ENTOMOLOGICAL RECORD, 1907. 

 By Dr. James Fletcher and Arthur Gibson, Ottawa. 



The season of 1907 in Canada will long be remembered for its unusual 

 and irregular character. The spring, right across the continent from the 

 Atlantic to the Pacific, was cold, dry and late. As a consequence, insects of 

 all kinds were remarkably scarce, and the paucity of insect life in April and 

 May had a direct effect on bird life as well as in many places also upon the 

 fruit crops. Where fruit growers were fortunate enough to have colonies of 

 bees near their grounds there was a conspicuous advantage to the crop from 

 the much larger number of flowers which were fertilized by these useful 

 agents and friends of the fruit grower. The main migration of warblers and 

 other insect-eating birds was much delayed by cool weather and the tardy 

 revival of insect life. The exceptionally backward nature of the season con- 

 tinued throughout the summer and was only in a measure compensated for 

 by the long open autumn without killing frosts. From an entomological 

 point of view, we seem to be passing through a period of "poor years," which 

 began with the year 1901. Notwithstanding this, there has perhaps never 

 been a time when better work has been done in investigating the insect fauna 

 of the country. This is directly due to the far higher appreciation of the 

 value of entomological studies, the greater number of workers and the im- 

 proved facilities for those studying insects to get into touch with others of 

 similar interests. 



The appearance of several elementary works on various branches of the 

 subject, such as the Insect Book, the Butterfly Book and the Moth Book, have 

 acted as a stimulus to direct the attention of students to, and encourage them 

 in the study of entomology. Local Natural History vSocieties, Horticultural 

 Societies and schools, in all parts of the country, are devoting more time than 

 ever before to the habits of insects, and the observations of their members 

 are being published for the help and encouragement of others. Agricultural 

 journals now include regularly articles upon the insect foes and friends of the 

 farmer. The value of these articles depends entirely upon their scientiflc 

 accuracy, and there is a constant demand for information on the life histories 

 of insects. Such facts as this information is founded upon, can only be 

 learnt by careful and close personal observation by the trained entomologist. 

 The members of the Entomological Society of Ontario, located in all parts 

 of the Dominion, are collecting assiduously and, in the pages of the Canadian 

 Entomologist and of the Annual Reports, are making known their discoveries 

 for the benefit of the whole country. 



During the past year, in addition to the constant and important work of 

 many collectors who have not the opportunity to travel from their own home 

 fields of action, several collectors have penetrated to little known fields of 

 work and have brought back many treasures, which in due time will be worked 

 up and reported upon ; thus, useful knowledge will be disseminated as to the 

 geographical distribution of species, their life habits, and varying foods in 

 widely separated localities. Of the officers of the Geological Survey Depart- 

 ment. Mr. Joseph Keele, collected during the past summer along parts of 

 the Stewart and Pelly Rivers in the far off Yukon. Mr. W. J. Wilson again 

 visited the Hudson Bay slope and was this year along the height of land. 

 Mr. T. P. Reilly, of the Alaska Boundary Survey, and Mr. Douglas H. 

 Nelles, of the same Survey, brought back small collections, the former from 

 near Sixty Mile River, along the 141st meridian in the Yukon, and the lattei 

 from Bartlett Bay, off Glacier Bay, Alaska. Mr. Andrew Halkett. Naturalist 

 of the Department of Marine and Fisheries, collected during the Inst summer 



8 EN. [ L13 ] 



