LIFE HISTORY AND BIOLOGY OF EINFELDIA SYNCHRONA (DIPTERA: CHIRONOMIDAE)

1971 ◽  
Vol 103 (11) ◽  
pp. 1597-1606 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. V. Danks

AbstractEinfeldia synchrona Oliver is univoltine in a small, shallow, highly eutrophic pond near Ottawa (45°N.). Adult emergence is synchronized with slight protandry in May, and from this small pond exceeded 145,000 individuals in 1970. Emergence is inhibited experimentally at short photoperiods. More than one egg mass is produced, during a period of several days following emergence. First instar larvae, which lack ventral tubules, are at first pelagic but build cases before moulting. The remaining three larval instars possess 1 pair of ventral tubules. Larvae show a preference for central areas of the pond over 40 cm deep, and show some mobility in response to seasonal depth changes. There are arrests in the development of larvae both in winter and during summer, with cessation of feeding, penetration into the mud, and construction in winter of special sealed cocoons. Marked year to year differences in the stage reached by winter, and in the larval population level, were detected. Many of these biological features are probably widespread in Chironomini and hence of some importance in the interpretation of studies of the bottom fauna.

1965 ◽  
Vol 97 (7) ◽  
pp. 684-690 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. W. Stark ◽  
J. H. Borden

AbstractThe life history of a tortricid cone moth Choristoneura lambertiana subretiniana Obraztsov in California is described. The larvae feed primarily on staminatc flowers and cones of lodgepole pine although some needle- and tip-mining occurs. The only other recorded host is ponderosa pine.Eggs are deposited in late July to early August; first-instar larvae migrate from the needles to protected locations on the branches and spin hibernacula. The larvae overwinter predominantly as second-instar larvae in the hibernaculum. They emerge from the hibernacula in April, and mature in four to six weeks. There are six larval instars. The pupal period lasts approximately two weeks; adult emergence begins in mid-July and extends through the end of August.


1968 ◽  
Vol 100 (2) ◽  
pp. 202-206 ◽  
Author(s):  
Louis F. Wilson

AbstractThe willow beaked gall midge, Mayetiola rigidae (Osten Sacken), is univoltine in Michigan. Adults emerge from bud galls on Salix discolor Mühl. and other willows on mornings of warm days in early April. Eggs are laid singly on or near the buds of the host. Head capsule measurements indicate three larval instars. The last two instars each possess a spatula. The first-instar larva emerges in late April and penetrates the soft bud tissues. The gall begins to develop at the beginning of the second instar in mid-May. The third instar appears in early July and continues to enlarge the gall until fall. Prior to overwintering, the larva lines the inner chamber of the gall with silk and constructs one to seven silken septa across the passageway. Pupation occurs in mid-March. The gall deforms the stem and occasionally a galled branch dies or breaks off.


1976 ◽  
Vol 54 (2) ◽  
pp. 266-284 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Pritchard

Collections of all stages of the crane fly, Tipula sacra have been made over a period of years from a series of abandoned beaver ponds in the Kananaskis Valley, Alberta. The growth of larvae was followed by head-capsule measurements and weights. Eggs hatch within a month; first-instar larvae grow rapidly and enter the second instar after a few weeks. The second instar may last for 3 months and the third instar usually lasts for 6 months, including the first winter. Most larvae spend almost a full year in the fourth instar and overwinter for a second time. However, there was much variation in growth rate within the population. Adult emergence curves were consistent in form in 4 years. Each spanned a period of just over 2 months, although individual adults lived for only a few days. These curves snowed two peaks, the second of which contained 15–20% of the year's emergents. These two groups may represent different cohorts that have grown at different rates, suggesting that the life history may be semivoltine or univoltine. The sex ratio changes from about 1:1 in the third instar to 2:1 in favor of males in the late fourth instar, pupa, and adult.


Holzforschung ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 56 (4) ◽  
pp. 335-359 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Oevering ◽  
A.J. Pitman

Summary Pselactus spadix attack of marine timbers was characterised by circular emergence holes 1.48±0.05 mm in diameter and adult tunnels (1.49±0.34 mm) breaking through the wood surface. Larval tunnels measured 0.407–1.892 mm in diameter, initiated from adult tunnels and increased in diameter away from the adult tunnel terminating in frass free pupal chambers (1.6±0.3 mm × 3.5±0.7 mm). Observations of larval tunnel locations indicated oviposition occurred inside the adult tunnels. P. spadix life history was investigated in Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) heartwood at 22±2 °C and 99±1% r.h. Mean adult longevity was 11.5±6.5 months, with mean post-mating longevity for males (11.7±2.9 months) significantly longer than for females (6.3±1.1 months). Adults of at least 2–3 months old were found mating in galleries, which, with observations of the larval tunnel pattern, indicated P. spadix can complete its life cycle without emerging from wood. Five larval instars were identified by measurement of 1722 head capsule widths and application of Dyar's law. Mean development time from 2nd instar to adult emergence was 70.5±6.9 weeks and pupation took 14.6±5.8 days. Development from 2nd instar to reproductive adult took between 17–20 months, with life cycle approximating 24 months at 22±2 °C and 99±1%


1976 ◽  
Vol 108 (12) ◽  
pp. 1303-1318 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vincent H. Resh

AbstractBionomics of the stream caddisflies, Ceraclea transversa (Hagen) (= Athripsodes angustus Banks) and Ceraclea ancylus (Vorhies) (= Athripsodes ancylus (Vorhies)) were compared with generalized trichopteran life cycles. The univoltine detritus-feeding C. ancylus has five larval instars and a brief adult emergence period. C. transversa has five larval instars but two distinct cohorts, in which larvae of the first cohort feed entirely on freshwater sponge, overwinter as inactive prepupae, pupate, and emerge the following spring. The second larval cohort feeds on sponge until the onset of gemmulation in autumn, then the larvae must overwinter as active third- or fourth-instar detritus-feeders, pupating and emerging later in the summer than the first cohort. The detritus-feeding C. ancylus larvae have a diurnal feeding cycle. The sand case of C. ancylus and the silk-secreted case of C. transversa differ in shape and composition, although both species initiate case construction using egg mass matrix, silk, and detritus. Emergence, flight activity, sex ratios, and adult survival depart from reported generalizations of caddisfly biology. Neither the validity of generalizing typical life cycles in benthic studies, nor the rationale that congeneric species operate as a functional unit in stream dynamics, is substantiated.


1982 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 225-235 ◽  
Author(s):  
Loren K. Russell

AbstractThe egg, larva, and pupa of Caurinus dectes are described and illustrated. Eggs are ellipsoidal, coated with black cement, and are attached to bryophytes. The larva is orthosomatic, with much-reduced thoracic legs, and further differs from other larval Boreidae in: amphipneustic spiracles, number of stemmata (7), placoid sensilla present in membrane of first antennal segment, and egg burster on frons in first instar. Three larval instars are recognized from analysis of head measurements and partial rearing. Larvae feed in stemmines or galleries in leafy liverworts (Jungermanniales). Pupation occurs in a silk-lined cell or cocoon, otherwise unknown in the Mecoptera; the pupa is exarate, with decticous mandibles. The seasonal occurrence of egg eclosion (February-March), pupation (July-August), and principal adult activity (October-April) is typical for the Boreidae, but only C. dectes is univoltine in this family. Successive annual generations appear to overlap through extended egg diapause and adult perenniation.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Steve B. S. Baleba

Abstract Background In holometabolous insects, environmental factors experienced in pre-imaginal life stages affect the life-history traits within that stage and can also influence subsequent life stages. Here, I assessed tolerance to water immersion by the larval instars of the stable fly, Stomoxys calcitrans L. (Diptera: Muscidae) and its impact on the life-history traits of their subsequent life stages. Results After submerging the three larval instars of S. calcitrans in distilled water, I found that the first instar larvae remained active for longer as compared to the second and third instar larvae. Also, the first instar larvae took a longer period to recover from the stress-induced immobility when removed from the water and returned to ambient temperature. When I followed the development of individuals of each larval instar that survived from water immersion, I found that their developmental time, weight, pupation percentage, adult emergence percentage and adult weight were negatively affected by this stressor. However, the weight of S. calcitrans adults developed from immersed first larval instar individuals was not affected by water immersion whereas their counterparts developed from immersed second and third larval instars had lower body weight. This suggests that in S. calcitrans, water immersion stress at the earlier stage is less detrimental than that experienced at late stages. Conclusion This study provides a comparative overview of the fitness consequences associated with water immersion stress during S. calcitrans larval ontogeny. The results prove that the fitness shift induced by water immersion in S. calcitrans is stage-specific. My results illustrate the importance of considering each larval instar when assessing the impact of environmental factors on holometabolous insect performance as these may be decoupled by metamorphosis.


1959 ◽  
Vol 50 (2) ◽  
pp. 237-258 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. H. Breese ◽  
Thelma E. Wise

Nausibius clavicornis (Kug.) is a cosmopolitan Cucujid that has frequently been recorded from sugar. It is commonly found in this commodity in Trinidad, where it has not been collected from any other.The adult and other stages are described, and an account is given of the life-history on Haydak's formula at 85°F. and 75 per cent. R.H. Development has also been studied on two types of unrefined sugar.Copulation can take place within one day of the emergence of either sex and the female may begin laying within four days of copulation. The average number of eggs laid was 275 and the overall viability was 85 per cent. The average incubation period was just under five days.The larvae of both sexes may undergo only five moults in development, but the more usual number for females is six. When larvae are disturbed during development, both sexes tend to have six larval instars. Severe disturbance may induce a seventh moult. The mean development period from oviposition to the emergence of the adult was 30 days when there were five larval instars; when there were six, development took about two days longer. Larval mortality on Haydak's formula was low.Ovipositing females lived for up to 163 days under controlled conditions, but males tended to outlive females by about 50 days.On unrefined sugars (e.g., raw or yellow-crystal sugar), adults lived for almost as long (73:99) as on Haydak's formula, but oviposition was greatly reduced and the viability of the eggs was much lower. Larval mortality was high, especially in the first instar, and the total development period was greatly increased.It is unlikely that N. clavicornis could multiply rapidly in raw or unrefined sugar, and any deterioration in stored sugar directly attributable to it would probably be small in comparison with that caused by other factors.


1971 ◽  
Vol 103 (5) ◽  
pp. 662-674 ◽  
Author(s):  
Walter Tostowaryk

AbstractPodisus modestus (Dallas) has one generation per year in the boreal forest of Quebec. Adults hibernate in the litter and soil from mid-autumn to late spring. Overwintered adults were found in the field until the latter part of August. Adults mated shortly after emergence from hibernation. Females mated an average of three times during the summer; the maintenance of a supply of highly fertile eggs apparently required this periodic mating. Young adults, which emerge from August to October, neither mated nor laid eggs before hibernation.The preoviposition period after first mating was 10 to 19 days. Females laid an average of 7.9 egg masses (average of 16.7 eggs per mass) at intervals of 1 to 25 days on jack pine, and on Kalmia and Vaccinium spp.Eighty per cent of the eggs hatched successfully after a mean incubation period of 15.3 days; 12% did not develop while 8% developed and were destroyed, during hatching, by other first-instar nymphs in the brood. Maturing nymphs spent an average of 7.7, 7.7, 7.8, 11.9, and 23.8 days in each of the five respective stadia, and required 59 days from hatching to adult emergence. A logistic curve describes the relationship between developmental time and temperature. First-instar nymphs required no animal food, but during each of the last four instars animal food was required for maturation. The hunting and feeding behavior, food consumption, abundance and mortality of P. modestus are also described.


1968 ◽  
Vol 100 (4) ◽  
pp. 430-433 ◽  
Author(s):  
Louis F. Wilson

AbstractThe pine cone willow gall midge is univoltine in Michigan. Adults emerge from the galls on Salix eriocephala Michx. and other willows on warm days in late April or early May. Eggs are laid singly on the leaves and stems of the host. Head capsule measurements indicate three larval instars. The first-instar larva emerges in early May and penetrates the soft tissues at the base of the developing shoot tip. Shortly thereafter, the gall begins to develop and is about half grown by the time the second-instar larva appears in late May. The last-instar larva appears in July. Before overwintering, the larva constructs a cocoon which may or may not be closed at the top. Pupation occurs in early April. Numerous inquilines and parasites inhabit the developing and mature gall.


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