This monumental reference work treats an entire worldwide order of insects. It summarizes, from both a biological and sytematic perspective, current knowledge on the Heteroptera, or true bugs, a group containing approximately 35,000 species, many of which are important to agriculture and public health. To introduce the reader to this group, Randall T. Schuh and James A. Slater offer chapters on the history of the study of the Heteroptera, research techniques, and sources of specimens. They also cover attributes of general biological interest, including habitats, habits, mimicry, and wing polymorphism; selected taxa of economic importance; and basic morphology.Presenting a current classification of the Heteroptera, the authors synthesize to the subfamily and sometimes tribal level the enormous, scattered literature, including diagnoses, keys, general natural history, a summary of distributions, and a listing of important faunistic works. In addition to a wealth of detailed illustrations, they provide a glossary to help the reader deal with the confusing terminology that has evolved over the years, as well as an extensive bibliography of more than 1350 entries.Meticulously prepared by two of the world's leading specialists, this major work will be the standard reference on the Heteroptera for many years to come.
Bugs is a term we use freely for anything from a spider to a moth to a beetle to an ant. Most insects are not bugs.
True Bugs of the World describes the insects known as the Hemiptera: Heteroptera, the largest group of insects in the world and the most diverse. There are 75 families and some 38,000 species found on all continents except Antarctica.
Sixty-nine major works covering the true bugs are noted in detail in the introductory portion of the book. The first 10 chapters of this descriptive text give historical perspectives on the study of bugs, information on how to collect and preserve specimens, and biological background needed to identify individual bugs. The remainder of the book describes in detail each of the 75 families, providing general and diagnostic descriptions, classification, morphology, natural history, distribution, and faunistics. Provided are excellent line drawings of the adult bug as well as photographs of details of key identifying parts under the microscope. Although bugs can be colorful insects, there are no color illustrations.
This is a book for the researcher, not the general layperson, as the text can be highly technical. There are 30 pages of literature citations, a glossary, and detailed indexes, making this one of the most complete recent books on the true bugs. It is highly recommended for any academic library supporting research in entomology. Large public libraries may want a copy, but most libraries serving the general public and students would be better served with a copy of Peterson's Field Guide to the Insects of America North of Mexico (Houghton, 1970) or Facts On File's Encyclopedia of Insects (1986).
