Click here for the orignal journal page (in Acrobat pdf format).

The text below is grayed out because it is not intended to be read. It is a necessarily imperfect OCR of the original and is only used by a search engine.

---

	Journal of The Lepidopterists' Society Volume 19                                             1965                                         Number 3
	REVIEW OF COLLECTIONS OF LEPIDOPTERA BY AIRPLANE Perry A. Glick Entomology Research Division, Agric. Res. Serv., U.S.D.A., Brownsville, Texas' It has long been established that many species of Lepidoptera are migrants and are carried by air currents far out to sea or across continents. With the continuing aid of air currents they can be carried over mountain barriers and descend in the leeward currents into the valleys below, where if conditions are favorable they can perpetuate themselves. The writer has observed butterflies drifting or flying at altitudes over 14,000 feet in the Rockies, especially the less common satyrid, Erebia magdalena Strecker; the pierid, Colias meadii ells Strecker; and a papilionid, Par-nassius sp. The height to which a butterfly, moth, or other insect may be carried by air currents is related to its size, weight, and buoyancy. This relation­ship may be expressed in terms of the aerostatic or lighter-than-air coefficient (Glick, 1939). The aerostatic coefficient varies directly with the area of the insect which is exposed perpendicular to the pull of gravitation and inversely with the weight of the insect per unit of ex­posed area; and therefore, the lighter the insect the greater the aerostatic coefficient, and the heavier the insect the less the aerostatic coefficient or actual buoyancy. The vertical lift of an insect may be represented by the equation: JD Ac — K —. Ac is the aerostatic coefficient R equals the area in metric units exposed perpendicular to gravity, W represents the weight in milli­grams of the insect exposed to gravity, and K equals the constant or insect involved. Thus, any insects, particularly the more fragile butterflies and moths, occur at very high altitudes because of their relative size and weight, or buoyancy. Under the same given conditions of wind velocity and convection, a heavily built insect with small wing expanse will not
	1 In cooperation with the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station. Mention of trade names herein does not necessarily imply their endorsement by the U.S.D.A.

	130                                       Glick: Collections by airplane                    Vol. 19, no. 3
	<*—'                                                                                                                                                         ... Fig. 1. Piper Cub plane equipped with insect traps placed beneath wings with control wires running from traps to cabin. A screen is partly pulled out of closed compartment for exposure as when in operation (Glick, 1955). be carried as high as a very light insect with relatively greater wing expanse. Most butterflies find it difficult to fly in a strong wind because their wings offer a broad surface to the air. However, certain species may even find it easier to fly directly into a strong wind, with the wings vertically closed and opened alternately so as to offer the sharpest edge to the resistance of the wind. Such a butterfly does not appear to propel itself, but to be driven forward by the action of the wind eddying against the undersurface of the wing presented to it, but how this is done is not easy to demonstrate (Tutt, 1902). Micros are more or less at the mercy of air currents when in flight, particularly if the wind is above 6-10 miles per hour. Glick et at. (1956) determined that pink bollworm moths, Pectinophora gossypiella (Saun­ders), were collected in greater numbers in light traps when the wind velocity was three miles per hour or less and their flight was directly into the wind. During strong winds butterflies tend to remain close to vegetation and even the strong fliers seldom venture forth. The writer in past years, and more recently from 1954 to 1957, made a comprehensive study of insect dissemination and distribution, with em­phasis on the more important economic species (Glick, 1939, 1955, 1957, 1960, & Glick and Noble, 1961). This study, conducted with airplanes, involved some 1,552 flights. More than 1,286 hours were spent in actual

	1965                                  Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society                                  131
	Fig. 2. Insect-collecting trap, as shown under wing of plane, with screen pulled out of closed compartment to enable removal of insects and transferring them to alcohol in vials. The pilot, Arthur Gieser (left), is recording data.
	collecting with screens or nets exposed. The flights were made from altitudes near ground surface to 16,000 feet and resulted in the collection of 35,826 insects. Procedures and Area Covered The first airplane insect traps used in these extensive upper air insect collections were operated from 1926 to 1931 in northeast Louisiana and in Mississippi across the Mississippi River from Tallulah, Louisiana. The writer designed the original three-compartment trap, which was placed between the wings of an old JN6LI Army training ship and on DeHaviland HI Army biplanes (Glick, 1939, 1941, & 1942). These traps were also adapted for a Stinson Detroiter SMI monoplane. In 1930 the trap was redesigned by the late G. C. McGinley to consist of two compartments. This latter type trap was used on a Piper Cub PA Super Cruiser (Figs. 1 & 2) in flights at Brownsville, Texas, in 1954, and at College Station, Texas; Shreveport, Louisiana; and Texarkana, Arkansas in 1956. In 1957 another type of trap, designed by C. N. Husman, was used in flights over northeast Louisiana, Mississippi, Illinois, and Indiana. This trap was equipped with a series of nets and operated from the plane cabin (Fig. 3).

	132                                       Glick: Collections by airplane                     Vol. 19, no. 3
	Fig. 3. Insect trap using nets in position on plane; steel tracks extend from rear of cabin to struts of plane, with net in collecting position at end of tracks (Glick, 1960). Flights were made when weather conditions permitted both night and day collecting. The insects taken were correlated with weather and meteorological data embracing surface and upper-air recordings. The flights in northeast Louisiana from 1926 to 1931 were made throughout every month of the years involved. The other series of flights were made either in the spring, summer, or late fall. Discussion Lepidoptera, the only order considered in this paper, comprised prob­ably the more important species taken, although it represented only one percent of the total insects collected in the upper air. The Lepidoptera included five families of Rhopalocera and 25 families of Heterocera, the greater portion of which were Microlepidoptera. The two families of moths in which we were most interested and for which our flights were primarily made were the Noctuidae and Gelechiidae. The family Noctui-dae included several important economic species including adults of the bollworm, Heliothis zea (Boddie); cabbage looper, Trichoplusia ni (Hiibner); cotton leafworm, Alabama argillacea (Hiibner); fall army-worm, Laphygma frugiperda (J. E. Smith); and the army worm, Fseuda-letia unipuncta (Haworth). Specimens of the garden webworm,

	1985	Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society	133
	Table I. Lepidoptera Collected by Airplane in a Series of Flights Made in Illinois, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas at Intervals From 1926 to 1957
	Family, genera, and species State Alti­tude Num­ber Family, genera, and species State Alti­tude Num­ber (feet) (feet) Pieridae: Noctuidae (cont'd) Colias eurytheme 2,000 Boisduval La. 50 1 Laphygma frugi- Nymphalid ae : perda (Smith) Phyciodes tharos (Drury) La. 50 1 (alive) Ommatochila mundula Zeller La. La. 500 500 Junonia coenia (Hiibner) La. 200 1 Pseudaletia unipuncta Hesperiidae: (Haworth) 111. 200 Celotes nessus La. 20 1 Plathypena scobra Epargyreus (F.) La. 500 clarus (Cramer) La. 600 1 Tetanolita myne- Hesperia leo- salis (Walker) La. 500 nardus Harris La. 20 1 Undet. spp. La. 500 Lerema accius 1,000 (Smith) La. 200 1 her odea eufala Geometridae : (Edwards) La. 200 1 Undet. spp. La. 1,000 2 Amattdae (Synto- Pterophoridae : midae): Oidaematophorus Scepsis fulvicollis sp. Texas 3,000 1 (Hiibner) La. 200 1,000 2,000 100 1 1 2 1 Pterophorus ten- uidactylus Fitch La. 200 1 " Texas Pterophorus sp. Undet. sp. La. La. 200 1,000 1 1 Noctuidae: Trichoplusia ni Pyralidae : (Hiibner) (= Autographa hrassicae (Riley)' ii La. Texas 500 200 1 1 Pyralinae; Ptjralis farinalis L Undet. sp. La. La. 5,000 600 1 1 Alabama argilla- Pyraustinae; cea (Hiibner) La. 200 2 Nomophila noctu- 500 1,000 14 6 ella (Schiff.) Geshna primordi- La. 3,000 1 3,000 1 alis Dyar La. 500 2 Bomolocha sp. La. 500 1 600 1 Eublemma obli- 1,000 4 qualis (F.) La. 500 1 Loxostege simila- Heliothis zea lis (Guenee) Texas 200 2 (Boddie) La. 500 1 500 1 Laphygma frugi- La. 500 1 perda (Smith) La. 500 4 3,000 1 1,000 1 Microtheoris sp. Texas 1,000 1

	134	Glick: Collections by airplane	Vol. 19, no. 3
	Table I (continued)
	Family, genera, and species State Alti­tude Num­ber Family, genera, State Alti­tude Num­ber (feet) and species (feet) Pyralidae (cont'd) Gelechiidae (cont'< d) Undet. spp. La. 5,000 1 Aristotelia quin- Texas 200 2 quepunctella 600 1,000 2,000 1 1 1 Busck Battaristis con-cinusella La. 2,000 1 Crambinae; (Chambers) Texas 200 5 Euchromius ocel- 500 1 leus (Haworth) Texas 200 1 2,000 1 Phycitinae; Chionodes? sp. Texas 200 1 Elasmopalpus lig- Dichomeris ligu- nosellus (Zeller) La. 500 3 lella (Hiibner) La. 2,000 1 Texas 1,000 1 Eucordylea sp. La. 200 1 Undet. spp. La. 500 1 Gelechia spp. La. 200 1 Texas 3,000 1 1,000 1 TORTRICJDAE: Gelechia spp. Olethreutinae; (larvae) La. 500 1 Epiblema strenu- 1,000 2 ana (Walker) La. 500 1 Glyphidocera sp. Texas 200 1 Celyphoides ces- Gnorimoschema pitana (Hiibner ) La. 1,000 1 spp. Texas 100 1 Undet. spp. 111. 200 1 500 1 Texas 200 1 2,000 1 2,000 2 Keiferia sp. Texas 100 1 Tortricinae; Stegasta bosque- Undet. sp. Texas 200 1 ella (Chambers) Texas La. 200 1,000 1 1 Phaloniidae: Pectinophora gos- Phalonia sp. Texas 1,000 1 sypiella (Saun- COSMOPTERYGIDAE: ders) La. 100 200 4 6 Cosmopteryx spp. Texas 200 1 500 11 La. 1,000 1 1,000 5 5,000 1 2,000 3 Undet. spp. La. 500 1 Texas 1,000 1 Texas 500 3 Blastobasidae: 2,000 2 Holcocera spp. La. 200 2 Walshiidae: 1,000 2 Periploca conco- Glyphipterygidae : lorella (Cham.) Texas 200 1 Glyphipteryx Epermeniidae: impigritella Clemens La. 3,000 1 Epermenia sp. La. 5,000 1 Scythrididae: Gelechiidae: Scythris spp. Texas 200 1 Anacampsis sp. Texas 200 1 1,000 1 Aristotelia sp. Undet. spp. Texas 200 3 roseosuffusella COLEOPHORIDAE: (Clemens) ? La. 500 1 Coleophora spp. Texas 200 2 1,000 1 500 3

	1965	Journal of the hepidopterists Society								135
	Table I (continued)
	Family, genera, and species	State		Alti­tude (feet)	Num­ber	Family, genera, and species	State	Alti­tude (feet)		Num­ber
	COLEOPHORIDAE ( COnt'd )					Microlepidoptera undet. spp.	La.	200 4 500 32 1,000 12 2,000 6 3,000 2 5,000 2 20 2 200 18 500 28 1,000 8 2,000 3 3,000 1 5,000 2
	Graciilariidae : Neurobatha strigifinitella (Clemens)            La. Lyonetiidae : Bedellia sommu-lentella Zeller La.			2,000 4 3,000 1
				500		Lepidoptera undet. spp.                       La.
				2,000        1
	Bucculatrix spp. La			200         1
	Undet. sp. TlSCHERIIDAE: Prob. Tischeria sp. Tineidae: Tinea spp. Nepticulidae : Nepticula spp.	500        2 Texas 5,000        1
		111.	1,000 1,000 2,000 200		Lepidopterous larvae
		La.					La.		200
		La.			Total Lepidoptera taken					319
	Total flying time (hours) in Louisiana—852.9 Texas — 40.2 Illinois — 45.0
	Loxostege similalis (Guenee) (Pyralidae; Pyraustinae), and the meal moth, Fy rails farinalis (L.) (Pyralidae), were also represented in the collections. Several hundred flights were made to determine the height at which pink bollworm moths (Fectinophora gossypiella (Saunders)) could be recovered. Thirty-seven specimens were collected in Texas and Mexico at altitudes from 20 to 3,000 feet. Accordingly, since these airplane col­lections of pink bollworm moths have established the occurrence of the insect in the upper air, it is concluded that this destructive pest has a high power of dispersal, moving about freely in areas with suitable host material. Three larvae of the genus Gelechia were taken in the upper air—one at 500 feet at night, and two at 1,000 feet in the daytime. The two specimens at 1,000 feet were collected when the air was slightly rough. It has been possible to trace the annual advance of the cotton leaf worm moth from the time of its first appearance on cotton in the United States at Brownsville, Texas, to its first recorded appearance hundreds of miles

	136                                       Glick: Collections by airplane                     Vol. 19, no. 3
	Table II. Lepidoptera Collected by Airplane in a Series of Flights Made at Tlahualilo, Durango, Mexico, September, 19281 t^ i                       j                                                            Altitude _T , Family, genera, and species                                             ,* , \ Number Satyridae: Undet. sp. _______ _______________ ___________                     20            1 Lycaenidae: Hemiargus isola (Reakirt) (H. isola isola (Reakirt)) _____ __ 1,000            1 Pterophoridae : Undet. sp. ____________.....____________ . __________________ 20             1 TORTRICIDAE. Oleuthreutidae; Epiblema sosana (Kearfott)                 __________ ____ _____ 100            1 Gelechiidae: Gnorimo schema sp.                           ___________________________ 2,000             1 Pectinophora gossypiella (Saunders) ____           _______________ 20            4 100             1 1,000             1 3,000            1 Heliodinidae : Undet. spp. _______ ___________ _____ _______                   __._ 500            1 1,000             1 SCYTHRIDIDAE: Scythris sp. .. ___________ ________________ _____     100            1 Gracillariidae : Undet. sp. ___________ .__ ________ ._  2,000             1 Lepidoptera undet. sp. ______ ______ _____________ ____.....____       20             1 Macrolepidoptera undet. sp. _________________________________       20             1 Total Lepidoptera collected . _______ -            _____________             18 Total flying time (hours )—35.3
	1 Tlahualilo is situated in the Laguna District of Durango and Coahuila, some 43 miles north of Torreon. northward. Comparisons of the records for seven years showed that it took 40 to 58 days, or an average of 56 days, for the moth to appear on cotton in northern Louisiana after its initial appearance in southern Texas near Brownsville. From the first record of the moth in fields near Brownsville to the first report of the moth from Wisconsin there was an average of 107 days, with 121 days for Minnesota and 113 days for Michigan. The airplane collections furnished additional information on the flight and migration activity of this moth. There were 23 specimens taken at altitudes from 500 to 3,000 feet. In 1929 the first moth found at Tallulah was taken in the airplane trap on August 5 at the altitude of 3,000 feet. This moth probably was a migrant, since neither eggs nor larvae had been reported in Louisiana previously (Glick, 1939). The five families of butterflies represented in the airplane collections were Lycaenidae, Nymphalidae, Pieridae, Satyridae, and Hesperiidae.

	1985	Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society	137
	The known species represented included the pierid, Colias urytheme Boisduval, and the nymphalids, Phyciodes tharos (Drury), and Junonia coenia (Hiibner). The specimens were taken from near ground surface to altitudes up to 500 feet in northeast Louisiana. Five determined species of Hesperiidae, taken in the airplane collections up to 600 feet, included Epargyreaus clarus (Cramer), Celotes nessus (W. H. Edwards), Hes-perki leonardus Harris, Lerema accius (J. E. Smith), and her odea eufala (W. H. Edwards). A small lycaenid, Hemiargus isola (Reakirt), was taken in Mexico near Torreon at 1,000 feet. An interesting incident oc­curred during a flight in northern Texas when numbers of monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus (L.)) were encountered at 2,000 feet, but were able to evade the plane and continue on their course. The list of species, genera, and families represented in the airplane collections of insects is shown in Table l.2 Summary Collections of Lepidoptera and other orders of insects were taken in the upper air with the use of airplanes equipped with specially designed insect-collecting traps. Over 1,500 flights were made over Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi, Illinois, Indiana, and in Mexico to study the flight and seasonal activity of certain species of economic insect pests. Other insects encountered were also recorded. Lepidoptera composed only one percent of the total insects collected, but 25 families of Heterocera and five families of Rhopalocera were represented in the overall collec­tions. Literature Cited Glick, P. A., 1939. The distribution of insects, spiders, and mites in the air. U. S. Dept. Agr. Tech. Bull., 673, 150 pp. 1941.     Insect population and migration in the air. Committee on Apparatus (National Research Council). Techniques for appraising air-borne populations of microorganisms, pollen, and insects. Phytopathology, 31(3): 216-220. 1942.     Insect population and migration in the air. Aerobiology (Edited by Forest Ray Moulton). Amer. Assoc. Adv. Sci., 17: 88-98. 1955. Pink bollworm moth collections in airplane traps. Tour. Econ. Ent., 48(6): 767. 1957. Collecting insects by airplane in southern Texas. U. S. Dept. Agr. Tech. Bull., 1158, 28 pp. 1960. Collecting insects by airplane with special reference to dispersal of the potato leafhopper. U. S. Dept. Agr. Tech. Bull., 1222, 16 pp. Glick, P. A., J. P. Hollingsworth, & W. J. Eitel, 1956. Further studies of the attraction of pink bollworm moths to ultraviolet and visible radiation. Jour. Econ. Ent., 40(2): 158-161. Glick, P. A., & L. W. Noble, 1961. Airborne movement of the pink bollworm and other arthropods. U. S. Dept. Agr. Tech. Bull, 1225, 20 pp. Tutt, J. W., 1902. The migration and dispersal of insects. London, 132 pp. 2 Information in Table 1 compiled from several publications by the author, but taxonomic names appear as presently used.