Taxonomy and systematics Books

Book SynopsisThis revised edition of Bats of Southern and Central Africa builds on the solid foundation of the first edition and supplements the original account of bat species then known to be found in Southern and Central Africa with an additional eight newly described species, bringing the total to 124.The chapters on evolution, biogeography, ecology and echolocation have been updated, citing dozens of recently published papers. The book covers the latest systematic and taxonomic studies, ensuring that the names and relationships of bats in this new edition reflect current scientific knowledge.The species accounts provide descriptions, measurements and diagnostic characters as well as detailed information about the distribution, habitat, roosting habits, foraging ecology and reproduction of each species. The updated species distribution maps are based on 6 100 recorded localities.A special feature of the 2010 publication was the mode of identification of families, genera and species by way of character matrices rather than the more generally used dichotomous keys. Since then these matrices have been tested in the field and, where necessary, slightly altered for this edition. New photographs fill in gaps and updated sonograms aid with bat identification in acoustic surveys.The bibliography, which now contains more than 700 entries, will be an invaluable aid to students and scientists wishing to consult original research.Trade ReviewIn this extensive revision of their ground-breaking book, the authors display their commanding expertise on southern African bats. The volume serves as an authoritative and engaging summary of generations of research, and offers naturalists everywhere a highly readable account of some of Africa’s most diverse and fascinating mammals. — B. D. Patterson, MacArthur Curator of Mammals, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, USA The second edition of Bats of Southern and Central Africa is a one-stop shop for understanding the biology and natural history of bats. It is a must-read primer for bat biologists, students, naturalists, enthusiasts, and those of us considering conservation of these fascinating and ecologically important, but highly misunderstood mammals. — Paul W. Webala, Department of Forestry and Wildlife Management, Maasai Mara University, Narok, Kenya A masterpiece for bat researchers and conservationists who wish to learn about African bat species. This second edition exceeds all expectations, and will be an essential refer ence, superseding the widely used first edition. — Adrià López-Baucells, Natural Sciences Museum of Granollers, SpainTable of Contents Foreword to the First Edition Foreword to the Second Edition Acknowledgements Introduction Geographical scope Classification and taxonomy Conservation status Museum Collectionsand Pioneering Researchers Researcher gallery The value of specimens Chiroptera collections Databases and author’s contributions Bat Biology Overview Migration Torpor and hibernation Reproduction Predation Foraging ecology and associated ecological services Roosting habits Foliage-roosting bats Hollow-roosting bats Crevice-roosting bats Specialised roost sites Biogeography Geology Ancient basement rocks Sedimentary rocks Rift valleys Geomorphology Escarpments Drainage systems Climates past and present Vegetation Grassland Savanna Forest Echolocation Echolocation systems Types of bat echolocation pulses Ecology of bat echolocation and flight Recording echolocation calls Spectrum analysis Bat detectors Spectrograms and echolocation Species Accounts Suborder Pteropodiformes Pteropodidae Hipposideridae Rhinonycteridae Rhinolophidae Megadermatidae Suborder Vespertilioniformes Emballonuridae Nycteridae Molossidae Miniopteridae Cistugidae Vespertilionidae Glossary List of Specimens References

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Book SynopsisThis book considers the natural history and cultural symbolism of a most unusual woodpecker – a species that neither excavates nest holes in trees, nor bores into wood to find insect prey. The Wryneck is best renowned for performing a twisting, writhing head and neck display when threatened, but this ground-breaking work reveals many more secrets of its behaviour and evolution. Detailed information is presented on the species' origins, taxonomy, anatomy, appearance, moult, calls, distribution, conservation status, habitats, movements, breeding, diet and relationships, along with a chapter on its closest relative, the Red-throated Wryneck. The text is richly illustrated throughout with high quality photographs as well as sound spectrograms. The author augments his many hours watching Wrynecks with comprehensive literature research, creating what is surely the definitive volume on the species. This all-encompassing and engaging account has been written for a wide audience, whether professional ornithologist, citizen scientist, amateur birder, woodpecker aficionado or simply someone who wishes to learn more about this curious and remarkable bird.Trade ReviewThoroughly researched and illustrated with many superb photographs, paintings and figures...Undoubtedly this comprehensive book will be the standard reference for birders, scientists, citizen scientists and naturalists who want to learn about the wryneck. -- Daniel Alder * Independent Ecologist and Researcher *The Wryneck is a thoroughly researched, comprehensive, well-written and beautifully illustrated portrait of these enigmatic birds. -- Linda Smith * British Trust for Ornithology *Entertaining and authoritative…The species' behaviour, its diet, its worldwide distribution, its favoured habitats and its place in folklore and mythology are all covered in absorbing detail. -- Jim Wright * The Heron – Lincolnshire Bird Club *This is a book that tells the story of an amazing species that used to be a common British breeding bird - the poet John Clare wrote a poem about them having watched them breeding in Cambridgeshire in 1835, for example. The Wryneck is now a passage migrant in Britain, especially in the autumn. Gerard Gorman (Mr Woodpecker!) has a wide experience of this species (even putting up nestboxes for them in his area of Hungary), and here he gives them the same close attention he did the woodpeckers of the world in a previous book. I found it very useful, as I have actually found the bird in spring below my house, and hope for its return as a British breeding species in future years. -- John Miles * Chick Books *...thoroughly recommended as an enjoyable way to increase your understanding of what is an iconic bird. -- Ed Stubbs * Birdguides.com *For woodpecker enthusiasts and anyone interested in how birds exploit distinctive ecological niches, as well as for birders who have or hope to see wrynecks when in the Old World, this finely illustrated book is a valuable resource. -- Roger F. Pasquier, The Wilson Journal of OrnithologyThe text tries to answer not only the questions introduced by the words when, where and how, but also tries to get to the bottom of the most interesting and fundamental moments that we usually prefix with why. So, if you have any questions about the wryneck... browse through this publication. I believe that you will be interested and that you will learn something new. -- Petr Procházka, Sylvia: Czech Journal of OrnithologyGorman skilfully writes a book based on an extensive scientific bibliography and enriches it with personal observations coming from his experience and long time spent observing the species in the field. As a result of this combination, the book is enjoyable to read and understandable by a very wide audience. -- Letizia Campioni, Avocetta Journal of OrnithologyTable of ContentsAbout the author Acknowledgements Preface 1. Origins and Taxonomy 2. Anatomy and Morphology 3. Description and Identification 4. Moult, Ageing and Sexing 5. The Red-throated Wryneck 6. Communication 7. Distribution, Trends and Status 8. Habitats 9. Challenges and Conservation 10. Behaviour 11. Flight, Movements and Migration 12. Breeding 13. Cavities 14. Foraging and Food 15. Relationships 16. Folklore, Mythology and Symbolism References Index

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Book SynopsisMosquitoes are undeniably one of the most studied groups of insects due to their great impact on human health as the agents that transmit the pathogens which cause malaria, filariasis and numerous viral diseases, such as yellow fever and dengue fever. The study of mosquitoes has given rise to a plethora of names for subspecies, species, subgenera, genera and family-level groups, many of which are duplicate names for the same entity. This unique volume is a comprehensive compilation of all scientific names introduced at all levels of classification within the family since the official start of zoological nomenclature. The work is largely a lexicon that is historical and informative as well as nomenclatural and bibliographic. Unlike catalogues, it contains sections devoted separately to the groups of names regulated by the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, the species, genus and family groups, as well as sections concerned with names derived from personal and geographical names and other sources. In addition to insights into the history of mosquito classification, attention given to the formation, latinization and derivation of names makes the work a crucial contribution to mosquito science. Culicipedia is an important comprehensive reference source for students, entomologists, professional taxonomists and other scientists interested in culicid nomenclature, classification and the etymology of scientific names.Table of ContentsSection 1: Species-group Names Section 2: Genus-group Names Section 3: Family-group and Other Suprageneric Names Section 4: Species-group Names Formed from Personal Names Section 5: Species-group Names Formed from Geographical Names Section 6: Genus-group Names Formed from Personal Names Section 7: Some Interesting Species- and Genus-group Names Section 8: Phylogenetic Classification of Composite Genus Aedes Section 9: Changed Spellings of Species-group Names Appendix 1: Current Higher-level Classification of the Culicidae Appendix 2: Multi-generic and Traditional Classifications of the Genus Aedes Appendix 3: Table of Changed Spellings of Species-group Names

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Book SynopsisThe superfamily Chalcidoidea (Insecta, Hymenoptera) contains in excess of 26,000 described species worldwide, but with an estimated total diversity of more than 500,000 species the vast majority of species have yet to be discovered and described. Most chalcidoid species are parasitoids of hosts in at least 12 different insect orders, attacking the egg, larval or pupal stages, though phytophagy and other life cycles and hosts are known. Iran is the 18th largest country in the world and has a rich and diverse insect fauna, including Chalcidoidea. It is extremely interesting from a biogeographic point of view, and a paradise for an entomologist. This book summarizes the results of all prior research concerning species diversity of Iranian Chalcidoidea, including host records and distribution records by province in Iran as well as world distribution by country for 1,351 species of Chalcidoidea recorded from Iran through the end of 2019. The faunal diversity for each of the 20 families of Chalcidoidea known from Iran is also compared with that known for 15 adjacent countries. In addition, general information on world diversity, recognition, phylogenetic relationships and host relationships are given for each family. As such, the book will be an invaluable source of information for all those involved with chalcidoids, for anyone with an interest in insect systematics, and all those working in crop protection, especially biological control and Integrated Pest Management.Table of ContentsChapter 1: Agaonidae Chapter 2: Aphelinidae Chapter 3: Azotidae Chapter 4: Chalcididae Chapter 5: Encyrtidae Chapter 6: Eriaporidae Chapter 7: Eucharitidae Chapter 8: Eulophidae Chapter 9: Eupelmidae Chapter 10: Eurytomidae Chapter 11: Leucospidae Chapter 12: Megastigmidae Chapter 13: Mymaridae Chapter 14: Ormyridae Chapter 15: Perilampidae Chapter 16: Pteromalidae Chapter 17: Signiphoridae Chapter 18: Tetracampidae Chapter 19: Torymidae Chapter 20: Trichogrammatidae Chapter 21: Diversity of Iranian Chalcidoidea

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Book SynopsisParasitoid wasps are cosmopolitan, numerous and enormously diverse with probably one million or more species worldwide, most of which occur in the moist tropics. Their ecological importance is enormous although perhaps most evident in their major roles in the control of insect pest populations. In natural ecosystems they are integral in regulating populations of a vast number of insects, and therefore are key players in terrestrial food webs. Knowledge of their biology is still very poor because the current state of taxonomy is still in its infancy in most parts of the world. In this book, we provide an overview of the more than 30 families of parasitoid wasps that occur in the 11 countries in South East Asia. Particular emphasis is given to those most commonly encountered and reared, as well as to those used in biological control programmes. Outlines of the morphology, biology, ecology and behaviour of each family, as well as of various important subfamilies are presented. The current state of taxonomy in the region is summarised. Other chapters cover basic biology, behaviour, morphological terminology, phylogeny and methods of specimen collecting, preparation and rearing with particular relevance to the tropics. Modern molecular approaches to speeding taxonomic description of hyperdiverse taxa are considered in depth. All groups are illustrated with colour photographs. This book will be of value to professional entomologists, academics, entomology students and the growing body of amateur entomologists and insect photographers.Table of ContentsChapter 1: Introduction Chapter 2: Biology Chapter 3: Behaviour Chapter 4: Parasitoid Diversity, with Special Reference to S.E. Asia Chapter 5: Classification and Phylogeny Chapter 6: Morphology Chapter 7: Recognition of Major Groups Chapter 8: Orussoidea Chapter 9: Braconidae Chapter 10: Ichneumonidae – Darwin Wasps Chapter 11: Stephanoidea (Crown Wasps) Chapter 12: Evanioidea Chapter 13: Ceraphronoidea Chapter 14: Megalyroidea Chapter 15: Trigonalyoidea Chapter 16: Parasitoid Aculeates – Chrysidoidea Chapter 17: Parasitoid Aculeates — Vespoidea sensu lato Chapter 18: Platygastroidea Chapter 19: Cynipoidea – Gall Wasps and Their Kin Chapter 20: Proctotrupoidea Chapter 21: Diaprioidea Chapter 22: Chalcidoidea and Mymarommatoidea Chapter 23: Collection, Preservation and Rearing

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Book SynopsisThe island of New Guinea is the most floristically diverse island in the world with an extremely rich tree flora of up to 5,000 species. Trees of New Guinea details each of the 693 plant genera with arborescent members found in New Guinea. The entire New Guinea region is covered, including the West Papua and Papua Provinces of Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and the surrounding islands such as New Britain, New Ireland and Bougainville. The book follows contemporary classifications and is richly illustrated with line drawings and photographs throughout. Each group has a family description and key to the New Guinea tree genera, followed by a description of each genus, with notes on taxonomy, distribution, ecology and diagnostic characters. Trees of New Guinea is the essential companion to anyone studying or working in the region, including botanists, conservation workers, ecologists and zoologists.

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Book SynopsisThe authority on the flora of this region. Detailed plant descriptions

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Book SynopsisThis is an essential reference for describing, measuring and classifying the foliage of flowering plants. The presented system provides long-needed guidelines for characterizing the organization, shape, venation, and surface features of angiosperm leaves. In contrast to systems focusing on reproductive characters for identification, the emphasis is on macroscopic features of the leaf blade including leaf characters, venation, and tooth characters. The advantage of this system is that it allows for the classification of plants independently of their flowers, which is especially useful for fossil leaves (usually found in isolation) and tropical plants (whose flowering cycles are brief and irregular, and whose fruits and flowers may be difficult to access). An illustrated terminology including detailed definitions and annotated illustrations is the focus of the classification system, the aim of which is to provide a framework with comparative examples to allow both modern and fossil leaves to be described and classified consistently. Published in association with the New York Botanical Garden.Table of Contents1: Introduction 2: General Definitions 3: Leaf Characters 4: Vein Definitions 5: Vein Characters 6: Tooth Definitions 7: Tooth Characters 8: References Appendix A: Summary of Characters and Character States Appendix B: Examples of Scored Leaves Appendix C: Vouchers Appendix D: Instructions for Clearing Leaves

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Book SynopsisThis is an essential reference for describing, measuring and classifying the foliage of flowering plants. The presented system provides long-needed guidelines for characterizing the organization, shape, venation, and surface features of angiosperm leaves. In contrast to systems focusing on reproductive characters for identification, the emphasis is on macroscopic features of the leaf blade including leaf characters, venation, and tooth characters. The advantage of this system is that it allows for the classification of plants independently of their flowers, which is especially useful for fossil leaves (usually found in isolation) and tropical plants (whose flowering cycles are brief and irregular, and whose fruits and flowers may be difficult to access). An illustrated terminology including detailed definitions and annotated illustrations is the focus of the classification system, the aim of which is to provide a framework with comparative examples to allow both modern and fossil leaves to be described and classified consistently.Table of Contents1: Introduction 2: General Definitions 3: Leaf Characters 4: Vein Definitions 5: Vein Characters 6: Tooth Definitions 7: Tooth Characters 8: References Appendix A: Summary of Characters and Character States Appendix B: Examples of Scored Leaves Appendix C: Vouchers Appendix D: Instructions for Clearing Leaves

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Book SynopsisThis fascinating reference book delves into the origins of the vernacular and scientific names of sharks, rays, skates and chimeras. Each entry offers a concise biography, revealing the hidden stories and facts behind each species’ name. Full of interesting facts and humorous titbits, the authors’ extensive research and detective work has made this book a comprehensive source of knowledge on everyone associated with the naming of a species. A fascinating resource for anyone with an interest in sharks, from curious naturalist to professional ichthyologist, it is an essential addition to the library of anyone wishing to satisfy those tickling questions on the mysteries behind the names. Sometimes a name refers not to a person but to a fictional character or mythological figure. Eptatretus eos is named after the Greek goddess of the dawn in reference to the pink colouring of the hagfish. The Chilean Roundray Urotrygon cimar, named after Centro de Investigación en Ciencias del Mar y Limnología in honour of its 20th anniversary, and the Angular Angelshark Squatina Guggenheim, named after the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, are both named after institutions. The Whiteleg Skate Amblyraja taaf is just a shorthand way of describing a toponym – Territoire des Terres australes et antarctiques françaises. There are also entries which are light-hearted such as the one for a lady who told us "that decoration of her cakes have included roughtail skate Bathyraja trachura, red abalone Haliotis rufescens, and chinook salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha." Following the success of their previous Eponym Dictionaries, the authors have joined forces to give the Elasmobranch group of fishes a similar treatment but they have also included the describers and authors of the original descriptions of the fishes involved, in addition to those names that are, or appear to be, eponyms. They have tracked down some 850 names of living as well as dead people. Of these half are eponyms after people who have fish named after them and may also have described a fish or fishes. The other half are ichthyologists, marine biologists and other scientists who have become involved in the description and naming of sharks, rays, skates and chimeras. For each person mentioned there is brief, pithy biography. Additionally there are some 50 entries for what sound like eponyms but turned out not to have any connection to a person, such as the Alexandrine Torpedo is named after the city in Egypt and not Alexander the Great. In some cases these are a reminder of the courage of scientists whose dedicated research in remote locations exposed them to disease and even violent death. The eponym ensures that their memory will survive, aided by reference works such as this highly readable dictionary. Altogether 1,577 fishes are listed.Trade ReviewSharks: An Eponym Dictionary would be an exceptional addition to any science collection, including STEM subjects at an academic library (community college or university). The format of Sharks provides readers with a framework of the naming of species and is a unique work that covers taxa and history. -- Danielle Colbert-Lewis * Reference Reviews *

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Book SynopsisWith loss of habitats throughout the world occurring at a staggering rate, it is critical to document what is being lost. This book strives to do that by focusing on longhorned woodboring beetles in Bolivia. Wholesale clearing of large tracts of land kills everything or forces species to move quickly to other areas, disrupting the balance of the ecosystem. This book will help people discover and appreciate some of the amazing diversity of life that exists in the undeveloped and/or remote natural areas of Bolivia.   Nearly 1,900 species of longhorned woodboring beetles (Disteniidae, Vesperidae, and Cerambycidae) are known from Bolivia (with more than 200 species yet to be determined). This work features 500 of them, representing the breadth of morphological evolution.

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Book SynopsisWinner of the 2000 American Studies Network Prize and the Literature and Language Award from the Association of American Publishers, Inc. Early American naturalists assembled dazzling collections of native flora and fauna, from John Bartram’s botanical garden in Philadelphia and the artful display of animals in Charles Willson Peale’s museum to P. T. Barnum’s American Museum, infamously characterized by Henry James as “halls of humbug.” Yet physical collections were only one of the myriad ways that these naturalists captured, catalogued, and commemorated America’s rich biodiversity. They also turned to writing and art, from John Edward Holbrook’s forays into the fascinating world of herpetology to John James Audubon’s masterful portraits of American birds. In this groundbreaking, now classic book, Christoph Irmscher argues that early American natural historians developed a distinctly poetic sensibility that allowed them to imagine themselves as part of, and not apart from, their environment. He also demonstrates what happens to such inclusiveness in the hands of Harvard scientist-turned Amazonian explorer Louis Agassiz, whose racist pseudoscience appalled his student William James. This expanded, full-color edition of The Poetics of Natural History features a preface and art from award-winning artist Rosamond Purcell and invites the reader to be fully immersed in an era when the boundaries between literature, art, and science became fluid.Trade Review“Christoph Irmsche’s The Poetics of Natural History now joins such books as Pamela Regi’s Describing Early America (1992) and Margaret Welch’s The Book of Nature (1998) as a major contribution to our understanding of American natural history and its cultural value. Irmscher’s book, which covers the period from the rise of American botanical studies in the 1730s through the establishment of the Darwinian paradigm in the late 1860s, is distinguished by its scholarly breadth, extensive use of manuscript sources, and insightful interpretations of natural history illustrations and collections as well as written text. The Poetics of Natural History gracefully combines study of autodidacts such as John Bartram, professional naturalists such as Louis Agassiz, and popularizers of natural history such as P. T. Barnum. . . .The Poetics of Natural History is . . . an impressive accomplishment and a welcome addition to the growing body of solid critical studies of the cultural and literary significance of American natural history.” -- American Literature“A veritable dialectical tour de force of Linnean taxonomy, cultural history, literature, and self-conscious awareness of the artist creating the art work. . . . From discussing discrete pieces of nature (taxonomy) to lyrical narrative and meaning derived from the analysis of both, The Poetics of Natural History stands as a thorough study that confirms its own thesis as revealed in the title. Scholarly, witty, and articulate, it adds a seminal work to the genre.” -- South Atlantic Review“The Poetics of Natural History is a learned, leisurely, capacious book, elegantly written and beautifully produced with many black-and-white illustrations. Crammed with interesting, sometimes out-of-the-way information, it brings huge quantities of material into enlightening juxtapositions when a chapter on snakes encompasses antebellum herpetology, Edgar Allan Poe, and Oliver Wendell Holmes. The book is divided into two sections: the first discusses actual collections amassed by natural historians; the second deals with natural historians’ representations in words and images. . . . It is a joy to work through [Irmscher’s] thoughtful, close readings and provocative juxtapositions. Those interested in natural history, in natural history writing, or in antebellum American scientific culture will find The Poetics of Natural History a first-rate collection in its own right.” -- New England Review“The six chapters, essays really, discuss American natural history as a form of storytelling. . . . The claims of natural history merit their own larger study; Irmscher’s strengths lie with the tellers and their tales. For him, poetics are exercises of imagination, and his almost seamless text incorporates thousands of quotations from the uneven narratives of American natural history.” -- Journal of the History of Biology“Focusing his attention on nature’s nation between, roughly the Revolution and the end of the Civil War, Irmscher’s central concern is with the image of the naturalist who creates a collection and then puts himself into it.” -- American Studies“This remarkable study revives a brilliant, exciting body of American writing pre-Darwinian natural history and makes it central to any understanding of American history and culture. The Poetics of Natural History is scholarly, tough, but at the same time a wonderful read, making the case for the art of natural-history writing, while recognizing that behind that art was intense, disturbing, often violent experience. This book will make a difference.” -- George Levine * Darwin and the Novelists and Lifebirds *“The Poetics of Natural History is a learned and inventive study of natural history discourse in the 18th-and 19th-century United States, and will be of great interest to students of literary and cultural history, as well as historians of science and art.” -- Lawrence Buell * The Dream of the Great American Novel *"American natural history owes much to gifted amateurs who, in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, traveled widely, collected willy-nilly, and then, back at home, devoted years to sorting through their collections and cataloging their contents--an enterprise that introduced scientific rigor into what had been a kind of hobby. So writes literary scholar Christoph Irmscher, who, in exploring the aesthetic aspects of American natural history, considers the careers of several early naturalists, including Charles Willson Peale, John Bartram, John James Audubon, Louis Agassiz, and, in an unlikely turn, the showman P.T. Barnum, who turned a penchant for collecting oddments of nature into an itinerant freak show. All of these, Irmscher writes, delighted in 'transforming relatively random assemblages of natural collectibles into works of art,' works that would in many instances form the foundations for what are today important collections. Among the many pleasant surprises in Irmscher's narrative is an account of an 1865 trip organized by Agassiz to the Amazon River. One of the participants was the young William James, who would later become a famed psychologist and who wrote admiringly of Agassiz's relentless energy in pursuit of scientific specimens while admitting, 'If there is anything I hate it is collecting.' Irmscher's elegant book will be of interest to historians of 19th-century science, and to general readers with a fondness for the work of the brilliant, often eccentric, amateurs of the past." -- Gregory McNamee * Amazon.com review *“As deep as it is dazzling, this beautiful book sets in fresh context a view of the world almost lost to us.” -- Andrea Barrett * Winner of the National Book Award for Ship Fever *"Christoph Irmscher’s remarkable intelligence and engaging style make The Poetics of Natural History a foundational work in the environmental humanities. No book has done more to illuminate the vital relationship between natural history and literary culture in America." -- Michael P. Branch * Rants from the Hill and How to Cuss in Western *"The first edition of Irmscher's magisterial study is a benchmark in critical interpretation of natural history. With this extraordinary new edition, enhanced by Rosamund Purcell’s photographs, it becomes a classic." -- Alan Braddock * Nature’s Nation: American Art and Environment *" Arguably a classic in its field, this new edition of The Poetics of Natural History is unreservedly recommended as a core addition to community, college, and university library collections and supplemental studies lists." * Midwest Book Review *"Herpetologists and other naturalists interested in the history of their subject will want this book for the wealth of information it contains on perspectives of collecting and natural history in pre-Darwinian America...The book presents a most interesting history and literary analysis." * Bibliotheca Herpetologica *"This new edition of Irmscher’s classic text is an excellent example of the value of attention to small details, as well as the tapestry into which they are woven. The combination of stage-setting and specific detail gives an incredible sense of the richness of the world Irmscher presents." -- Megan Baumhammer * H-Net *Table of ContentsContents List of Illustrations List of Abbreviations Preface by Rosamond Purcell Introduction Part One Displaying 1. “America Transplanted”: John and William Bartram 2. Collection and Recollection: Charles Wilson Peale 3. Collecting Human Nature: P.T. Barnum Part Two Representing 1. The Power of Fascination 2. Audubon at Large 3. Agassiz Agonistes Notes Selected Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisThis book presents a new account of Euphorbia in southern Africa. Euphorbia is the second largest genus of plants in the world. Southern Africa enjoys a high diversity in Euphorbia and 170 species occur here naturally. Of these 170 species, 128 or 74% are endemic. Where most species of Euphorbia in the northern hemisphere are herbs or shrubs, most of those in southern African are succulent. These succulents range from small, almost geophytic forms where the tuber is larger than the above-ground parts to huge trees 6 to 15 m or more in height. Many of them are spiny. There are also small numbers of herbaceous species in southern Africa and many of these are also dealt with here. The last account of the succulent species for southern Africa was published in 1941 and much new data has accumulated since then. Our understanding of the relationships of the species in Euphorbia has also been greatly enhanced by recent analyses of DNA-data, which led to new and unexpected results. From this new information an entirely new classification was developed, in which Euphorbia was divided into four subgenera. This provides the taxonomic framework for the presentation of our species here. Around ten new species have been described and these are presented in detail for the first time. This monograph is made up of two volumes. Volume 1 contains an extensive introductory chapter with an overview of the genus in the region, emphasizing many of its important and distinctive features. This is followed by Chapter 2, which deals with subgenus Athymalus. Of the four subgenera, this one is by far the most diverse in southern Africa, with 80 species. Volume 2 contains Chapters 3 (subg. Chamaesyce, 34 species), 4 (subg. Esula, 11 species) and 5 (subg. Euphorbia, 45 species), as well as an additional Chapter 6 covering the remarkable diversity of subg. Euphorbia in Moçambique. Each of Chapters 2 to 5 includes a key to all the species, followed by an account of each of them. This account includes synonymy, a description, data on distribution and habitat, line-drawings of floral features and other diagnostic details, notes on how the species is distinguished from its closest relatives and a brief history of its discovery. Several colour photographs are included for each species, illustrating its habitat, vegetative habit and flowering features, demonstrating key points distinguishing it from others and often showing its variability. Euphorbia is an important component of the vegetation in many of the drier parts of southern Africa. This book is based on a thorough evaluation of the vast herbarium record for southern African members of Euphorbia, on the extensive field-work conducted in the region and the wide taxonomic experience of the author. It is believed that both the professional botanist and the layman will find much that is new and informative in this monograph.Table of Contents

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Book SynopsisThis book is the third volume in the Handbook of Zoology series which treats the systematics and biology of Coleoptera. With approximately 350,000 described species, Coleoptera are by far the most species-rich order of insects and the largest group of animals of comparable geological age. This third Coleoptera volume completes the Morphology and Systematics volumes with 43 chapters and covers one of the largest radiations of beetles, the mainly plant-feeding Phytophaga, with information on world distribution, biology, morphology of all life stages (including anatomy), phylogeny and comments on taxonomy.Trade Review"This volume is certainly a milestone in weevil systematics and will be so for a long time."Rolf Oberprieler, CSIRO Australia

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