Customer Reviews

Simon & Schuster's Guide to Insects (Fireside Books (Holiday House))

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

It would be impossible for any single book to be a total guide (and I have many!), but this book has EXCELLENT photographs - which is especially helpful with hemiptera (true bugs), since there is a shortage of identifying guides for them. I not only found photos of insects that I (and my county ag agent) had been unable to identify, this book is wonderfully keyed to indicate whether insects are beneficials, pests, neutral, etc. This "at a glance" keying (by color, symbols and single alpha's) is very helpful for gardeners since most books do not give good information on what insects eat (a predator can develop into a pest as an adult, and vice versa), etc., but rather only provide physical identification information. Organic gardeners can frequently find information only on the worst (most common) pests, and may live in areas where they have worst pests that are not indigenous elsewhere, or identification of the most common predators, that may not be universally common. The author give life histories and other valuable information frequently lacking in "identification" books. Scientific names are provided for the more serious reader - and to help in identifying similiar insects in more complete but poorly illustrated books. Because of the beautiful photos, it would be a good "beginner book" for a budding entomologist too! This book is a real bargain!

Consider the lucky birders. In North America there are less than 900 species of birds. While some may be only 3 or four inches long, others are measured in feet. New birding guides are issued every year. And while a few species, like the empidonax flycatchers may be difficult to tell apart, all of the species are illustrated in most guides, and 90% are identifiable if the birder gets a good look at them.

Now consider the amateur entomologist. There are over 80,000 species of insects in North America. Most insects are relatively small. Telling the difference between species may require examining the vein pattern in wings. The field guides to insects illustrate at most 700 insects. No wonder there are more bird watchers than insect watchers. And no wonder there hasn't been a major insect field guide published since 1981!

A field guide to insects then probably can't help you identify most specific species. The authors feel they have done their job if they can help you identify the family. Unfortunately most, including the Simon & Schuster guide, may not even do that.

To test insect guides I took a series of pictures of each of three insects and then tried to identify them with the help of the guides. They were pictures of a butterfly-like insect, a bee and a fly. Simon and Schuster helped me identify the insect order with a table that provided common features of an order and gave its name. I then was required to flip through the pages describing the orders, which are arranged taxonomicaly, to find a description of the order and the entry numbers of the pictures and descriptions of that order. (It would have been convenient if the table had listed the page where I could find the order description and the pages where I could have found the initial entries.) Next I had to flip through the entries, examining each photograph to find an insect that most closely resembled my specimen.

I should note that some guides use drawings while others, like Simon and Schuster use photographs. My experience is that either method may be more advantageous in a specific case.

For my butterfly-like insect, I immediately identified it as a Brown Skipper. My bee looked most like a Carpenter Bee, an identification I felt more comfortable with after consulting other guides. But I could not identify my fly at any level lower than order.

Of the field guides I examined, I found this to be the least satisfactory, both as to convenience, and as to the number of insects shown. And since one is unlikely to make a precise identification unless on finds exactly the species on is looking for, the more insects the better.

Even though they are only a little better, most people trying to identify insects will probably be happier with the Peterson Guide, "A Field Guide to Insects" by Donald J. Borror and Richard E. White or the "National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Insects and Spiders" by Loris and Margery Milne.

Great general reference guide with photos by renowned insect photographer Dr. Edward Ross. A well done eighty-three page introduction covers such topics as classification, anatomy, behavior and collecting. Not for real die hards as the number of species is limited. Great though for students, naturalists, nature photographers and others interested in a good general introduction that uses top quality photography.

This guide is awesome, pictures and illustrations are from very high quality, I found this guide comparable to those guides from Audubon.

Two illustration of insects come on left page, and on the right page you have the theorical info, so It easy to read and look at the picture at the same time. Insects are very easy to find, theyre grouped in orders, and by similitudes of course.

This is a must have for any insect enthusiast, no mether if a begginer or if an expert on this field.

It is very complete.

Scientists speculate that insects may make up about half of the organisms on earth, with 15 million insects to every living human. Most of the massive number of insects are found in the band of tropical forests that circle the globe. With that said, there is still a huge variety of insects in North America.

Although it is not mentioned anywhere on the cover, Simon and Schuster's Guide to Insects is a guide to North American insects. I enjoyed the introduction, which provided information on the anatomy and behavior of many groups of insects. There was also a section on the collection and preservation of insects, which was of great interest to me because I am learning the rituals of entomology.

The over 1000 photographs in this book are well made and taken so that an insect may be easily identified. The photographers Dr. Edward S. Ross and Kjell Sandvid are responsible for almost all of the photographs and are decorated scholars who have collectively been photographing insects for over 65 years. There is a very professional and uniform quality throughout. A majority of the photographs were shot in the wild, the lighting is well thought out, and the quality of color is consistent. If you are looking for a book of excellent insect photography this book will not disappoint. My only complaint about the photographs from a scientific perspective would be that there is usually only one photograph per species and very few images of insects in their larval stages.

This book is geared towards the backyard enthusiast and the amateur entomologist, but there are better resources available. There is no substitute for the internet and specifically [...] when trying to identify an insect. Many state universities and natural history museums also have fantastic online databases. Even though this guide is adequate, my first choice for field use would be the National Audobon Society Field Guide to Insects and Spiders. The habitat range map complimenting photographs of each species makes it much easier to determine similar looking insects.

All insect field guides may look alike, but Simon and Schuster's Guide to Insects lacks the organization that separates a good field guide from a great field guide.

This book has wonderful detailed pictures of the insects. Set up of how to use the book is very well done. Explanations of the insects are thorough. It's a go to book for all one would want to know about a specific insect(s).

I needed some reference material to teach "bugs" to summer campers. I found this to be a great reference for them and a pleasant addition to my personal library.

C'est un bon guide ( Simon & Schuster's Guide to Insects)qui montre de belles photos d'identification d'insectes

This has been an excellent source to identily insects for us.