New Zealand Insects

New Zealand Listener, Volume 25, Issue 632, 10 August 1951, Page 12

New Zealand Insects

FRAGMENTS OF NEW ZEALAND ENTO.MOLOGY. by G. V. Hudson; Ferguson and Osborne; £3.

(Reviewed by

David

Miller

RAGMENTS of New Zealand Entomology, by the late G. V. Hudson, is a well set up book, written mostly in popular vein; it contains 188 pages in nine chapters; it is excellently illustrated by 19 plates, 17 of them in colour; there are also four text figures and a portrait in memory of the author. The first chapter of 23. pages brings together all available information on the New Zealand glow-worm, and is a useful contribution on a subject of general scientific and public interest, The next five chapters deal with habits of many insects, including beetles, weevils, ich-neumon-flies, two-winged flies, moths and butterflies, lacewings, stone-flies, dragon-

flies and cicadas. A special feature is that the many adult insects _illustrated are often accompanied by illustrations of their larvae and pupae. Of the 27 species of beetles and weevils dealt with, 19 are illustrated, stress being laid on the remarkable colour variations that occur in the one species as shown on plate 14. The longest chapter of 50 pages is presented as a second supplement to the author’s Moths and Butterflies of New Zealand; 120 species are discussed, six of

them: being described as new. A chapter of 29 pages is devoted to an account of all the known cicadas; this is a valuable compendium of the subject. Then follows a chapter (seven) giving some general miscellaneous notes on.a few other insects, together with some hints on collecting, preserving and Observing, and an interesting, though all too, brief, account of entomology in Wellington 60 years ago. Chapter eight deals with insect swarms on mountain tops. Chapter nine discusses some aspects of modern methods in entomology, and is provocative in parts; for instance, the author’s comments on professional entomologists are rather dogmatic and inconsistent in that his book relies so much on the professionals. In other respects this chapter contains much basic truth, such as the author’s attitude toward amateurs with which one wholeheartedly agrees-they should’ be encouraged, for not only did they lay the foundations of the science, but also they still are, and must remain, a very important influence; again, a proper note is struck in regard to the multiplication of scientific terms, especially in cases where everyday English would serve. A list of the author’s publications

forms an appendix, but the list is not complete, There is a detailed index. The book is not a general work on entomology; about three-quarters of it really consists of matter supniementary to four of the author’s other books, and as such is a valuable contribution. It will be useful to professional and amateur alike, as well aseto school teachers. It is the last footprint in the long journey of an outstanding entomologist. 4