ACTIVITY RHYTHMS OF LEPIDOPTEROUS DEFOLIATORS: I. TECHNIQUES FOR RECORDING ACTIVITY, ECLOSION, AND EMERGENCE

Abstract

In investigations of the activity rhythms of several types of lepidopterous defoliators special techniques were developed for recording activity of larvae on foliage, hatching from eggs, and adult emergence. The data obtained with these techniques have been published in a separate paper.The previously described electroactograph (EAG) technique for recording flying activity was used with different transducers to record the activity of groups of small larvae on coniferous foliage, and of single, larger larvae on coniferous or deciduous foliage. Methods for automatically recording the eclosion times of first-instar larvae and the emergence times of adults are described. Some working details in the EAG techniques also are discussed.