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10 B. C. ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY NOTES ON SOME ORTHOPTERA FROM THE PEACE RIVER DISTRICT OF BRITISH COLUMBIA By E. R. Buckeil Dominion E ntomological Laboratory, Vernon, B.c. It is not genera ll y recognized that the P rovince of British Columbia contains a large a rea of prairie land lying to the east of the Rocky Mountains in the Peace River District. This northeastern co rner of the province is approximately as large as the territory lying south of the main line of the Canadia n Pacifi c Railway from the Alberta boundary near Danff to Va ncc·uver, and Vancr,u ver Isla nd combined. In this a rea adjoining Alberta, on latitude 56, li es the British Columbia Peace River Block containing 3,500,000 acres, where consider­ able settlement is taking place and some of the fi nest wheat and oats in Korth America can be g rown. The la nd within the B ritish Columbia Peace l\iv er Hlock is gently rolling, with scattered patches of aspen, poplar and occasional a reas of spruce a nd tama rack swamp, and is typical of the vast Peace River District, of Northwestern Alberta, of which geographicall y, it is a pa rt. The m ountains li e approximately one hundred miles .to the west of the British Columbia Peace River Block. T he coll ection of orthoptera secured in 1927 from this reg ion, as mig ht be expected, does not contain many species, but is, nevertheless, of considerable interest, as it extends the northern known range of some of the species consid erably and includes at least one new record for British Columbia. The onl y other part of the P rovin ce, where coll ecting has been done, 111 which we frequently fi nd prairie species and races, is the East K ootenay a nd Upper Columbia vall eys, lying· between the Rocky Nfo untains on the east a nd the Selkirk" on the west. Here it is even 111 0re surprising to find prairie form s than it is in the Peace River District w hich is, geographicall y, the northwestern limit of the Great P lains w ith no intervening mountain chai n. Ce rtain similarities in the ortbopterous fo rms of these two regions will be discussed furtber, when dealing with the species recorded from the Peace River Block , which a re here enumera ted. Most of tbe specimens were collected by P. N. Yr00111. Acrydium granulatum K irby :- This g rouse-locust was fo und commonly and specimens were collected at Pouce Coupe, R olla, and F ort St. J ohn. It occurs in Canada from the Atlantic to the Pacific. Acrydium acadicum acadicum (Scudder) :- There is a record of this species fro 111 Kaslo on the K ootenay L ake by A. N. Caudell, 1913, recorded PROCEEDINGS, 1928 11 as A. ornatum (Say). This is the only previuus record of this species hom British Columbia. Three specimens were taken a t Pouce Coupe and Koll a. It occurs fairly communl y from Alberta to Quebec. Chloealtis conspersa (Harris) :- The Peace Rive r Block is a n ideal location for this sl'ecies w hi ch is particula rl y fond of inhabiting the coarse vegetation beneath aspen poplars, and in some warm, dry ravines was very numerous. The specimens secured were slightly smaIl er a nd darker tha n those coll ected in the Chilcotin District. It occurs locally throughout the province from the eastern slopes of the coast mountains to Alberta. Specimens were taken at Pouce Coupe a nd Roll a. Chloealtis abdominalis (Thomas) :-This species was ta ken a t RoIla. It did not appear to be as common as conspersa, but is by far the commoner o t the two species to the west of the mountains particula rly in the sout hern interior. Gomphocerus clavatus Thomas :- This was one of the most plentiful species in the Peace River Block a nd numerous specimens were taken at Pouce Coupe, Rolla, and For t St. J ohn. This is a common species in A lberta and the Canadia n prairies, and has been previously recorded from British Columbia only from the East K ootenay Vall ey in 1926, where it has evidently become establi shed after making its way through some of the passes of the Rocky Mountain range. There a re no records of it from west of the Selkirks. Chorthippus curtipennis (H a rris) :- This is a com mon species in British Columbia, but to pick out typical specimens of eithe r of its geographic races presents conside rable difficulty. The majority of the material examined is either intermediate between curtipennis curtipennis (Harris) and curtipennis oregonensis (Scudd er ), o r atypical, in more or less degree, of one or the other race. Three males were coll ected at Pouce Coupe. The<;e are decidedly small for the species and have the wings projecting sli ghtly beyond the end of the abdomen. I would place them as a typical curtipennis curtipennis (Harris), the wings being too short f O I- typi cal material. Typical specimens of curtipennis curtipennis (Harris), w ith the wings of the males projecting well beyond the end of their abdomens, have been coIle cted in the Chilcotin district and at Penticton, Creston, a nd Cran­ brook, but a re not common. T ypical curtipennis oregonensis (Scudder) from Co rvaIlis and F orest Grove, Oregon, has the wings in the male less tha n the combined leng th of the head and pronotum, reaching to about the middle of the abdomen. :.Jo specimens with such short w ings have been recorded from British Columbia, but a fair number with wings falling just short of the tip of 12 B. C. ENT01WLOGICAL SOCIETY the abdomen in the ma le, and with compa ratively short antennae, ha ve been collected in the Chilcotin District a nd a t Barkervill e, Anahim Lake, Rockcreek, and Cranbrook, and may be cunsi dered very nea rly typical curtipennis oregonensis (Scudde r ). Arphia frigida Scudder :- This specIes IS found from Manitoba to Alberta and from the Northwest Territories to the Y ukon and Alaska. In British Columbia it has l)een record ed from Telegra ph Creek on la titude 58, from P ouce Coupe and F ort St. J ohn in the Peace River Block, a nd from the East Kootenay a nd Upper Columbia vall eys. There is also a questi onable record from Victoria on Vancouver Island. The specim ens coll ected a re a ll yell ow-winged, I- ather dark in colouration, a nd lack the lig ht yell ow stripe down the ce ntre o f the cl osed tegmina, so conspicuous in some specim ens. This is a n early spring species hibernating in the nymph stage. Camnula pellucida (Scudder) :- This is the species of main economic importance in the Peace River Block and has, during the past few years, caused very serious damage to the g rain crups. From 1923 to 1926 it was in outbreak form throug'hout the Peace River district of Alberta and British Columbia, and did enormous damage to the grain crops of the reg ion. The cold, heavy rains in the spring of 1927 completely wiped out the young grasshoppers soon after hatching. Although enormous numbers hatched a nd great loss to the crops was anticipated, the mortality, from the weather conditions, was so complete that no da mage was done and the species was quite scar ce. As is usual with the species, the dry, uverg razed road sides and wo rn out pastures we re chusen fur o vipositiun. This is one of the main injurious species in 1 orth America and occurs in Canada from the A tlantic to the Pacific. In British Columbia it has been found w herever coll ecting has been done. Pardalophora apiculata (Harri s) :- This is anuther species occurring early in the spring. It is one of t he largest of the British Columbia orthoptera, a nd decid edly rare west of the mountains, only a few specimens from the Chilcotin district ha ving been found. In the Peace River Block it is apparently quite numerous and a good series was coll ected. It has been recorded in Canada from the Atlantic to the Pacific a nd no rth to the Northwest Territo r v. Specimens were taken at PO li ce Coupe, RoWt, a nd Fort St. J (l hn. Trimerotropis campestris l\1cNeill :- A single specimen was secured on the banks of the Peace River near Roll a Landing and was the unly specimen of this genus secured in the Peace Rive r R1 ock. This specimen had bright red hind tibiae similar to those from the pra il-ies of Southern A lberta a nd from the East Kootenay and Upper Columbia Vall eys. To the lJ "~ OCEEDINGS, 1928 13 west of the Selkirks, in the southern interior of British Culu mbia, the tibiae o f this species are always yellow or yell owish-green. It is an extremely common species on the cattl e ranges of the southern interior from the Nicola valley to the Chi1co tin district. Circotettix verruculatus (l(irby) :- The specimens secured were typica l verruculatus, w hich is an eastern species extending westward to the R ock y M ountains, a nd occurring very doubtfully to the west of the mou n tain s w here its pl ace is taken by Circotettix suffusus (Scudder ) . It \-\' as fo und commonly on the banks o f the Peace River near R oll a.

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