North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

["fuwafuwaosagi" <fuwafuwausagi@muchomail.com>]

It was queried:

Is there an entomologist in the house that might have some 
speculation about potential insect pressure for this coming growing 
season based on lack of snow cover in most of the Midwest area

My reply:

Having grown up in the midwest and actively studied this I can state 
the following:

Lack of snow cover means NOTHING.   What matters is how the snow 
cover relates to winter temperature.  

What you are really looking for is conditions that keep the insects 
active or get them to break dormancy and catch them in a true cold 
snap, conditons that amount to large amounts of snow early that leave 
the insects more or less exposed to predation.   

What is intersting is to watch the creep in ranges of various 
minnows, and insects in local populations and then to see them 
decimated in a test winter.   For years I watched the species Chry. 
Picta Scritpa (Southern Painted Turtle)drift into the Fox Valley, 
only to be driven off by the cold to the northern end of their 
natural range.   

The same holds true for many insects.  Occasionally around McComb Il, 
Preying Mantis populations will build,only to be taken out by a cold 
snap.  

So the essence of my message is you need to chart wind chills, and 
correlate that to snow cover, and actual air temperatures and 
correlate that to snow cover.  Humidity is a factor also.  You also 
need to keep an eye on ground freeze.   I found the local utility 
diggers to be the best source of information in reference to ground 
freeze.

By the by, you do know some insects migrate?

All the best,

the little fuzzy dude   :)  


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