This list is by no means exhaustive, but highlights a range of areas and focuses on Ontario and Canadian sites. Most of the other web-sites also have extensive links that you can explore. Links last checked January 1, 2010.

Specimens Needed for Research

Paul Hebert of the University of Guelph is leading a research group which is attempting to identify all lepidoptera species through a segment of their DNA. For this purpose, he needs 4 specimens of each species, and perhaps TEA members and others can help. For details see Leps -- North America Barcode of Life

Fun Stuff

University of Florida's Book of Insect Records 2005. This website is like an academic book, but with catchy chapter titles including largest, longest, loudest, fastest flyer, most spectacular mating, and largest blood meal.

Interesting facts about Canadian butterflies.

Butterfly arts and crafts (for about Grades 3-4; go to the bottom of the page).

Finding Latest Ontario Butterfly News

A good source is Google Groups group on Ontario Butterflies.

Butterflies

Butterflies of Ontario Photo Web Site by TEA president Glenn Richardson. Click on "View Animations" to see butterflies emerging from chrysalids and caterpillars turning into chrysalids.

Butterflies North and South. This massive government-sponsored site is about butterflies and moths of Canada and Peru. It includes a photo exhibit and text on butterflies and moths by province, information on rare and endangered species, and a teachers and childrens' games section.

Lepidopterists' Society. All of the issues of the Journal of the Lepidopterists Society from its start in 1947, excluding the last 5 years, are available on the web in full text. You can browse to particular issues or do in searches for particular terms. For example, searching for "Toronto Entomologists' Association" produces 7 hits, including a review of our book "Ontario Butterfly Atlas" in 1994.

North American Butterfly Association

Insects of Ojibway Nature Centre, Windsor. Includes checklists of Odonota and Lepidoptera, as well as information on fireflies, mayflies, true bugs, underwing moths, spiders, chiggers, etc.

Dragonflies

Ontario Odonata Atlas: - a joint project between the Ontario Natural Heritage Information Centre (NHIC), the Toronto Entomologists' Association (TEA) and the editors of Ontario Odonata.

International Odonata Research Institute -a good starting point for dragonfly info

General insect information

Insect identification at bugguide.net

Canadian National Collection of insects in Ottawa.

Jay Cossey (London, Ont.): notes on photographing butterflies.

Iowa State Entomology Index of Internet Resources

Entomology on World-Wide Web (Colorado State)

Listen to insect sounds at USDA Agricultural Research Centre

Photographs of insects from Iowa State University

Insects as food: Food Insects Newsletter

The Insect Fear Film Festival

Newsletters on spiders published in the Kansas School Naturalist

Associations, clubs and groups

Entomological Society of Canada

Entomological Society of Ontario. ESO newsletters are posted on their website, and applying for a free membership (available to amateurs and students) entitles you to an e-mail notification when a new issue becomes available.

Alberta Lepidopterists Guild (newsletters are available online)

Monarch Teacher Network

Biological Survey of Canada (Terrestrial Arthropods) has a twice-yearly newsletter and a directory of professional entomologists

Ottawa Entomology Club. This is an informal gathering that meets on the 3rd Thursday of each month, from September to April. Contact Dr. Hume Douglas at: hume.douglas@inspection.gc.ca

Toronto Field Naturalists

Ontario Nature

Friends of the Spit (Leslie Spit/Tommy Thompson Park) Toronto

Corporation Entomofaune du Québec

Supplies related to insects

Cambridge Butterfly Conservatory sells high-quality butterfly nets.

Indigo.com (Waterloo, Ontario) sells insects pins.

Efston Science Store (Toronto, Ontario): also has mail order

Atelier Jean Paquet in Quebec City sells a wide variety of entomological supplies, including spreading boards and insect drawers

Maurice Bottos in Windsor, Ontario

US mail-order places:
Bioquip
Ward's
Carolina Biological Supply

Live Insects

Raising monarch butterflies and many swallowtail butterflies may require a licence from the Ontario government. The TEA has a permit which covers members who have asked to be on the permit list. See the laws page for details.

Importing live insects into Canada requires a permit from the Agriculture Canada, so it is often much easier to buy insects within Canada. See the laws page for details.

Releasing farmed or raised butterflies at weddings and at school programs may harm wild butterflies. See NABA statement vs. comments on butterfly releases by the IBBR, and Jeffrey Lockwood op-ed article

Canadian suppliers include:

Bill Oehlke, PEI (swallowtail butterflies, silkmoths)

Gaia Nature (Dave Clermont) of Granby, Quebec

Magical Monarchs, Toronto (painted lady butterflies, monarch butterflies)

Butterflies and Roses, Pontroy, Ontario (painted lady butterflies, monarch butterflies)

Natural Insect Control, Stevensville, Ont.

Insect Production Services of the Canadian Forest Service sells various moths of economic importance. They also maintain an Insect Producer Database which lists places which will sell or donate live insects.

Silkworms.ca (Bombyx mori silkworms, crickets, and other insects to feed to pet reptiles)

Jim Lovisek of Toronto is an insect "wrangler" who works on film and commercial involving insects, especially live insects.

Moths

Jason Dombroskie, Moth Checklist (Pembroke Area Field Naturalists, 2003).

Photos for identification: Lynn Scott (600 species from the Ottawa area); North American Moth Photographers Group; microleps.org; Butterflies and Moths of North America; and Leps -- North America Barcode of Life (Check each species for photos of it).

Moth man blog by TEA member Dave Beadle.

Jim des Rivieres of Ottawa does exhibitions of large-scale (2 feet by 3 feet), extremely-detailed (see individual scales) scans of Ontario moths. see his website for pictures.

Insect Pests

For photos and help in identification and control in Ontario, see Pest Control Canada, Absolute Pest Control, Orkin Pest Control and the University of Guelph fact sheets on insect pests. The industry association is the Structural Pest Management Association of Ontario.

For Kids

Summer camps about insects for kids are run by Bugs Without Borders in Toronto and Cambridge Butterfly Conservatory in Cambridge.

Things to do/places to go

Ontario

Niagara Butterfly Conservatory (Niagara Falls, Ontario)

Cambridge Butterfly Conservatory (Cambridge, Ontario)

Greenway Blooming Centre (near Kitchener, Ontario)

Toronto Zoo - Malayan Woods & Americas Pavilion

Gaia Nature (a live-butterfly facility in Granby, Quebec -- in the Eastern Townships)

Montreal Insectarium (Quebec)

Newfoundland Insectarium

Butterfly World and Gardens Coombs, BC (outside Victoria)

Victoria Butterfly Gardens Brentwood Bay, Victoria (British Columbia)