An eagerly anticipated addition to the New Naturalist series. The shieldbug is an amazing and beautiful species, rich with diversity in shape, form, size, life history, ecology, physiology and behaviour. But they are not commonly known, outside of specialist circles. Richard Jones’ groundbreaking New Naturalist volume on shieldbugs encourages those enthusiasts who would otherwise be put off by the, to date, rather technical literature that has dominated the field, providing a comprehensive natural history of this fascinating and beautiful group of insects.

Bees make honey; we all know that. But what happens between the bee buzzing around our garden, and the sticky knife in the jar, is a mystery to most of us. How many bee-hours does it take to make just one jar of honey? What do the honeybees' waggling dances really mean? Why do bees swarm? What is a 'house bee'? From exploring their life cycle and development, to revealing their societies and behaviour, expert biodynamic beekeeper Michael Weiler answers these questions and many more. Combining poetic observations with scientific detail, The Secrets of Bees uncovers the incredible world of these remarkable insects.

An accessible but comprehensive overview of beetles, illustrated with 4,500 photographs. Among Stephen Marshall's many other natural history titles are Insects: Their Natural History and Diversity and Flies: The Natural History and Diversity of Diptera, two of the most respected books on the insect world published in the last 20 years. More admirable than the books' rigorous science, however, is that they are wholly suitable for a lay audience, including student readers from high school on. The books have been adopted as classroom texts and assigned as required reading at the university level and are on the references shelves of many practicing entomologists. In Beetles: The Natural History and Diversity of Coleoptera, Marshall has again applied his deep knowledge of the insect world. Comprehensive and packed with 27 pages of richly illustrated keys and 4,500 colour illustrations, it provides the reader with a colourful and enjoyable introduction to the natural history of a huge group of organisms, along with an overview of the diversity of fascinating families included in the group. The subject of this book is an enormous one, since the beetles, or Coleoptera, include almost 400,000 named species. Marshall opens with a description of what makes a beetle a beetle, and then introduces the natural history of the order with copious examples and explanations. Part one of the book includes: 1. Life Histories of Beetles: Form and Function: Eggs; Larvae; Pupae, Prepupae and Cocoons; Adults; Courtship and Mating Behaviors. 2. Defense and Deception: Tanks, Tricks and Coleopteran; Chemical Warfare; Brilliance and Bioluminescence in the Beetles. 3. Freshwater and Marine Beetles: Freshwater beetles; Marine beetles. 4. Beetle Associations with Fungi, Dung and Carrion: Beetles and Fungi; Beetles and Dung; Beetles and Dead Bodies 5. Beetles, Plants and Plant Products: Beetles and Flowers; Phytophagy and Beetle Diversity; Aposematic Beetles and Their Plant Hosts; Beetles as Agricultural and Garden Pests; Beetles and Biological Control of Weeds; Beetles and Trees 6. Beetles and Other Animals: Dangerous Beetles; Coleoptera and Culture; Beetles Indoors; Rare, Endangered and Threatened Beetles; Beetles, Birds and Wild Mammals; Beetles and Other Invertebrates. Part two of Beetles is a guided tour of the diversity of the order, with fascinating stops for all of the world's 180 or so families of beetles as well as most of the significant subfamilies. Thousands of photos, almost all taken in the field by the author, are used to capture the range of form and function in each family, with pages of examples of the popular groups - such as fireflies, tiger beetles, jewel beetles - but also with unique photographs of little-known groups ranging from longlipped beetles to the rarest rove beetles. Essential information about importance, range, behaviour and biology is provided for each group, and easily used photographic keys to most families are provided for those wishing to use the book as an identification guide. The profusely illustrated keys in Beetles, linked to the unprecedented photographic coverage of the world's beetle families and subfamilies, enable readers to identify most families of beetles quickly and accurately, and to readily access information about each family as well as hundreds of distinctive genera and species. Like its companion titles, Insects and Flies, Beetles will be welcomed by the scientific, academic and naturalist communities, including the next generation of students of entomology.

A Photographic Field Guide to the Dragonflies and Damselflies of Singapore is a fully comprehensive field guide to the 136 species of dragonfly and damselfly found in Singapore. With stunning, close-up photographs from the authors, each species is illustrated with multiple variants. The general introduction provides a comprehensive overview of dragonfly anatomy, feeding habits, courtship and reproduction; also dragonfly research and conservation in Singapore, plus the best places for dragonfly watching in Singapore. Detailed coverage of every species includes key features for field identification; telling apart similar species; habitat and habits; presence in Singapore; etymology; wider distribution; national and IUCN conservation statuses; and larval features. Additionally, a QR code links to detailed larvae images from the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum website. The final section gives a checklist of the country status and conservation status of all of Singapore's odonates.

Introduces readers to the roles of butterflies in world ecosystems, as well as threats to butterfly populations and conservation efforts. Eye-catching infographics, clear text, and a "That's Amazing!" feature make this book an engaging exploration of the importance of butterflies.

Advance praise for "Flies"
"Stephen A. Marshall has delivered one of the most beautiful and useful accounts of insect life ever written."
-- Edward O. Wilson, Research Professor Emeritus, Harvard University

Meticulously researched and illustrated with more than 2000 color photographs taken by the author, Flies is a landmark reference book that will be indispensable to any naturalist, biologist or entomologist. Most photographs in this encyclopedic reference were taken in the field and show the insects in their natural environment. All of the world's fly families are included, with photographic coverage spanning the range from common deer flies and fruit flies through to deadly tsetse flies and malaria mosquitoes, with thousands of spectacular species such as exotic stalk eyed flies, giant robber flies and hedgehog flies in between.

"Flies" is broken up into three parts: Life Histories, Habits and Habitats of Flies; Diversity; and Identifying and Studying Flies. The 20 pages of profusely illustrated keys linked to the unprecedented photographic coverage of the world's fly families and subfamilies enable the reader to identify most flies quickly and accurately, and to readily access information about each family as well as hundreds of distinctive genera and species.

"Flies" includes:

Part 1: Life Histories, Habits and Habitats of Flies
Chapter 1 -- Life Histories of Flies
Chapter 2 -- Flies, Plants and Fungi
Chapter 3 -- Flies and Vertebrates
Chapter 4 -- Flies and Invertebrates

Part 2: Diversity
Chapter 5 -- Origins and Distribution of the Diptera
Chapter 6 -- The Lower Diptera
Chapter 7 -- The Lower Brachycera and Empidoidea
Chapter 8 -- The Higher Brachycera or Cyclorrhapha

Part 3: Identifying and Studying Flies
Chapter 9 -- Collecting, Preserving and Rearing Flies
Chapter 10 -- Identifying Fly Families

Every morning, ecologist Tim Blackburn is inspired by the diversity contained within the moth trap he runs on the roof of his London flat. Beautiful, ineffably mysterious organisms, these moths offer a glimpse into a larger order, one that extends beyond individual species, beyond lepidoptera or insects, and into a hidden landscape. Footmen, whose populations are on the march as their lichen food recovers from decades of industrial pollution. The Goat Moth, a thumb-sized broken stick mimic, that takes several years to mature deep in the wood of tree trunks. The Oak Eggar, with the look of a bemused Honey Monster, host to a large wasp that eats its caterpillars alive from the inside. The Uncertain, whose similarity to other species has motivated its English name. The Silver Y, with a weight measured in milligrammes, but capable of migrating across a continent. A moth trap is a magical contraption, conjuring these and hundreds of other insect jewels out of the darkness. Just as iron filings arrange themselves to articulate a magnetic field that would otherwise be invisible, Blackburn shows us that when we pay proper attention to these tiny animals, their relationships with one another, and their connections to the wider web of life, a greater truth about the world gradually emerges. In THE JEWEL BOX, he reflects on what he has learned in the last thirty years of work as a scientist studying ecosystems and demonstrates how the contents of one small box can illuminate the workings of all nature.