commonest species of Chrysobothris that occur in eastern Canada. The morphology of the genus is presented as a guide to the terminology. For each species, a short diagnosis is given, followed by a detailed description, its geographical distribution and a list of its host-plant genera. A key to the larvae is provided.

The mountain-ash sawfly, Pristiphora geniculata (Htg.), a pest on Sorbus spp., is known to occur in Europe, Asia, and North America. It has two generations a year in eastern Canada but only one in northern Quebec. The first generation predominates. The sawfly overwinters as a larva in a cocoon in litter or soil. Adults emerge from late May to early July, and lay eggs in pockets between the epidermal lavers around the edges of leaflets. The eggs hatch in about a week and the larvae feed from two to three weeks. The second generation, which starts in late July, is usually small. Adults producing the first generation may come from both generations of the preceding year whereas adults producing the second generation stem only from the first. Parthenogenesis is facultative and arrhenotokous; about 61% of adults reared were females. The male larvae have four instars and the female five. Some larvae remain in diapause up to five years. Foliage consumption of female larvae was about 1.4 times that of male larvae.

P. geniculata lacks adequate density-dependent control factors and an important limiting factor may be its scattered food supply. The introduction of parasites, predators, or disease organisms might be beneficial.

Glucose-U-C14 was incorporated into immature larvae of the wheat stem sawfly, Cephus cinctus Nort., by vacuum-infiltration. These insects were too small to be conveniently injected and could not be easily fed on artificial diets. About half of them survived the infiltration treatment. C14O2 was produced by the organism showing that the radioactive substrate was metabolized. Of the amino acids isolated from the larvae, proline, alanine, glutamic acid, serine, aspartic acid, and glycine contained relatively large quantities of carbon-14 indicating biosynthesis, and are classed as nutritionally non-essential. In contrast, arginine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, phenylalanine, threonine, tyrosine, and valine contained little, if any, radioactivity and are classed as nutritionally essential. The concentrations of some of the amino acids in the larval tissues are also presented.

The labradorensis subgroup consists of three nearctic species, namely, X. labradorensis Keyserling, 1887, from the low arctic and the Rocky Mountains, X. deichmanni Soerensen, 1898, from the arid arctic, and X. rugosus new name (= X. bimaculatus Emerton, 1894 preoccupied by X. bimaculatus L. Koch 1867) from the Rocky Mountains.

The end of an outbreak of a sawfly, Neodiprion excitans Rohwer, on Pinus taeda L. first was observed in north-central peninsular Florida during December 1962. To aid in dating oviposition, the position of egg pockets in 1962 summer-shoot pine needles was compared with growth of 1963 summer-shoot pine needles. By this method, peaks of adult emergence and oviposition were judged to have occurred during the last half of August and first half of October 1962.

Eggs hatched in the fall when laid in growing pine needles during October 1962. Larval development was protracted during unusually cold weather and cocoons were spun as late as mid-January 1963. Adult emergence from these cocoons began in late May 1963, two months later than had been previously recorded for Florida.

In contrast, eggs overwintered in the foliage when laid after needle growth had ceased in the fall of 1962. Larval eclosion was in late February and March 1963 and cocoons were spun by mid-May.

This combination of events suggested how a new species overwintering in the egg stage (Neodiprion hetricki Ross) might have evolved in temporal isolation from an ancestral species ordinarily overwintering only in the cocoon (N. excitans).

This author and others have previously proposed that causes of population fluctuations can be ascertained by regression analysis in which Nt+1/Nt is the dependent variable, and Nt is one of the independent variables. This procedure contains a bias, since the expected relationship between Nt+1/Nt and Nt is hyperbolic when there is no causal relationship. The simplest way of circumventing this difficulty is to use Nt+1, not Nt+1/Nt as the dependent variable.