AIR-BORNE PSOCOPTERA TRAPPED ON SHIPS AND AIRCRAFT

• Main Author: W. B. Thornton
• Other Authors: The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Subjects: Antarctic; The Antarctic; Antarc*
• Online Access: http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.602.2654; http://hbs.bishopmuseum.org/pi/pdf/6(2)-285.pdf

of each voyage were from the the Antarctic continent or from offshore areas near the continent. Only in later stages of the voyages were directions of surface winds from areas supporting a more diversified flora and fauna. General observations made in areas near Heard I. showed that a considerable amount of debris was transported from the island during periods of high winds and storms. Discussion: Although the number of organisms trapped was small, observations did show that passive dispersal by winds does occur in areas near land masses. Negative results for observations made in mid-ocean must be reviewed with respect to both the minute vol-ume of air sampled and the probability of trapping air-borne insects at such low eleva-tions. Just how far organisms could be transported by winds in expansive ocean areas re-mains to be determined. Certainly, conclusions cannot be drawn from data collected dur-ing two single voyages, but these areas are frequented by polar ships each year and the opportunity to continue such studies should be exploited. Acknowledgements: I am indebted to members of the seventh Soviet Antarctic Expedi-tion for their assistance in collecting data, and especially to Mr. Victor Ivanovich Vini-dicktov who was responsible for maintaining records and trans-shipping data. Appreciation is also extended to crew members of the Danish ship "Nella Dan " and to Dr. Phillip G.