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Volume 31, No. 1, Summer 2012 Newsletter of the Biological Survey of Canada Vol. 31(1) Summer 2012 The Newsletter of the BSC is published twice a year by the In this issue Biological Survey of Canada, an incorporated not-for-profit group devoted to promoting biodiversity science in Canada, particularly Editorial..........................2 with respect to the Arthropoda. Notice of AGM................2 Notice of AGM: Join us for the Annual General President’s Update ........3 Meeting of the BSC at the Joint Meeting of the ESC and 2012 Bioblitz Report: the Entomological Society of Alberta...........................2 Joint collection trip with COSEWIC Arthropods meeting, Corner Brook, Newfoundland ..............4 BSC Symposium at the Arctic Corner: ESC: ...................................6 Two wings over 2013 Curation Blitz at the the tundra: Higher Royal Alberta Museum .........6 Diptera research News about Entomology in the Northern in Canada: Dedication of the Biodiversity Program J.B. Wallis/R.E.Roughley Museum of Entomology..........................7 by Meagan S. Blair, Sabrina Rochefort, Insect Collections in Anna M. Solecki, Élodie Canada Series: The Lyman Vajda and Terry A. Entomological Museum (McGill) Wheeler.................16 by Terry Wheeler.........................8 Arctic Corner: Two wings over the tundra: Higher Diptera research in the Northern Biodiversity Program by Meagan The Lyman S. Blair, Sabrina Rochefort, Anna M. Entomological Solecki, Élodie Vajda, and Terry A. Wheeler..................................16 Museum Terry Wheeler updates Label Challenges for the history and current Insect Collections activities of the largest Research by Meghan Marriott university collection in and Sarah Tratch......................23 Canada......................8 FYI & FAQ on the BSC.....24 Requests for Material..26 Notices...........................27 Call for Proposals for FYI and FAQs about the BSC: 2013 BioBlitz.................27 BSC President Dave Langor answers questions about the Join the BSC...................28 Biological Survey and the Biological Survey Foundation .... ...................................................................................24 Visit Our website | Contact us | Previous issues Biological Survey of Canada New Address: c/o Entomological Society of Canada 393 Winston Avenue, Ottawa, ON K2A 1Y8 [email protected] 2 Newsletter of the Biological Survey of Canada Editorial: a major new initiative for the Biological Survey Donna Giberson It has been over 30 years since the Entomological Society of Canada, through their Memoirs series, published Hugh Danks’ “Canada and its Insect Fauna” (1979. Mem. Ent. Soc. Can. 108. 573 pp.). My own copy of that monograph is pretty dog-eared, illustrating how often I’ve consulted it over the years. But in 30 years we’ve learned a lot more about our insect fauna, and indeed the entire fauna of Canada. There are new ways of disseminating information too, including web tools as well as print forms. I urge you to attend the BSC symposium at the annual joint meeting of the Entomological Society of Canada and the Entomological Socity of Alberta in November for an update on the status of many Canadian taxa and the launch of the new Biota of Canada initiative. At last year’s Annual General Meetings of the Biological Survey of Canada and the Biological Survey Foundation, it was clear that there was confusion about the process for membership and board elections, and the differences between the “Survey” and the “Foundation” so our BSC president wrote a “BSC FAQs’ piece for last newsletter to try to clarify the process. This information was so useful, we’re including it in every issue, at the back of the newsletter. Gradual changes to the Biological Survey of Canada website continue to occur, as our new Communications sub-committee works to update content and the overall look of the site. We welcome comments to help guide this process. Don’t forget to visit the blog (http://biologicalsurvey.wordpress.com/), as well as the Canadian-arthropods listserve, to comment on biodiversity issues or the BSC activities. To subscribe to the listserve or to view the archives go to http://www.mailman.srv.ualberta.ca/mailman/listinfo/canadian-arthropods Please don’t forget to attend the Annual General Meeting of the Biological Survey in Edmonton this November (see notice below) Questions? Please contact us at [email protected] Notice of Annual General Meeting The 2012 AGM of the BSC will take place on November 7, 1-2 pm, Coast Edmonton Plaza Hotel (Acadia Room), 10155 – 105 St., Edmonton, AB. All are welcome to attend and participate in discussions, but only members can vote Remember that receiving the newsletter does not necessarily mean that you are a mem- ber. For information on membership please see p. 28 The Newsletter of the Biological Survey of Canada is published twice a year (sum- mer and winter) by the Biological Survey of Canada, an incorporated not-for-profit group devoted to promoting biodiversity science in Canada, particularly with respect to the Arthropoda. Send submissions to: Dr. Donna Giberson ([email protected]) or Dr. Doug Currie ([email protected]) Newsletter of the Biological Survey of Canada Department of Biology, University of Prince Edward Island 550 University Ave., Charlottetown, PE C1A 4P3 Masthead image: Tricoloured Bumblebee, Bombus ternarius photographed on Lupins in PEI in 2010, D.Giberson Return to front page Volume 31(1) Summer 2012 Newsletter of the Biological Survey of Canada 3 Update on the Biological Survey of Canada/ Commission biologique du Canada activities David Langor, Northern Forestry Centre, Natural Resources Canada, Edmonton, AB Over the last six months, the BSC Board continued to meet more-or-less monthly. Recently Donna Giberson stepped down as Secretary due to large work demands and Jade Savage agreed to take over this role. Jade can be reached at [email protected] The BSC web site has served a major role in helping the BSC deliver on its goal of information dissemination; however, much of the content of the website is outdated and requires attention to make it current. In recent months, a large effort has been made to review the content and structure of the BSC web site. The Board is working together to parse out portions of the web site for updating. As well, decisions have been make to remove some content from the web site (Directory of Entomologists, Specimens Sought). With the coordination of Jade Savage (Secretary) and Pat Crawford (Communications Of- ficer) the content update is moving along well and will hopefully be completed within the next 6 months. In the longer term, the structure and operability of the website is slated for a major overhaul to give it a fresh look and feel. There has been considerable discussion about whether both the BSC and Biological Survey Foundation (BSF) need to be both maintained as separate entities. Historically the BSF, a registered charity, was used to receive proceeds from the sale of BSC publications and donations, and use those proceeds for publication of new BSC products. As the BSC is also now a registered charity, it is perceived that the role of the BSF may now be trans- ferred to the BSC. Initial BSC Board deliberations indicate that there is a strong case for amalgamation of these two entities. The BSF will also consider this option in an upcom- ing meeting of its Board. If the Boards of both organizations support amalgamation, this recommendation will be brought before the membership of both organizations at the next AGM. The 2012 AGM of the BSC will take place on November 7, 1-2 pm, Coast Edmonton Plaza Hotel (Acadia Room), 10155 – 105 St., Edmonton, AB. The BSC is planning a symposium, The Biota of Canada, for the 2012 Joint Annual Meeting of the Entomological Society of Canada and Entomological Society of Alberta, November 4-7, 2012. The specific day and time of the symposium is not yet decided. The symposium will be used as a springboard to launch a new BSC initiative on the same topic. The BSC continues to be active with information dissemination through its newslet- ter (http://www.biology.ualberta.ca/bsc/english/newsletters.htm), web site, blog and publications. The Canadian Journal of Arthropod Identification recently released three new volumes: - Volume 19: Cluster Flies (Calliphoridae: Polleniinae: Pollenia) of North America by Jewiss-Gaines, Marshall and Whitworth; - Volume 20: Bees of the genus Dufourea Lepeletier (Hymenoptera: Halticidae) of Canada by Dumesh and Sheffield - Volume 21: Siricidae (Hymenoptera: Symphyta: Siricoidea) of the Western Hemisphere by Schiff, Goulet, Smith, Boudreault, Wilson, and Scheffler. As well, the third and final volume of the Arthropods of Canadian Grasslands book series is making good progress and when done, it will be uploaded to our website with the other volumes: http://www.biology.ualberta.ca/bsc/english/publications.htm Volume 31(1) Summer 2012 Return to front page 4 Newsletter of the Biological Survey of Canada Bioblitz 2012 on “The Rock” Held Jointly with 2012 COSEWIC Arthropods Committee workshop Donna Giberson, University of Prince Edward Island and Dave Langor, Northern Forestry Centre, Natural Resources Canada, Edmonton, AB The 2012 BSC Bioblitz was held in western Newfoundland, led by Dave Langor & Greg Pohl (Natural Resources Canada, Edmonton) with help from Kevin Robertson of the NL Wildlife Division. Dave and Greg were in the area sampling for the Arthropods of New- foundland and Labrador Project (see article in BSC newsletter, Vol 30(2):6-7). The an- nual meeting of the the COSEWIC Arthropods sub-committee was held in Corner Brook this year (on July 4-5, 2012), providing the opportunity for participants to extend their time in Newfoundland and join a day of collecting. Shelley Pardy of the Newfoundland and Labrador Conservation Data Centre arranged logistic and financial support for the trip, and Kevin Robertson also joined us from the NL government. Our day started with a visit to the base of Blow-me-down Mountain with options to collect in a nearby bog or stream, or climb to the top of the mountain for views and opportunities to turn over some rocks.
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