Insect Life on the Western Arctic Coast of America 33 K 



August 21-31, 191 o. 



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 th 

 middle of August. Of hymenoptera, bumblebees (Bombus 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 spinimanus), 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, collembola and mites (Bdella arctica), weevils, carabids, caterpillars, 

 etc. The fresh water still contains a teeming life of entomostraca and dytiscid 

 larvae, 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 Elymus 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 larvae made 

 their pupating-cocoons outside them. The imagines which emerged in the 

 middle of August, 1915, proved to be parasitic wasps (Diodes modestus) and not 

 sawflies, 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 (Ophwn 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 alcetus, 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 mandibulans, 

 etc.) small black staphylinid beetles, a few smaller dysticids, tipuhd larvae, and 

 caterpillars. 

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