The subtribe Aphrodina of the Aphrodini is an essentially Palaearctic group with eight Nearctic species, of which six are apparently all recently introduced from Europe to North America. The subtribe comprises four genera: Aphrodes Curtis with six species, Planaphrodes n. gen. with 15 species, Stroggylocephalus Flor with four species, and Anoscopus Kirschbaum with nine species.

The genera and species of the Nearctic Region are keyed, and notes are provided on North American literature pertaining to distribution, nomenclature, and the earliest records of the introduced species. The northern hemisphere species are illustrated, and their apparent relationships are discussed.

By type examination, the synonymy of Cicada rustica Fabricius 1775 with Aphrophora salicis (DeGeer) 1773 is confirmed and the following new synonymies are established: Acucephalus circumflexus Provancher 1889 = Anoscopus albiger (Germar) 1821; Acocephalus bifasciatus nigricans Matsumura 1912 = Planaphrodes sahlbergi (Signoret) 1879; and Acucephalus bifasciatus guttatus Matsumura 1912 = Planaphrodes japonica (Dlabola) 1960, as Planaphrodes guttata (Mm.). An index of all usages of trivial names in the Aphrodina is given.

The male imagines of 12 new Nearctic species of Limnophyes are described: Limnophyes cristatissimus n. sp., Limnophyes hudsoni n. sp., Limnophyes ninae n. sp., Limnophyes nudiradius n. sp., Limnophyes pilicistulus n. sp., Limnophyes folliculatus n. sp., Limnophyes carolinensis n. sp., Limnophyes recisus n. sp., Limnophyes coloradensis n. sp., Limnophyes margaretae n. sp., Limnophyes hastulatus n. sp., and Limnophyes spatulosus n. sp. The female imagines of Limnophyes hudsoni n. sp. and Limnophyes carolinensis n. sp. are described. A key to male imagines of Nearctic Limnophyes is given.

The tolerance of young adult Rhyzopertha dominica (Fab) to sub-freezing temperatures, −5, −10, −12, −18, −21, and −25 °C, was studied. Mortality in test populations increased in proportion to amplification of both intensity and duration. The increase in mortality with respect to duration follows a sigmoid curve. Environmental stresses, i.e., intense cold and starvation, increase the slope of the curve. In all cases, starvation mitigates against survival. R. dominica dies of starvation in a period between 116 and 432 h. Mortality due to starvation plotted against time yields a sigmoid curve.

Inhibition in feeding was observed in starved populations after 20 min of exposure at −18 °C or lower. This inhibition led to death after 7 days and apparently occurred secondarily to a state of “stress-induced lethargy.” Stress-induced lethargy was observed only in organisms which were both starved and subjected to sub-freezing temperatures.

As a result of short photoperiod exposures, the viviparity is replaced by oviparity. This action attains its maximum at 12:10 h and it does not accentuate any further even when the photoperiods are further diminished. There are equal chances of oviparous females and male formation at critical photoperiods. In all cases, however, the oviparous forms are deposited during the first half of the reproductive period. The males invariably appear during the second half. The sequence of sexual descendance is similar both in the laboratory and under field conditions.

Pink bollworm moths chemosterilized by fumigation with bis (1-Aziridinyl) phosphinic acid, ethyl ester, and released into field cages failed to suppress native populations. In comparison, moths irradiated with 10 krad of gamma radiation caused highly significant reductions in populations. Flight range and competitiveness tests in the laboratory failed to explain the ineffectiveness of the chemosterilized moths.

Larval ocelli (stemmata) of four species of Lepidoptera (Malacosoma pluviale, M. disstria, Isia isabella and Hypocrita jacobaeae) were examined under the photonic and the scanning electron microscope. Two types of ocelli are present, one with three convexities, the other with a single one. Differences exist between species. Examination of the internal structure reveals the presence of two separate morphological units, related to the external variations. The significance of these observations is discussed in the light of previous findings.

A microsporidian infection was found in two females of the red turnip beetle, Entomoscelis americana Brown, preserved for a histological study in 1973. This is the first record of a pathogen in this species. Dr. G. E. Bucher of the Agriculture Canada Research Station, Winnipeg, verified the identity of this pathogen. It could not be classified further, because fresh material was not available.

The immature stages of Euxoa basalis (Grote) are described and illustrated. Both the egg and pupa are similar to those of other Euxoa species and are virtually indistinguishable from some of them. The larva although morphologically quite similar to other Euxoa larvae is distinctive in coloration, particularly in the penultimate and ultimate stadia. Each of the larval instars is described; the ultimate instar in detail, the others briefly. A redescription of the adult is also given.

The shape of one single category of hemocytes served as a critically distinguishing character between larvae of two closely related species of Euxoa (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) that were otherwise practically identical in external features. The ratio of length/width of fusiform plasmatocytes in heat-fixed blood films was significantly smaller in larvae of E. campestris (Grote) than in E. declarata (Walker).

The biology of Urophora cardui (L.) (Diptera: Tephritidae) and its suitability as a biocontrol agent for Canada thistle (Cirsium arvense (L.) Scop.) were investigated. The incubation period of the eggs was 4.3 days at 27 °C. Crowding did not significantly reduce the longevity of the adults, the number of eggs laid, or the egg hatch. U. cardui overwinters as a mature larva in the gall but pupation and further development ensue when the larvae are exposed to air by opening the gall. The roots of single and double-galled plants weighed 65 and 78% less and the combined weights of the stem and leaves 47 and 58% less respectively than plants without galls. U. cardui is monophagous: it oviposits into Canada thistle and if kept without this host, into the closely related weeds Cirsium vulgare (Savi) Ten. and Carduus acanthoides L. U. cardui is a promising biological control agent and should be released in Canada.

Canada thistle (Cirsium arvense (L.) Scop.) is a widespread noxious weed in Canada and the northern United States. This paper reports on the biology of Urophora cardui (L.), a European tephritid, and its suitability for introduction into Canada to aid in the control of the thistle.

A female rove beetle (Ocypus olens Müller) in the laboratory consumed 20 small-sized brown garden snails (Helix aspersa Müller) in 22 days, eating almost its weight in snail bodies daily. H. aspersa is a serious agricultural and residential plant pest. Field observations from an area where O. olens was well established had a smaller snail population than similar areas lacking the beetle. O. olens appears to be a promising candidate species for biological control of H. aspersa. Mass production of O. olens has not yet been attempted. A tabular key to the nearctic species of Ocypus is presented. In North America its distribution is limited to California for which a map is included.

The genus Lycoptis Casey, with one included species, L. americana (Motschulsky), is reviewed. Members are placed in the subfamily Peltinae and are defined and compared with other members of the family Trogositidae. Members of the Lophocateridae are not recognized as a distinct family and instead are placed in the Peltinae.

Field observations revealed many dead specimens of the adult syrphid Metasyrphus lapponicus Zetterstedt in a quarry in the Chicoutimi region of Quebec in the summer of 1972. All the flies lay in horizontal strips with their head towards the zenith of the sun. The presence of mycelium indicated that they succumbed to a fungal disease. A fungus representing a species of Entomophthora was isolated and found to be new. Why the syrphids chose the sandy slopes of a quarry in which to die was not determined.

The primary type specimens of Lepidoptera in the collection of the Lyman Entomological Museum and Research Laboratory are listed. Taxa described by Lyman and three species described by Fyles and Grote are included. Lectotypes are designated where necessary.

A new species, Apanteles mahoniae, has been reared from Coryphista meadi Packard, a geometrid feeding on Oregon grape (Mahonia spp.) in the West (British Columbia, Idaho). It is described and differentiated from its close relatives in the glomeratus group.