RESEARCH INTO CADDIS FLIES

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29102, 14 January 1960, Page 5

RESEARCH INTO CADDIS FLIES

Retired Teacher’s Unusual Pursuit (From Our Own Reporter) NELSON, January 13. Mr A. G. McFarlane, a retired teacher of the New Zealand Correspondence School, and formerly of Takaka, but now of Christchurch, spends his time in an unusual pursuit. He hunts and conducts research into caddis-fliies, and insects which forms one of the main items in the diet of trout. He has named over 40 new species and has worked out the life cycle of nearly 30 of them.

Mr McFarlane has been interested in caddis flies ever since he presented a thesis on them for his master of arts degree. A reporter who came upon him in the upper Warnau Valley found Mr McFarlane and a friend and former colleague, Mr H. R. Thomson, examining their evening’s catch. He sits up for several hours at night by a pressure lantern picking off the caddis flies as they arrived attracted by the light. These are the adults. Of the many moth-like creatures which invade a lighted room on a warm night, a good number will be caddis flies, especially if a stream is nearby.

Mr McFarlane also wades in rivers examining the underside of stones for larvae and pupae, the juvenile forms of the insects. This research in retirement, which is aided by the Marine Department, has been going on for two years. Mr McFarlane expects it to last another eight. He does the field work from spring until late autumn, and then spends the winter at home on St. Andrews Hill, Christchurch, writing up details of his research.