Pnoc. E-"TO~LOL. Soc . Burr. Cor. C~I/jL\ , VOL 6~ (1965) , D EC. 1, 1965 21

One pupated on July 28 in a silken similar ones at the base, all set on a cocoon spun in a fold of paper. rugose projection at the tip of the Pupa last segment. Size 15 mm by 4 mm. Slender, wriggled actively when touchp-d; Remarks wing-cases dull, fuscous; A. segments This larva is an excellent example smooth, shiny, sparsely punctate on of twig simulation in form, colour, anterior borders, medium brown; and attitude, especially when resting cremaster two larger hairs with re­ with its body held out at an angle curved tips and about six smaller of about 45° to the twig.

SOME RECORDS OF LYCTIDAE IN VANCOUVER

G. J. SPENCER' In the Proceedings, Vol. 4, pages but by native and introduced anobiid 129-148, of the Seventh Pacific , termites and carpenter ants; Science Congress held in New Zea­ the emergence holes of lyctids and land, February 1949, under the head­ anobiids are very similar, hence the ing Regional Pest Faunas, is an arti­ mistake. cle "The more important Pes:.s The family; Lyctidae2 is tropical or of British Columbia" assembled by semi-tropical containing only 66 K. M. King from contributions by H. species known so far, included in 12 Andison, E. R. Buckell, R. Glenden­ genera of which 10 occur in the New ning, J. D. Gregson, K. M. King, J. World. The genus Lyctus contains 25 Marshall and H. A. Richmond, all of species; other genera, 41 species. So the Federal Entomological Labora­ far in Vancouver I have taken five tories in British Columbia. species of Lyctus and one of Tro­ On page 147 of this paper is the goxylon, making six in all. However, statement "structural timber is not, according to distribution lists in on the whole, subject to any exten­ Gerber's monograph and in Hatch's sive damage by . However, on Vol. III of the Beetles of the Pacific the coast, powderpost beetles, Lyctus Northwest, seven species have so far species, have in a number of in­ been found in this Province, one stances heavily attacked house tim­ being a single record. bers, occasionally necessitating the Considering these species alpha­ replacement of cellar beams." betically, we have:- I have been interested in house­ Lyctus africanus Lesne hold insects in this Province for many In June 1963 an importer of medi­ years especially those attacking cinal herbs brought in a pint of structural timbers and have not yet orris roots in which a few holes were come across an instance of this sort showing; in a few days some beetles since all our wooden ouildings are emerged which traced out to L. of native soft woods; also in the past atricanus Lesne which is very similar 20 years I have inspected many to L. brunneus except that the buildings suffering from insect attack fourth abdominal sternite of the and have found that if a species of female has a dense conspicuous Lyctus was present, it occurred only fringe of hairs. The insects are still in timber imported into the Province actively breeding in the orris as flooring, veneer, panelling or rhizomes in about equal numbers of carved ornaments and that building males and females (March 1965) , timbers were attacked NOT by lyctids

2. Gerber, Eugene J . The New World Species of Powder-post beetles 'belonging to the Family , Professor Emeritus, University of British Co­ Lyctidae. V.S.D.A. Technical Bulletin No. 1157, lumbia, Vancouver 8, B.C. Wash., D.C. April, 1957. 22 1' 1:"" E ' ·IU .I I " I.. S' iI .. j :SB]'J. CO I X~I B IA . VOL. 62 (1965 ), D EC. 1, 1965 and h ave reduced much of th e roots the larges t lyctid to occur in the to dust . Orris or orrice roots are the Province. rhizomes of three varieties of Iris, The first specimen was !)btained in cultivated in France, Italy a nd Mor­ spring 1934 from thin bamboo rods occo and are imported into North from J apan. The next three, obtained America for making a h air tonic '3.nd 3 J anuary 1955 and 9 on 14 April into Vancouver as one of 14 flavor:, 1955, came from a window blind of used in making London Dry Gin and thin round bamboo strips of not therefore this can definitely much greater dia meter than the be considered a hostile species and beetles themselves. In April 1958, a menace to our conviviaiity. It is 18 were obtained from mahogany the most active of four species of panelling that had been installed in lyctids that I have reared out in a house for one year; in 1963, 10 captivity and if the lid is removed from orris root a nd the last group from the container it flies out readily of 34 from the obeche wood spread­ instead of crawling out '1S other ing board as recorded for L . atri­ species do. can us, making 79 in all. Other record of L . ajricanus :--four specimens emerged on 5 May 1953 Le Conte, the West­ from a child's toy made of liquorice ern Powder Post beetle. wood, Glycyrrhiza lepidota (Nutt.) On 20 July 1955, a druggist brought Pursh , imported from California; one, in a handful of bamboo cigarette on 9 October 1955, from a figurine holders (source unknown ;)ut prob­ from Kenya and 18 specime!1s from ably from China) which were heavily one panel only of an insect spreading perforated by tunnels; from these board purchased from a supply com­ emer ged only two beetles which key pany. The board lay around in the out to cavicollis in Hatch's keY3, laboratory for three years before having a narrow prosternal process beetles started to emerge from it and between the pro-coxal cavities in­ the latest one emerged on 14 March stead of a broad one as in planicollis. 1964. Both halves of the board are Lyctus fuscus Linn. 1758 (Lyctus made of "obeche" wood Trip.ochiton linearis Goeze 1777) the Europ­ schleroxylon imported from west Africa, identified for me by Professor ean Powder Post beetle. R. W. Wellwood of this University This species was my fir.3t record who stated tha t the wood is well of Lyctus in Vancouver, obtained on known to have a high sugar content 14 May 1926 from a hickory axe (a necessity for lyctid a ttack). handle imported from Arkansas; the importer said he had a bushel of Also from this same side of the handles from which beetles were board there emerged from 28 Janu­ emerging but he brought up only one ary to 15 March 1965, 34 specimens which I placed on a radiator and in of Lyctus bTUnneus (Stephens) and short order, six beetles emerged. from 26 November 1963 to 8 October These were identified for me by the 1965, 8 specimens of Trogoxylon late Ralph Hopping who returned me prostomoides Gorham, all from one only one specimen. It is amazing that strip of wood 12 ins by 2 ins by % any beetles can develop in hickory inch thick. Just when this strip was which is almost as hard as ivory but infested by each species is. anybody's close examination shows that the guess. tracheae are quite large and where these occur in any hardwood, the Stephens, the Old females insert their astonishingly World Powder Post beetle. long ovipositors and deposit eggs. If This species ranges in color from medium to dark brown and is only 3 Hatch, M. H. Beetles of the Pacific North· west, Vol. m. University of Washington Press, slightly smaller than L. planicollis, Seattle, Wash. P )lOL'. E ?o :o:\fI)). Soc. Bn)T. CO ) T~ II : I . \ . Y(lL. 62 (1965) . DE( . 1, 1965 23 the tubes are slit open, the beetles L. opaculus, in 1957 by M. Hatch as press the elongated eggs lengthways L. planicollis and in 1964 by Spencer into the grooves. Close-grained wood as L . brunneus; definitely it is not like maple is consequently free from opaculus and contains characteristics a ttack by lyctids as is any wood of all three species. which is varnished or pain ted to close Also in the Stace Smith collection the tracheae. is one specimen collected 21 July 1934 Lyctus planicollis Le Conte, the by W. Math ers from "seasoned Afri­ Southern Powder Post beetle. can wood" in Va ncouver and identi­ This is the largest lyctid to come fied by H. B. Leech as M i n t hea stich­ in to this Province and the darkest. othrix Reit. without further detaUs. some being nearly black; females Fina lly is the speCies Trogoxylon may measure 5.5 mm in length. This prostomoides Gorham, the smooth­ is the chief species attacking oak and est-looking of the species on hand, was a problem during the second with only traces of elytral ridges and World War when oak for l1aoring confused silky pubescence on the was either improperly kiln-dried or elytra. My first record was 4 speci­ not dried at all. I have 17 records of mens (identified 'by Hatch) from a this beetle in oak flooring dating Mexican bamboo basket, on 27 Janu­ from 1950 to 1960 involving ship­ ary 1947. On 21 July 1961, 8 speci­ ments from Cookeville, Tenn. and mens emerged from Monkeypod Calico Rock, Arkansas. One firm ( Samanea saman Jacq.) wood bowls alone in Vancouver averagedimpor­ brought in from Hawaii; on 5 Dec. ta tions of 13 acres per year of oak 1961, 2 were sent in from a bamboo flooring, mostly from Arkansas and basket in Va ncouver and on 20 Nov. within one or two years of being laid, 1962, 3 were sent in from a North the floors produced beetles. The oak Vancouver home where the owner came in two forms, as 16-foot planks could not find the source of the which were sawn locally into 3-inch beetles. wide strips for first flooring, and bundles of tongue-and-groove short On 2 Nov. 1962 a citizen brought ends % inch thick for bedrooms: in a Mexican bamboo basket which these short ends 2 or 3 inches wide showed a few emergen ce holes; in and 12 to 16 inches long were most the la boratory it produced a steady heavily infested, sometimes neces­ stream of beetles which avera.ged 10 sitating the entire re-Iaying of a per week from Dec. 1963 to March bedroom floor. 19f1 4, when it was discarded. On 22 I conducted many experiments April 1963 a man brough t in one with fresh non-infested wood and beetle which had emerged from a 3/4 inch oak strip from a floor. From v a r~.ri n g numbers of beetles, under varying conditions of humidity and 4 April to 9 May 1963, 13 beetles temperature but was never a ble to emerged in the laboratory from a get a fresh infestation started: the carved Mexican figurine of unknown last of these experiments was dis­ wood. On 26 November 1963, 6 were carded in 1963 having allowed four obtained from the insect spreading years for a new generation to boarc!. of west African obecl1e WOOd, develop. previously noted. On 3 March 1964, Apart from 72 pinned specimens, one specimen was sent down from I have a good reserve of this species Powell River in a mass of termite in alcohol. frass; the beetle must have come from a bamboo basket and was acci­ Lyctus opaculus Le Conte dentally included in the frass. On In the Stace Smith addition to our 17 March 1964, 20 specimens were collections is one specimen collected sent in from Coquitlam which were in Vancouver on 9 July 1930, identi­ in process of emerging from the half­ fied in 1944 or 1946 by H. B. Leech as inch thick panelling of American ash 24 PROC. ENTOMOL. Soc. BRIT. COU; MBIA, V OL. 62 (1965), D EC. 1, 1965 in a large living room. Emergence of grains of sugar were then placed on this brood from the ash started pre­ the block of hickory and wetted with cisely 2 Y2 years after the house was a drop of water which sank into the built and had continued up to the wood as if it was ,blotting paper. The time the beetles were first sent in beetles remained longer on the sur­ for identification. The emergence face of this sugared hiCKory than on from the panelling became so gen­ any of the other blocks. In 12 days eral by the end of September 1965 all the beetles had died so 18 new that the owners had it all ripped off, living ones were dropped on to the the area behind it thoroughly spray­ blocks. It may be several years before ed with a 1 per cent solution of the results of this test are known. lindane in oil and the panelling On 8 February 1965, six specimens replaced by plywood of a different were sent in from Keremeos where species of wood. The danger from they were emerging from Bongo this infestation lies in the fact that drums purchased in Mexico; identiGY several beetles have emerged from of the wood in the drums was the pOlished oak flooring nearest to unknown. the infested panels, one from the This species, Trogoxylon prosto­ next room and one from a room moides, has occurred in Vancouver in beyond that. Apparently the beetles more species of wood than any other spread under the sub floor and the -in bamboo from China or Japan, extent of their infestation from the in monkeypod wood, heavily in bam­ underside of the oak flooring may boo from Mexico, in oak, in M:exican not become apparent for several h ardwood, in African obeche wood years. and in eastern American ash. It Now it has long been known that seems to be the one species of Lyctid beetles of the family Lyctidae are beetle that may become acclimatized attracted to wood of a high sugar and capable of developing in hard­ content, so T. prostomoides in a con­ wood in British Columbia. tainer were given grains of cane To my knowledge, NO softwood sugar upon which they fed for per­ has ever been attacked by Lyct1ls iods up to one hour, apparently by beetles in British Columbia. licking it. Finally, a ninth species is emerg­ To test the possible selectivity of ing (November 1965) from boards of this species, one small block each of a packing case recently rer.eived from fine grain, hard, eastern European south India. It closely resembles L. oak, Arkansas oak flooring, coarse­ brunneus in elytral and leg charac­ grain northeastern American oak ters but the front and vertex are possibly from Ontario, 40-year old different. It is being cultured out in hickory and chips of the same ash the same way as T. prostomoides to were placed in to a can and some 16 see if it will attack hardwoods other adults of both sexes were carefully than the so-far unidentified wood dropped on to the blocks. A few from which it is emerging.