You’ve all heard of them… the Longhorn Beetles… the ones that are responsible for destroying thousands of trees in North America. The adult Asian Longhorn Beetles (Anoplophora glabripennis) eat the leaves and twigs of trees and deposit their eggs inside of bark, where the larva then munch away at the phloem, xylem and bark of the tree. Continue reading “The Misrepresented Longhorn”
Author: BIObus Crew
From Newfoundland to Nova Scotia
This past week has been a busy one highlighted primarily by travel. Once we had concluded our collecting in Terra Nova, it was time to move on to St. John’s for our crew leader swap out. After a great time getting to know and work with Crystal, it was time to say our good byes and await our new crew leader’s arrival. Continue reading “From Newfoundland to Nova Scotia”
The Eye of the Beholder
After three weeks of only sparse sightings of dragonflies, this past week in Terra Nova has been absolutely flooded with these graceful creatures. A few members of the family Aeshnidae seem to be of a particular abundance along the peripheries of the many ponds that punctuate Terra Nova. Continue reading “The Eye of the Beholder”
The Strange Case of the Caddisfly
When we were finishing retrieving an aquatic bottle trap from Blue Hill today we happened to find some tubes of carefully interwoven pine needles. While these types of things would normally go unnoticed by being inconspicuously small and blending in with the neighboring debris that has been swept to shore, what we were actually looking at was the discarded casing of a caddisfly larva (from the order Trichoptera). Continue reading “The Strange Case of the Caddisfly”
Do it yourself bug collecting
As we tour between national parks a common question that we are asked is how do you collect insects? Not only is it easy to make lots of our traps, it is a great summer activity for the young and young-at-heart insect enthusiasts. Continue reading “Do it yourself bug collecting”
Parasites on the Mountain
While my last blog post featured the biological phenomenon of commensalism between the purple pitcher plant and the mosquito Wyeomyia smithii, today’s blog will focus on the considerably more malicious act of parasitism. Continue reading “Parasites on the Mountain”
Moose on the Mountain
As many know, Gros Morne National Park is a UNESCO world heritage site for its spectacular beauty and the wide variety of geological features, often leading the park to be called the “Galapagos of Geology”. The name Gros Morne roughly translates to huge round hill, which refers to the second highest mountain in Newfoundland and the highest peak of the park- Gros Morne mountain. Continue reading “Moose on the Mountain”
Commensalism in Gros Morne
Newfoundland and Labrador’s provincial flower is undoubtedly an intriguing organism, as well as a strikingly relevant one to our work on the BIObus. The flower, Sarrencia purpurea, commonly known as the purple pitcher plant, is immediately striking to the eye when encountered. Continue reading “Commensalism in Gros Morne”
One Final Blog Post
Hello everyone, we’re back from the East coast, and what a time it was! In case you didn’t know, I’ve wanted to be a field entomologist since I was in grade two, so this was just a dream job for me. I never imagined I would be doing something like this, and that I would get paid for it! Continue reading “One Final Blog Post”
The best of the biters
The new crew has been settling into the good old routine of the BIObus this year, and we’re all excited to get to travel all around the east coast! While we’ve really enjoyed Fundy, we have also been reintroduced to the fieldwork fan base… otherwise known as the female biting insects. The four of us have evaluated which of the biting insects are the worst and the deceptively charismatic deer fly is by far the winner. Continue reading “The best of the biters”
