Drive-by Sifting: Account of an Expedition of the Louisiana State Arthropod Museum from Baton Rouge, Louisiana to Portland, Oregon, and Return, During 10–24 November 2014; with a Brief Narrative of Travel Conditions, and Collection Methods; Including a List of Coleoptera Species Collected; Plus Selected Entomological Poems from Christopher E. Carlton

Michael L. Ferro, Brittany Owens, Jong-Seok Park, and Christopher E. Carlton

INTRODUCTORY COGITATIONS AND CONSIDERATIONS

Extended overland expeditions allow the student of Entomology an opportunity to cast his (or her) net far afield and collect Insect specimens from exotic locales. However, travel today "is a pestilential, topsy-turvy, harum-scarum whirligig" with little time for relief and certainly no time for dawdling. Of what use is the collection of a leaf litter sample if no time is at hand to extract the specimens, or if the grip of winter has frozen the earth solid and buried it under biting snow? Expeditions into the Possible must be launched if one is to expand their tools of exploration as surely as expeditions into the Wild must be launched if one is to expand their knowledge of the globe. Herein the authors delve to understand: 1) is it worthwhile, based on acquisition of specimens and species, to collect litter samples on an extended drive, including from frozen ground and under snow packs; and 2) will sufficient specimens survive in samples held for a extended time (fortnight) before extraction? Essentially, does collection of leaf litter samples on extended road trips possess utility, or represent futility?

ON THE MATERIALS USED AND METHODS FOLLOWED

1. The expedition commenced on 10 November and concluded on 25 November 2015. An overland route was taken beginning at Baton Rouge, Louisiana continuing through Colorado to Portland, Oregon at which point expeditions were mounted to Washington. The return route was by way of California and Arizona. 2. Suitable habitat was: 1) Surmised based on the presence of a rest stop; or 2) Espied from the road (whereupon the breaks were applied judiciously). 3. Only the finest leaf litter was sifted at each site. In the colder reaches, snow was removed and frozen ground was loosened by a delicate kicking/tromping action. 4. When outdoor temperatures dipped below freezing, samples were removed to that night's lodgings. To assuage suspicions a loud proclamation was made when carrying the samples though the lobby, "No, no! These are not bags of dirt! They're… They're full of snakes. Yeah! That's the ticket!" 5. Upon return to LSAM samples were Berlesed/Winklered for 24 hours and gently placed back in their original bags whereupon they rested for 72 hours, after which samples were run again for an additional 120 hours. 6. With infinite patience, specimens were pointed, labeled, and are currently undergoing exacting identification.

FINDINGS FOUND AND CLOSING CONCLUSIONS

Collection of roadside leaf litter samples, retention of the samples for several weeks, and long term Berlese/Winker extraction is a productive way to collect a wide variety of beetle species from a wide variety locations (Figs. 1–28).

Highlights: 1. Roadside leaf litter samples yielded an average of 11 species and 45 specimens of Coleoptera. 2. Samples taken from frozen ground buried under snow held plentiful species and specimens. 3. Samples retained for up to two weeks yielded plentiful species and specimens. 4. Extraction for up to 216 hours (9 days) resulted in double specimen yield and 25% more species compared to 24 hours.

POEMS

Humus Bear C. Carlton

Humus Bear's sleep disturbed, Vibrating lullaby ends. Dot on map begins.

The Motel C. Carlton

Bed bug lies in wait, Entomologists arrive, Bed bug comes out late.

The Struggle C. Carlton

Sensory online, optimal conditions fail, Appendages inert, signal alert, attention required, A change has occurred.

Sol is failing, hot, unwell, Move, move, move! Calibrating to core, move to optimum.

Diaspora detected, heat, insolation, Feed, live, conceal, reaction. Moving to core, event horizon, exist.

Time, time, time, waiting for wet, 96 hours, the endless void, peace. Last tarsungulus contracts, warm sleep.

Oh, Surfeit of Sorrow C. Carlton

Oh surfeit of sorrow, appalling regret, I let them go, wished them well, Smugly congratulated myself for escaping death, again. Their mission, born of curiosity and the exuberance of youth; Idiotic, wasteful, endless miles, no concept of objectives efficiently met. Time better spent in idle contemplation, synapses internally looping that same fractional tune, alert only to the dull passage of time.

The minutes tick past like the clomping of hard soled shoes, but without the Doppler. Idle worry…where are they? Always dark when the inquiries go out, no responses. The pain was easier in 1912. We could only go the following summer and find their remains. This would be a phone call at 3 a.m. that I wouldn’t answer. Listen to the message, then lose a half night’s sleep. I told them this might happen. Is it murder if you warned them?

As hard as the worry is to bear, the reality is worse. No return, they’ve made it to the glaciers, the path obscured by tragedy, Foolhardy explorers scattered like Wal-Mart after a tornado. Stripping and freezing, or contemplating the unthinkable thing that comes next. They are obsessive zombies by now. Mindlessly sifting the plastic and Styrofoam roadside waste in a blizzard. Sharing a mirage of Chinese food in Laramie.

The mandate to continue is also the cruel taskmaster who starts the vehicle. A solidly frozen block would be welcome, A perfect excuse to walk into the drifts and vanish. But no, it starts. And the unthinking reflexes resume control. The conveyor of going, stopping, sifting, going, stopping, sifting……. rinse and repeat as needed, even though your hair was clean the first time. Every shadow a tumbleweed, every glint of light a cue to awaken….and sift.

Finally, unlikely destiny prevails, the arriving. But, unthinkable dweebish foolery bookends the journey, Punctuating the arriving with a volcano, the returning with an ocean. The creeping regrets of age, contaminated by wisdom, the journey eschewed. I missed the crystalline dew of Wyoming. I flew.

The Tribute C. Carlton

They boarded the ‘burb in search of adventure, And drove across country in vinyl discomfort, Cross forest and plains and mountain terrain, Through cold, snow and ice, and bad conversation, Close quarters, bad dreams, improbable blizzards, Sharing rooms in motels with leftover pizzas. Great iceings prevented the speed from exceeding, Velocities for reasonable progress obtaining, Great visions of fame based on beetle researching, Were squashed by the lack of their cultural context, So toiling alone in the dark in the snow, They kept to their tasks through secret despairing. After finally reaching their appointments in Portland, They spent a full year reliving the journey, So here we are now in frigid November, The same place we were but much further eastward, And what is our tribute from this great composer? A rhymeless epistle in print on a poster.

This would be a phone call at 3 a.m. that I wouldn’t answer. / Listen to the message, then lose a half night’s sleep. / I told them this might happen. / Is it murder if you warned them? As hard as the worry is to bear, the reality is worse. / No return, they’ve made it to the glaciers, the path obscured by tragedy, / Foolhardy explorers scattered like Wal-Mart after a tornado. / Stripping and freezing, or contemplating the unthinkable thing that comes next. / They are obsessive zombies by now. / Mindlessly sifting the plastic and Styrofoam roadside waste in a blizzard. / Sharing a mirage of Chinese food in Laramie. The mandate to continue is also the cruel taskmaster who starts the vehicle. / A solidly frozen welcome, wouldbe A / block excuseperfect A to solidly walk driftsthe andintovanish. But / no, starts.it And / th ACCOUNT Michael L. Ferro ​ A COMPENDIUM Clemson University Arthropod Collection, OF OF AN Dept. of Ag. and Environmental Sciences [email protected] : : PRELIMINARY RESULTS 1 2 3 4 EXPEDITION Brittany Owens TOTAL SITES OF THE Department of Entomology

the the following summer find their / and remains. 2018 Specimens 45 Collection Sites

go Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 247 Species 11 spp. average (range 1–22) LOUISIANA STATE ARTHROPOD MUSEUM [email protected] 34 Families 45 specimens average FROM 5 6 7 8 Jong-Seok Park (range 2–333) BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA Department of Entomology EXTRACTION TIME Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA TO [email protected] 24 Hours: # SITES PER SPECIES IFTING 925 specimens (46%) 1 site, 163 spp. AND 9 10 11 12

S PORTLAND, OREGON, 191 spp. (75%) 2 sites, 43 spp.

e u e

Christopher E. Carlton rinse / repeatandsifting……. stopping,going, sifting,stopping, control. reflexesresumeof The / conveyor going, nthinking AND RETURN, 3 sites, 25 spp. Louisiana State Arthropod Museum 216 Hours: 4 sites, 7 spp. DURING 10–24 NOVEMBER 2014; Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA [email protected] WITH A 1093 specimens (54%) 5 sites, 5 spp. 13 14 15 16 BY 132 spp. (62 unique to 6–15 sites, 1–2 spp. BRIEF NARRATIVE OF TRAVEL CONDITIONS, - time slot!) (52%) AND

COLLECTION METHODS; FINDINGS FOUND e worry…where are they? / Always dark when the inquiries go out, no responses. / The pain was easier in 1912. / We could could We only / in 1912. easier the inquiries pain was The / responses. no when Always / dark gothey? out, e are worry…where

Idl AND 17 18 19 20 CLOSING CONCLUSIONS INCLUDING Collection of roadside leaf litter samples, retention of the RIVE IST OF OLEOPTERA PECIES OLLECTED A L C S C ; samples for several weeks, and long term Berlese/Winker PLUS SELECTED extraction is a productive way to collect a wide variety of beetle 21 22 23 24 D ENTOMOLOGICAL POEMS species from a wide variety locations (Figs. 1–28).

FROM

as

CHRISTOPHER E. CARLTON Highlights: thoughwas hair your a needed,even of lightshadow cueglintEvery / clean to time.firstthe awaken….an every a tumbleweed,

1. Roadside leaf litter samples yielded an average of 11 species 25 26 27 28 and 45 specimens of Coleoptera. Figs. 1–28. Exemplar taxa: 1) AGYRTIDAE: Necrophilus hydrophiloides Guerin-Meneville; 2) BYRRHIDAE: Listemus INTRODUCTORY COGITATIONS acuminatus (Mannererheim); 3) BYTURIDAE: Xerasia grisescens (Jayne); 4) MELANDRYIDAE: Lederia arctica (Horn); AND 2. Samples taken from frozen ground buried under snow held 5) HYDRAENIDAE: Gymnochthebius sp.; 6) LATRIDIIDAE: Dienerella; 7) LATRIDIIDAE: Corticaria; 8) LATRIDIIDAE: plentiful species and specimens. Stephostethus; 9) LEIODIDAE: Pinodytes; 10) SILVANIDAE: Ahasverus; 11) SMICRIPIDAE: Smicrips; [12–23 ONSIDERATIONS STAPHYLINIDAE] 12) ALEOCHARINAE; 13) EUAESTHETINAE: Euaesthetus; 14) MICROPEPLINAE: Micropeplus; 15)

o the dull passage of time. The minutes minutes Doppler. The like without / the past tick soled shoes, the clomping but of hard time. dull of o the passage C

t

PAEDERINAE: Stilicopsis; 16) PROTEININAE: Megarthrus; 17) PSELAPHINAE: Oropus; 18) PSEUDOPSINAE: Nanobius Extended overland expeditions allow the 3. Samples retained for up to two weeks yielded plentiful species serricollis (LeConte); 19) PSEUDOPSINAE: Pseudopsis; 20) SCAPHIDIINAE: Baeocera; 21) SCYDMAENINAE: and specimens. Lophioderus; 22) STAPHYLININAE: Tasgius; 23) STENINAE: Stenus; 24) TACHYPORINAE: Lordithon; 25) THROSCIDAE: student of Entomology an opportunity to cast his Pactopus horni LeConte; 26) TROGIDAE: Trox; 27) ZOPHERIDAE: Megataphrus tenuicornis Casey; 28) ZOPHERIDAE: (or her) net far afield and collect Insect specimens Usechimorpha barberi Blaisdell. from exotic locales. However, travel today "is a 4. Extraction for up to 216 hours (9 days) resulted in double pestilential, topsy-turvy, harum-scarum whirligig" specimen yield and 25% more species compared to 24 hours. with little time for relief and certainly no time for TRAVELOGUE dawdling. Of what use is the collection of a leaf

litter sample if no time is at hand to extract the 14 days; 6,400 miles d d

specimens, or if the grip of winter has frozen the arriving.theBut, / unthinkable prevails, sift.destiny unlikelyFinally, earth solid and buried it under biting snow? 10 November 2014 Expeditions into the Possible must be launched Louisiana → Texas → if one is to expand their tools of exploration as

surely as expeditions into the Wild must be New Mexico → Colorado efficiently efficiently Time / met. spent in better only idle alert contemplation, tune, internally synapses looping fractional same that launched if one is to expand their knowledge of ves the globe. Herein the authors delve to understand: → Wyoming → Utah → 1) is it worthwhile, based on acquisition of Idaho → Oregon →

specimens and species, to collect litter samples dweebish

on an extended drive, including from frozen Washington → Oregon

foolery bookends thePunctuating / withbookends journey, a foolery arrivingthe withvolcano, an returningthe ocean. regretsThe / creeping ground and under snow packs; and 2) will sufficient specimens survive in samples held for a extended time (fortnight) before extraction? ECN/ESA 14–19 Essentially, does collection of leaf litter samples on extended road trips possess utility, or represent November futility?

ON THE Oregon → California → MATERIALS USED Nevada → Arizona → AND New Mexico → Texas → in. / Their mission, born of curiosity and the exuberance of youth; / Idiotic, wasteful, endless objecti endless of wasteful, Idiotic, / miles, / youth; Their mission, ofin. concept no of the exuberance curiosity born and METHODS FOLLOWED aga Louisiana 1. The expedition commenced on 10 November and concluded on 25 November 2015. An overland 24 November 2014

route was taken beginning at Baton Rouge,

of

Louisiana continuing through Colorado to Portland, age,contaminated eschewed.byjourneythe wisdom, I / I / dewcrystallinethe of missedflew.Wyoming. Oregon at which point expeditions were mounted to Washington. The return route was by way of California and Arizona.

2. Suitable habitat was: 1) Surmised based on the presence of a rest stop; or 2) Espied from the road (whereupon the breaks were applied judiciously).

3. Only the finest leaf litter was sifted at each site. 80 In the colder reaches, snow was removed and

frozen ground was loosened by a delicate 70 Oh surfeit of sorrow, appalling let appalling Smugly them them go,well, wished I / regret, / myself death, surfeit Oh sorrow,forcongratulated of escaping Proteininae kicking/tromping action. Piestinae Micropeplinae Euaesthetinae 60 Staphylininae 4. When outdoor temperatures dipped below Scaphidiinae Pseudopsinae freezing, samples were removed to that night's Steninae Scydmaeninae

lodgings. To assuage suspicions a loud 50 Omaliinae

Oh, Surfeit of Sorrow By C. Carlton Oh, Carlton Surfeit C.Sorrow of By Pselaphinae Tachyporinae

proclamation was made when carrying the Families Collected Aderidae LittleLimb By MLF Paederinae Aleocharinae Agyrtidae Bostrichidae samples though the lobby, "No, no! These are not 40 Byrrhidae bags of dirt! They're… They're full of snakes. Yeah! Byturidae Cerylonidae Corylophidae That's the ticket!" Species # Anthicidae The Tribute Coccinellidae Dytiscidae By C. Carlton 30 Eucinetidae Hydraenidae Little

Mycetophagidae Melandryidae They boarded the ‘burb in search of adventure, limb lying on the on lying limb Ptiliidae Ptilodactylidae And drove across country in vinyl discomfort, Cross forest and plains and mountain terrain, 5. Upon return to LSAM samples were Trogidae Smicripidae Throscidae Through cold, snow and ice, and bad conversation, Close quarters, bad dreams, improbable blizzards, Berlesed/Winklered for 24 hours and gently 20 Sharing rooms in motels with leftover pizzas.

Cosmos / ground placed back in their original bags whereupon they Great iceings prevented the speed from exceeding, Velocities for reasonable progress obtaining, rested for 72 hours, after which samples were run Great visions of fame based on beetle researching, 10 Were squashed by the lack of their cultural context, So toiling alone in the dark in the snow, again for an additional 120 hours. They kept to their tasks through secret despairing. wherehabitats Acknowledgments After finally reaching their appointments in Portland, They spent a full year reliving the journey, 0 We are grateful to Seth Johnson and Victoria Bayless

So here we are now in frigid November, abound 6. With infinite patience, specimens were pointed, 1 5 10 15 20 23 The same place we were but much further eastward, for financial and logistical support, without which this And what is our tribute from this great composer? adventure would not have been possible. labeled, and are currently undergoing exacting A rhymeless epistle in print on a poster. identification. # species

Humus Bear by C. Carlton Humus Bear's sleep disturbed, / Vibrating lullaby ends. / Dot on map begins. The Struggle By C. Carlton Sensory online, optimal conditions fail, / Appendages inert, signal alert, attention required, / A change has occurred. Sol is failing, hot, unwell, / Move, move, move! / Calibrating to core, move to optimum. Diaspora detected, heat, insolation, / Feed, live, conceal, reaction. / Moving to core, event horizon, exist. Time, time, time, waiting for wet, / 96 hours, the endless void, peace. / Last tarsungulus contracts, warm sleep. The Motel By C. Carlton Bed bug lies in wait, / Entomologists arrive, / Bed bug comes out late.