228 NATURAL SCIENCE. March, 



Islands, it strikes us that the introduction of the statement in 

 question is a trifle superfluous. Indeed, in a book intended 

 primarily for the sportsman, we should have thought even an}' 

 mention of this particular species of Crane might have been 

 perfectly well omitted. 



These are, however, but unimportant blemishes in a work which 

 we can thoroughly recommend to the attention of the class of readers 

 for whom it is specially designed, as being both readable and, so far 

 as we can see, at the same time accurate and up to date. 



R. L. 



The Hemiptera Heteroptera of the British Islands. By Edward Saunders, 

 F.L.S. 8vo. Pp. viii. and 350, with a structural plate. London : L. Reeve 

 and Co., 1892. Price 14s. (Large paper edition with 31 coloured plates, 

 price 48s.) 



It is with pleasure that we chronicle the appearance of this work, 

 which is uniform with Canon Fowler's " Coleoptera of the British 

 Islands," lately issued by the same publishers. Since the appearance 

 of the Ray Society Monograph of the British Hemiptera by Messrs. 

 Douglas and Scott in 1865, and Mr. Saunders' own excellent synopsis 

 of the order in 1876, numerous species of bugs have been added to 

 our fauna, and inevitable changes and re-changes in nomenclature 

 have been made. The classification and synonymy of the British 

 Hemiptera are now brought thoroughly up to date, and it is to be 

 hoped that the book will incite many naturalists to the study of these 

 interesting insects, which, though much neglected in comparison 

 with moths and beetles, well repay the student for his work, and in 

 some respects offer him more opportunity for discovery than the more 

 popular groups. 



Only 12 pages are devoted to an account of the affinities, anatomy, 

 and development of the Hemiptera, and the methods of their capture 

 and preservation. It is to be regretted that this portion of the work 

 has not been carried to a greater length ; collectors, even now, too 

 often think that to give a specimen a name is the only end of their 

 study ; and attention might well be directed to some of the morpho- 

 logical problems towards whose solution the commonest bug may 

 contribute material. Short though it is, however, this introductory 

 portion is clear and reliable, and as far as external structure is con- 

 cerned, well illustrated by the plate. 



The book, however, is issued as a systematic work and, as such, 

 it is excellent. In his arrangement the author follows Puton ; 

 entomologists familiar with the sequence of the families in Douglas 

 and Scott will notice that the Hydrometrida^ and Hebridae are 

 brought forward to the middle of the series between the Aradidae and 

 Reduviidae, while the Capsidae are relegated to the end. There are 

 synoptical tables of the genera and species which must have cost the 

 author great trouble, and which, in conjunction with his full and 

 accurate descriptions, should safely guide the student to correct deter- 

 minations. Those who can afford the large edition will find, in some 

 cases, the coloured figures a " royal road " to identification ; but 

 among the more critical groups, such plates are of doubtful utility. 

 The Hemiptera are classified in the main not by colour, but by 

 structure ; and outline figures of the distinctive parts in nearly 

 allied genera and species would be of more value than the coloured 

 plates, good as these are. In the table of the genera of the Capsidae, 



