Insect Life on the Western A)x'.ic Coast of America 33k 
August 21-31, 1915. 
Insect life is decreasing. Flowers are less plentiful and certain plants have 
completed their bloom. A number of insects are, however, on the wing including 
flies (Sciara sp., Prosimulium borealis, etc.) crane-flies (Tipula sp.), but fewer 
midges and mosquitoes. An ephemeroid sub-imago was found upon a stone in 
the creek bed; the imagines of this suborder first emerge apparently about the 
middle of August. Of hymenoptera, bumblebees {Bomhus sp.) are still numerous, 
and small wasps on willow plants. Of butterflies, the common Colias sp. are 
frequent, and in a lesser degree the Brenthis sp. The lycaenids {Lycaena sp., 
Chrysophanus sp.) are fewer, and the Oeneis sp. and Erebia sp. have almost 
disappeared. Moths (Autographa sp., Lygris sp., etc.) are seen on slopes; when 
scared the flight of Lygris sp. is short and fluttering, though direct from place to 
place. 
Of ground insects the small tineoid imagines, typical of sandy slopes, and 
the common, black hemipter (Chiloxanthes stellatus) are seen, and on dry tundra 
swamp some curious smaller flies {Scellus spininianus) , their abdomen and eyes 
having a metallic glitter; though having wings they only crawled or jumped. 
One of them had its pupa skin still attached to its legs. Two (male and female) 
small crab-spiders (Xysticus bimaculatus) were collected besides the common 
spiders, coUembola and mites {Bdella arctica), weevils, carabids, caterpillars, 
etc. The fresh water still contains a teeming life of entomostraca and dytiscid 
larviK, etc. 
August 30-31, 1914. 
During this period and the first half of September observations on insect 
life were possible only in 1914. Autumn was heralded by the scarcity of flying 
insects and by the behaviour of those upon the ground. A big ichneumonid 
wasp among Elynius plants, and the common, small, jumping flies (black spotted 
wings) under stones were easily captured. The common hymenopterous cocoons, 
spiders, mites, and collembola, were found and the common glistening carabid 
beetles (Amara glacialis) which were crawling around or had already excavated 
small grooves in the sand for hibernation. Some of the willow leaves were 
infested by the gall mites (Eriophyes sp.) or had galls produced by sawfly larvae. 
The galls were placed for rearing (Rearing 37) and in October the larvie made 
their pupating-cocoons outside them. The imagines which emerged in the 
middle of August, 1915, proved to be parasitic wasps {Dioctes viodestus) and not 
sawfiies, thus proving that hymenoptera as well as diptera, lepidopetera, and 
coleoptera are kept in check by these insects. 
September 1-10, 1914. 
Owing to the mild weather, insect life, during this period, was very similar 
to that during the latter end of August. Even moths and butterflies (Colias 
nastes, Chrysophanus hypophlaeus feildeni) were seen early in the month, bumble- 
bees were seen up to the 5th and parasitic wasps {Ophion bilineatum, etc.), until 
the 7th. A few trichopter imagines and some mosquitoes {Aedes nearcticus) 
were seen, but no crane-flies. Other flies observed were Hydrophoria sp., Rham- 
phomyia sp., Peleteria sp., Scatophaga sp., Limnophora sp., and a smaller species 
(Scellus spinimanus) . 
Among the ground insects noticed were Chiloxanthes stellatus, spiders 
(Tmeticus alatus, Microneta maritima, Lycosa sp.) and mites (Scutovortex lineatus). 
The spiders, Paradosa glacialis and Erigone arctica, were also seen, as were the 
common collembola and carabid beetles (Amara sp., Pterostichus mandibularis, 
etc.) small black staphylinid beetles, a few smaller dysticids, tipulid larvae, and 
caterpillars. 
16579—3 
