Customer Reviews

The Wild Silk Moths of North America: A Natural History of the Saturniidae of the United States and Canada (Cornell Series in Arthropod Biology)

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Very impressive coverage on the Wilk Silk Moths of Noth America. Most known species are shown in exellent photographs,some in the larval stages also. Good range maps and detailed text make this the laymans best friend when exploring and learning about the habitats and life histories of some of our most magnificent moth species. The best book I've seen on the subject period!

For each moth there is a color picture of last instar caterpillar and one or more pictures of the moth. There is also a range map and detailed descriptions of each stage of the life cycle with notes on rearing.
This is a well-written, well-researched, easy to read book. I would recommend it to anyone interested in these largest and showiest of the U.S. moths.

I have been looking for a guide like this for years. This book shows great pictures of all the bigger moths of North America including their caterpillars. Loaded with maps and drawings of the cocoons this book is a must have. Don't let the price scare you away.

At last a book I can put on my bookshelf next to Holland's Moth Book.

Excellent book that not only deals in the taxonomy of Saturniidae moths but of collecting and rearing as well. Great illustrations and maps.

Previously much of this information was only available in bits and pieces on the Internet and in obscure publications and has never been previously compiled in one volume.

For those of you not familiar with Saturniidae they are the family of giant silk moths. Some species are the size of a small bird. Just about every location in America is home to at least one species of giant silk moth and they even live in our big cities.Why do most people not see them? Well one reason is they are nocturnal and high flying. If you look in wooded areas however you will often see their cocoons. One can purchase live silk moth cocoons and the females readily attract males by a phermone that can be detected by the male of the species for miles.



As a moth breeder I welcome this book.

This book is a classic. I first purchased the book when it was published back in the mid-90s. Everything about it is fantastic! Many species are described and cataloged with textual referencing of life cycles, mating habits, anatomy, larvae, pupae, caterpillars and pheromone chemistry. Technically informative the book also gets into taxonomies of species plant sources. A fair number of color plates will impress you: All of the adult specimens photographed are mounted on vibrant sky-blue boards which enhances the natural colors of the moths. Many of the caterpillars are also provided in color in their natural habitats. The binding and paper is of the highest quality and the color plates are printed on a nice frosty gloss paper (it's the kind of thing one would imagine could only be found in an entomologists laboratory.) Not only beginning collectors but also lepidopterists will find it a handy reference. This book was once sold at half it's current value which is a shame for me since mine was virtually ruined in a rainstorm during a collecting expedition to West Virginia back in '97. As the other reviewer stated, do not let the price scare you away. It is a valuable item that will likely become a collectible.