Newsletter of the Biological Survey of Canada (Terrestrial Arthropods)

Since the publication of the brief "Arctic Invertebrate Biology : Action Required" by the Biological Survey of Canada (Terrestrial Arthropods) thirteen years ago (Danks and Ring 1989), very little has been accomplished in Canadian arctic entomology. This brief recommended ways in which studies of arctic invertebrate biology could be enhanced through (1) identifying and developing key study themes in fields already shown to be significant such as cold-hardiness, seasonality, modification and control of life cycles, ecosystem-level ecology, and the role of insects/invertebrates in predicted global change scenarios, (2) organizing a series of workshops to discuss topics of broad interest, to develop further avenues of enquiry, and to coordinate research, and (3) developing both national and international cooperative research ventures to help identify other key issues and encourage long-term commitment to an on-going programme of cooperative research initiatives on arctic invertebrates. NONE of these objectives has been met, despite further exhortations by Danks (1992), Danks et al. (1994) and Ring (1994).

The halcyon days of Canadian arctic invertebrate biology was in the half-century beginning in 1947 with the Northern Biting Fly Survey, followed by the Northern Insect Survey which was most active during the 1950s. During the 1960s and 1970s there followed a wide variety of studies by groups and individuals in the Canadian high arctic. What had started out, essentially, as a program for obtaining and publishing information on the taxonomy and distribution of northern insects was by now diversifying into studies of morphology, behaviour, ecology at all levels (population, community and ecosystem interactions), and eco-physiology. This body of work culminated in the publication of the invaluable book "Arctic Arthropods. A review of systematics and ecology with particular reference to the North American fauna" by H.V. Danks (1981). For the remainder of this 50-year period, most attention has been devoted to research on adaptations in the North (Kukal 1991; Ring 2001), although individual survey-type projects have also been carried out.

Over the last decade or so, financial support for arctic insect/invertebrate research has gradually dwindled in Canada. The result has been that I, along with many other arctic scientists, will not be going North this summer — the first time in over 25 years! This comes at a time when lip-service to "our northern peoples, our northern territories and our northern environment" has never been greater among Canadian government agencies. What is most galling to me is the fact that, in the interim, the U.S.A. has INCREASED its spending on polar research via National Science Foundation (NSF) initiatives; Sweden organized a two-way expedition through Canada’s Arctic waters ("Tundra Northwest 99") to gather ecological data using the Canadian icebreaker Louis S. St-Laurent. Using this ship as a base for boat and helicopter excursions ashore, they gathered ecological data to compare with information from a similar project in Russia — the 1994 Swedish-Russian Tundra Ecology Expedition. Among the other Scandinavian countries, Norway has maintained a strong invertebrate biology programme at Svalbard (among other sites); Denmark continues to support Arctic research mainly through its new remote field station at Zackenburg, Greenland (indeed, a new book on the the Ecology of Greenland has just been published — Born and Böcher 2001) and Finland continues to play a unique role in northern studies and has a strong influence in the brand new " University of the Arctic". Even the U.K. (which does not have any Arctic territories of its own) mounted an expensive Arctic Ecology Programme based in Svalbard in the mid 1990s.

I would be remiss if I suggested that Canada is not actively involved in other fields of arctic biological research. The Northern Contaminants Program is still in full swing; the ITEX Program (International Tundra Experiment) continues to operate out of several sites in northern Canada; the Polar Continental Shelf Project (PCSP) supplies logistic support for Northern researchers (although it suffered a 20% decline in budget this year and has already been reduced to only one station); and the Canadian Polar Commission (CPC) acts as a clearing house for arctic information and encourages collaborative research projects — although it has no funding or mandate to initiate research endeavours itself. The Association of Canadian Universities for Northern Studies (ACUNS) along with the Northern Scientific Training Program (NSTP) of the federal Department of Indian and Northern Development (DIAND) are very actively involved in promoting arctic research among university faculty members and their students, and without these organizations and programs, arctic research in general would be in dire straits. Finally, one should not forget the wide array of research facilities and field stations scattered across Northern Canada which are available to bona fide Canadian researchers, but they too have been in decline over the last two decades.

The last paragraph suggests that the future looks bright for some disciplines in arctic research, and indeed that is true. But my major reservation here is that NONE OF IT relates directly to studies and research in arctic insect and/or invertebrate biology. The most insidious aspect to that observation, however, is not that there will be no Canadian entomologists in the arctic this summer for the first time in many years, but that with the demise of university-based research programs there will be NO ONE to teach the future generation(s) of young entomologists the delights, intricacies and complexities of the magnificent arctic tundra biome of Northern Canada! I have spoken to many students on this issue both here at my own institution as well as around the country, and the following sums up some of their prevailing concerns: "We should be leaders in arctic research. We should be at the forefront of developing an understanding of climate change. Such a sensitive and precious ecosystem that so little is known about will indeed suffer greatly from lack of research and scientific understanding. It is a sad day for Canadian science, a sad day for the young scientist and, indeed, a sad day for Canada’s north".

To finish on a more optimistic note, it is encouraging to note that some of the recommendations of the Final Report to NSERC and SSHRC from the Task Force on Northern Research (entitled "From Crisis to Opportunity: Rebuilding Canada’s Role in Northern Research", 2000) have already been implemented. On April 3, 2002 it was announced in Ottawa that the first six new University Chairs for Research in Canada’s North had been appointed. This is the first phase in a plan that calls for 24 Northern Chairs over the next three years, along with 115 Graduate Scholarships and 100 Postdoctoral Fellowships. The total budget amounts to about $50 million over three years and is part of our national goals aimed at improving Canada’s current 14th place to be one of the top five countries in the world for research and development. Although none of these six Chairs is in the area of arctic invertebrate biology, there is definitely some hope for the future. My fervent wish on my imminent retirement, therefore, is to see that Canadian research in arctic entomology has again come in from the cold — but I’m not sure I will be around that long!

Anonymous. 2000. From Crisis to Opportunity: Rebuilding Canada’s Role in Northern Research. Final Report to NSERC and SSHRC from the Task Force on Northern Research. Public Works and Government Services Canada, Ottawa. 43 pp.

Born, E.W. and J. Böcher. 2001. The Ecology of Greenland. Ministry of Environmentand Natural Resources, Ilinniusiorfik, Nuuk, Greenland. 429 pp.

Danks, H.V. 1981. Arctic Arthropods. A review of systematics and ecology with particular reference to the North American fauna. Entomological Society of Canada, Ottawa. 608 pp.

Danks, H.V. 1992. Arctic insects as indicators of environmental change. Arctic 45: 159-166.

Danks, H.V. and R.A. Ring. 1989. Arctic Invertebrate Biology: Action Required. Entomological Society of Canada, Supplement to Bulletin 21(3), Ottawa. 7 pp.

Danks, H.V., O. Kukal and R.A. Ring. 1994. Insect cold-hardiness : Insights from the Arctic. Arctic 47(4): 391-404.

Kukal, O. 1991. Behavioural and physiological adaptations to cold in a high arctic insect. pp. 276-300 in R.E. Lee and D.L. Denlinger (Eds.). "Insects at Low Temperatures" Chapman and Hall, New York.

Ring, R.A. 1994. Arctic insects and global change. pp. 61-66 in R. Riewe and J. Oakes (Eds.). "Biological Implications of Global Change : Northern Perspectives". The Canadian Polar Institute, Ottawa.

Ring, R.A. 2001. Research in adaptations of arthropods in British Columbia. Journal of the Entomological Society of British Columbia 98: 99-106.