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Book Shop 



pects to be able to learn more about the 

 pattern of evolution in land snails dur- 

 ing the last half-century. 



Dr. Robert F. Inger, Curator of Am- 

 phibians and Reptiles, has recently re- 

 turned from a study trip to Florida where 

 he examined the habitats of numerous 

 amphibians, tested various field tech- 

 niques essential to the conducting of cer- 

 tain scientific experiments, and also did 

 some general collecting. On leaving 

 Florida, Inger traveled to Austin, Texas, 

 for the annual meetings of the American 

 Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetol- 

 ogists. 



Visitors 



Student groups from the University of 

 Illinois and Valparaiso University vis- 

 ited the Museum's Department of Bot- 

 any recently to become acquainted with 

 its herbarium, library, and exhibition 

 techniques. Of special interest to the 

 Valparaiso group — students of paleo- 

 botany — was the Museum's giant fossil 

 plant, Cycadoidea, reconstructed in the 

 botany plant reproduction laboratory 

 (see June Bulletin) and now await- 

 ing installation. The Cycadoidea re- 

 production is based on studies of silici- 

 fied fossil specimens that reveal the mi- 

 nute anatomical details of the extinct 

 plant. 



Membership Gains 



The Museum gained 1,638 new mem- 

 bers during 1960, to bring its total 

 membership to 7,350, the largest in the 

 institution's history. 



This upswing, which is part of a trend 

 that has been developing over the past 

 few years, appears to indicate a height- 

 ened public interest in research and sci- 

 entific progress. Membership dues and 

 contributions assist greatly in supporting 

 the research and educational work car- 

 ried on by the Museum's staff, and offer 

 {Continued on page 8) 



Mark Catesby — 



The Colonial Audubon 



George Frederick Frick and Raymond 

 Phineas Stearns. University of Illinois 

 Press, Urbana, 1961. 137 pages. $5.00. 



Mark Catesby has been called the 

 first great naturalist in America, and the 

 founder of American ornithology (not 

 the father, a title reserved for Alexander 

 Wilson). He was primarily a botanical 

 collector when in America, but is best 

 known for his sumptuous, two-volume 

 The Natural History of Carolina, Flor- 

 ida, and the Bahama Islands, published 

 in London, 1731-43. This was a gen- 

 eral, illustrated work, but in it was 

 the first series of identifiable plates of 

 American birds, each arranged with a 

 spray of vegetation, etc. A tradition was 

 thus established that was followed by 

 Wilson and Audubon. 



Despite the historical importance of 

 his published work, Catesby the man has 

 remained a shadow. He was an English- 

 man who made two trips to America, to 

 Virginia and Carolina, in 1712-19 and 

 1722-26. Back in England he devoted 

 20 years to writing the text and engrav- 

 ing the illustrations (to lessen expense) 

 of his great work. The dates of his birth 

 and death were discovered only recently. 

 Though a writer, none of his papers or 

 journals has come down to us; though an 

 artist and an engraver, there is no like- 

 ness known. 



Only by searching out references to 

 and comments on Catesby in the corre- 

 spondence of his contemporaries, entries 

 in their journals, the records of scientific 

 societies, and civil records have the two 

 authors, both professors of history, re- 

 constructed a dim outline of the man, 

 and this we have here in a copiously 

 footnoted document. 



Mark Catesby — The Colonial Audubon 

 is obtainable through The Book Shop. 



A. L. RAND 



Chief Curator, ^oology 



1001 Questions Answered 



About the Seashore 



N.J. Berrill and Jacquelyn Berrill. Gros- 

 set & Dunlap, New York. 305 pages, 

 illustrated. $1.75 (paper covers). 



The abundance of identification man- 

 uals available today tends to obscure the 

 fact that finding a name for a given plant 

 or animal, mineral or rock, is only the 

 first step taken by the naturalist. It pro- 

 vides the key which unlocks the door to 

 a fuller knowledge of the object. 



Through this compact (53^*x8") vol- 

 ume, the Berrills open this door by pro- 

 viding the amateur naturalist with an- 

 swers to 1001 questions about the seashore 

 and the plants and animals found there. 

 The book's 27 "chapters" cover collect- 

 ing, tides, sea water, plankton, phospho- 

 rescence, seaweeds, jetsam, the major 

 invertebrate animals, fishes, turtles, ma- 

 rine mammals, and shore birds. A 21- 

 page index enables the reader quickly to 

 locate information on any topic or organ- 

 ism, under either its common or scien- 

 tific name. 



Designed as a supplement to identifi- 

 cation manuals, to be carried into the 

 field with them, the book makes no claim 

 to cover all phases of seashore life. How- 

 ever, it probably includes the most com- 

 monly asked questions, as well as a 

 number that will occur only to the more 

 serious student. Sample questions are: 

 What makes the sea blue? Where does 

 the water go when the tide is out? Why 

 are some seaweeds red? How does sand 

 get into the case of a horseshoe crab? 

 How are the two shells of a bivalve made? 

 How do shrimps breed? How can limy- 

 tube worms best be seen? How deep 

 can a gannet dive? 



Visitors to the Museum may wish to 

 expand their knowledge of the seashore 

 and its life by carrying "Berrill" with 

 them through the exhibition halls. 



ERNEST J. ROSCOE 



Division of Lower Invertebrates 

 Page 5 



