1925] Insect Food Habit Ratios on Quelpart Island 
93 
though not strictly representative, it is the nearest approach to 
it that is available at this time. 
In accordance with their family food habits, the 527 species 
can be grouped approximately as follows: 
No. 
species 
Phyto- 
phagous 
Sapro- 
phagous 
Harpac- 
to- 
phagous 
Parasitic 
Pollen 
feeders, 
misc. sp. 
Quelpart Island 
527 
60 % 
16 % 
20 . 8 % 
1-5% 
i-7% 
A comparison of the above ratios with the ratios for other 
sections which have been collected over more thoroughly and 
which have been treated in a similar way, shows that the para- 
sitic figure for Quelpart Island is too low, due to the fact that 
the parasitic Hymenoptera are not represented as they should 
be. From studies of “samples” in other areas, it appears that 
the parasitic figure should be about 10 and in view of this, 50 
species have been provisionally added to the parasitic group 
making the total number of species 577 and resulting in the 
adjusted set of ratios found below. 
No. 
species 
Phyto- 
phagous 
Sapro- 
phagous 
Harpac- 
to- 
phagous 
Parasitic 
Pollen 
feeders, 
misc. sp. 
Quelpart Island 
577 
55% 
15% 
19% 
10 % 
1 % 
It is now possible to compare these ratios with those of 
other areas and this has been done in the following table I. It 
will be noted that the figures in each column do not differ widely 
and suggest a fixed relationship or at least a close resemblance. 
The same relationships are brought out in a slightly different 
manner in table II wherein the comparisons are made with the 
parasitic food habit as a base. For example, if the adjusted 
parasitic food habit in Quelpart Island is represented by 1, 
then the relative importance of the other types is, phytophagous 
5.5, saprophagous 1.5, etc. 
