Ants of North America: A Guide to the Genera [Paperback]

Brian L. Fisher (Author), Stefan P. Cover (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 2, 2007

Ants are among the most conspicuous and the most ecologically important of insects. This concise, easy-to-use, authoritative identification guide introduces the fascinating and diverse ant fauna of the United States and Canada. It features the first illustrated key to North American ant genera, discusses distribution patterns, explores ant ecology and natural history, and includes a list of all currently recognized ant species in this large region.
* New keys to the 73 North American ant genera illustrated with 250 line drawings ensure accurate identification
* 180 color images show the head and profile of each genus and important species groups
* Includes a glossary of important terms

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A valuable book. [It] will enlighten anyone with even a slight interest in ants. . . . This book promises to inspire a whole new generation of ant biologists."--Quarterly Review of Biology

From the Inside Flap

"In this enormously useful book, a profound need is met by a profound contribution, the first such comprehensive work in over fifty years. While brief, Ants of North America is the distillation of a vast amount of study and practice. It is a joy to browse and read, and will have an important impact on the study of ants."--Edward O. Wilson, University Research Professor Emeritus, Harvard University

"Two of the most prolific ant faunists have produced a marvelous taxonomic guide to the ant genera of North America. The keys and genus descriptions are succinct and easy to read, the illustrations superb. This book is a must for entomologists, ecologists, and particularly all who study ants."--Bert Hölldobler, Foundation Professor of Life Sciences, Arizona State University

"This book represents a bold advance in the study of North American ants. It provides, for the first time, an accessible and lavishly illustrated guide to all the ant genera occurring in the United States and Canada. It will greatly enhance both public interest in ants and scientific investigation of their ecology, behavior and evolution."--Philip S. Ward, Department of Entomology and Center for Population Biology, University of California at Davis

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 216 pages
• Publisher: University of California Press; 1 edition (November 2, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0520254228
• ISBN-13: 978-0520254220
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 4.6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #605,256 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #46 in Books > Professional & Technical > Professional Science > Biological Sciences > Zoology > Invertebrates

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Guide to the Life Underfoot!, November 24, 2007

By 

David B Richman (Mesilla Park, NM USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Ants of North America: A Guide to the Genera (Paperback)

Ants are one of the groups of organisms that I found fascinating from an early age. I finally settled on spiders, but ants were always in the back of my mind on the numerous field trips on which I went to pursue my eight-legged quarry. However, guides to ants were few and far between and when I was given a copy of Creighton's "The Ants of North America" I was almost as confused as I was before. While the illustrations were good, the descriptions and keys were a bit difficult and of course even by the time I was given the book, it was quite dated.

We have long needed a book such as Brian Fisher and Stefan Cover have produced in "Ants of North America: A Guide to the Genera". Among other things the photos of actual specimens are a great help in determining the genera (and in some cases sub-genera) that anyone might encounter in a backyard or in the wild. The keys are both very good and well illustrated. A good hand lens will be sufficient with many, but the size of some requires a good binocular dissecting microscope (one reason that ants are less popular than butterflies, dragonflies or even moths). Still both professional entomologists and serious amateurs will find this book very useful as a first step in the identification of the ant fauna.

Because I am a professional biologist and an entomologist I found that, although I do not know the authors, I do know at least six of the people listed in the acknowledgements - such is the small size of the entomological community.

I recommend this book highly and only wish that something like it was available when I was becoming interested in the tiny life around us.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Useful and beautiful new ant guide is here!, September 12, 2007

By 

Zach (Orlando, Florida) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ants of North America: A Guide to the Genera (Paperback)

"Ants of North America: A Guide to the Genera" by Brian Fisher and Stefan Cover is quite simply the best identification guide (down to the genus level) available for these fascinating insects.

Combining straightforward identification keys that contain excellent line drawings of pertinent ant features with April Nobile's detailed automontage pictures, this publication functions both as a "working book" and a page-by-page display of the true beauty and diversity of these ants.

The alphabetical method of ordering the genera descriptions is also to be saluted. As the subfamily level gets re-shuffled over the years, the alphabet stays the same, and so provides a user-friendly way to thumb through the genera.

All of the genus listings contain both a head-on and lateral picture of the ant, along with diagnostic remarks and brief distribution and ecological information.

This book belongs on the bookshelf and lab workbench of every myrmecologist, and certainly any ecologist that works within the conservation field performing biodiversity surveys. It has been said that you cannot begin to understand the species you are trying to preserve if you cannot identify them, and so this book will allow any ecologist with basic entomology skills the ability to identify, as E.O. Wilson describes ants, the "little things that run the world."

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful Handbook For Ant Genera, April 23, 2008

By 

Sanford D. Porter (Gainesville, FL USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Ants of North America: A Guide to the Genera (Paperback)

This book provides a wonderful doorway into the art of ant identification. The keys are well tested and current. The photographs of a representative ant from each genus are stunning. The lists of North American genera and species are very useful as is the list of literature for identifying species. I wish I had had this book 30 years ago when I first started learning to identify ants! This is a must have book for everyone who studies North American ants. It should also be in the libraries of all field stations and any institution of higher learning that teaches classes in the natural sciences.