Butterflies and Moths (Eyewitness Handbooks) [Paperback]

David A. Carter (Author)

Book Description

Identify butterflies and moths with this handy reference guide.

The Dorling Kindersley Handbooks are the most visually appealing guides on the natural world in the book marketplace. Featuring more than 500 full-color illustrations and photographs, along with detailed annotations, Dorling Kindersley Handbooks make identification easy and accurate.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

With crisp illustrations and graphic presentations characteristic of Dorling Kindersley book design, these identification guides differ somewhat from other standard field guides by using a narrowing-down process that moves through several stages to identify specimens based upon such observable characteristics as shape, color, range, and so forth. Each book opens with a short section on how to collect and classify specimens. These chapters review tools, discuss collecting "ethics," and describe procedures for documenting a collection. The bulk of each handbook consists of illustrated entries summarizing facts about the particular specimen. For minerals and rocks, entries list facts such as composition, group type, descriptions of how the material is formed, chemical or physical composition, and how the material's hardness or chemistry can be tested. The shell handbook identifies the organism by family and species, indicates habitat and geographic distribution, and gives typical dimension. Moths and butterflies are identified by family and species, habitat, time of day when usually in flight, and typical size. Each entry contains a full-color illustration. Butterflies and Moths occasionally offers pictures of both male and female when the species show significant differences in markings between sexes. Public libraries should find that these handsome volumes are worth adding to their collections of field identification guides. They may even want to purchase two sets: the hardcover for their reference collection and the flexibound for their circulating collection.-- Laurie Tynan, Montgomery Cty.
Norristown P.L., Pa.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

David Carter is an entomologist at the Natural History Museum, London, where he has worked for nearly 40 years specializing in Lepidoptera. At the museum, he has also managed part of the vast National Collection of World Insects. His many books on the subject include the Observer's Book of Caterpillars, Butterflies and Moths in Britain and Europe, The Photographic Guide to Identifying Butterflies, and the Collins Field Guide to Caterpillars of Britain and Europe. He has also produced technical manuals such as Pest Lepidoptera of Europe and Care and Conservation of Natural History Collections, as well as many scientific papers. David lives with his wife Brenda in Surrey, England. They have four grown-up children.

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: DK ADULT (October 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1564580628
• ISBN-13: 978-1564580627
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,368,042 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Helpful, Well-Organized Introductory Identification Guide, February 5, 2001

By 

Donald Mitchell "Jesus Loves You!" (Thanks for Providing My Reviews over 109,000 Helpful Votes Globally) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 100 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Butterflies and Moths (Eyewitness Handbooks) (Paperback)

As I write this review, there is a blizzard raging outside the bedroom. How pleasant it is to sit down and look at beautiful butterflies at such a moment!

Over 170,000 varieties of butterflies and moths have been identified. The author estimates that an equal number remain to be identified in the future. How can a simple pocket book hope to cope?

Mr. Carter has developed a solid concept for this helpful volume. He gives you a little bit of information about all the things that are most likely to be of interest. Then, as you become more knowledgeable, you can graduate to more extensive works and experiences.

The bulk of the book is a field guide to 5 butterfly and 22 moth families that are most common throughout the world. Over 600 color photographs are contained here. In this way, you have a decent chance of identifying whatever is flying in your garden during the good weather. Each species is beautifully illustrated with the wings outspread and a map showing where the species is usually found. Some species also have illustrations of both sides of the wings, caterpillars and other distinctive views.

Although moth varieties outnumber butterflies by about 9 to 1, the book wisely displays mostly butterflies. The moths chosen rival the butterflies for their wonderful designs and vibrant colorations.

For those with a casual interest in the subject, the beginning will be especially valuable. Here you can find out about the differences between butterflies and moths, the details of the life cyles of these insects, how to best observe them, and tips for building a garden that will attract the largest possible population. I thought that last information was most worthwhile.

At the end of the book are listed some of the many gardens you can visit that are populated by collections of living butterflies. I have found those to be remarkably good fun, and very relaxing. You have to slow down to enjoy butterflies. It's good for each of us to move at butterfly speed more often.

The current edition was published in 2000, and contains corrections to the original 1992 edition so be sure to get this second edition.

After you have finished enjoying this beautiful visit to nature's paintbrush and invention workshop, I suggest that you consider how else you can enjoy studying nature. For example, have you ever looked at flowers with a high-power magnifying glass? Like butterflies, they look quite different (and more wonderful) when you can see more details.

Overcome your stalled thinking that you have to wait for a butterfly to cross your path before you can enjoy one!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent!, November 11, 2001

By 

Pagan Jose (Flint, MI. USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Butterflies and Moths (Eyewitness Handbooks) (Paperback)

I had searched dozens of places for literature that is both accurate and containing high quality photographs. Nothing comes closer to providing the information that this book contains! It has been a treasure trove for me in my quest for knowledge about the wonderful insects we call butterflies. It's an EXCELLENT book for both novice and expert alike. I give it 5 stars and two thumbs up!

3.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Book Needs To Narrow Scope, May 2, 2006

By 

Frank Dutton (Many, LA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Butterflies and Moths (Eyewitness Handbooks) (Paperback)

This book is excellent in terms of the printing quality, the book layout and the information is great and the pictures superb. Many of the species show both an upper and lower view of the butterfly or moth - though I'm more used to seeing pictures of a side view with wings up and that seems to work well for me - especially when I'm taking pictures and can't get a shot of the wings open but can easily get good side-vire shots.

HOWEVER, the book is worldwide in scope. If it were for North America (or a Eurpoean edition, etc.) it would be a lot more useful. Naturally, when covering butterflies and moths worldwide, short shrift had to be given to any particular area in terms of species covered. Additionally, as you look through, you are looking at butterflies from North America and next to it one from Australia... There seems to be no logical grouping, either by geographic region or type of butterfly.

I got the book to help me identify butterflies somewhere in the range of where I'll see them - North America, at least. For general information, excellent pictures, etc. the book is great; for identifying butterflies you are likely to see in your back yard, the park or the woods, it is lacking. The best I've seen is the Kaufman Focus Guides "Butterflies of North America" - which, unfortunately does not cover moths. This book does cover moths and has a lot, so that part will be somewhat useful because I can't seem to find much on moths.