IJ^2 



NATURE 



[July ii, 1S95 



which so-called bacteriological research opens up to those 

 who, incapable of doing real pathological or physiological 

 work, have leisure to practise bacteriology as a '' fireside " 

 game. 



In conclusion, a word in praise of the translator and 

 editor : he has done his work excellently, so well, in fact, 

 that one cannot help regretting that he used his gifts and 

 expended his labours on a book hardly worthy of so much 

 conscientious energ)- and patience. The translation is 

 better than the original in arrangement, type and general 

 "get up." Since it is pleasing to most to possess a nice 

 book, and one which is at the same time instructive, in 

 spite of some remarks which may appear severer than 

 they are meant to be, we may recommend it safely as an 

 addition to the student's library. 



\. .\. K.WTH.MK. 



THE NATURAL HISTORY OF AQUATIC 

 INSECTS. 

 The N'lliiral History of Aquatic Insects. By Prof L. 

 C. Miall. F.R..S. (London : Macmillan and Co., 1895.) 



PERH.\PS no country- possesses so many amateur 

 naturalists as England, at least in proportion to its 

 population, and it is not without significance in this 

 direction that many of our best professional men of 

 science have not thought it undignified to furnish sound 

 information on their special subjects in a popular and 

 yet accurate manner. The present work is a good 

 example of this, and I'rof Miall dcsenes praise for the 

 •idmirablc account lie has put together of the insect 

 inhabiuints of our lakes, ponds, and watercourses. 



Of course it has not been without forerunners. One 

 of the last works of that well-known writer on popular 

 science, the late Rev. J. G. Wood, was entitled " The 

 Brook and its Banks," and covered much the same 

 ground ; but one may say, without any dispar.igement, 

 that his book was more picturesque or anecdotal natural 

 histor)- than strictly scientific. 



Again, I'rof Miall, like everj- subsequent writer on 

 entomological subjects, is greatly indebted to the laborious 

 researches of Swammerdam, Rcaimiur, Lyonnet, and 

 others of the early naturalists, but in every case this is 

 freely acknowledged, and he adduces their works as 

 models of patient investijjation on the living animal, par- 

 ticularly worthy of emulation at the present lime, when 

 attention is almost exclusively paid to phylogeny and 

 classification, to the neglect of the actual life history, 

 where so much still remains to be discovered. Some 

 essential matters are briefly treated in an introductory 

 chapter, such as the equilibrium of aquatic insects, the 

 tension of the surface film of water and its effect on small 

 objects, and also the question of the original habitat of 

 inserts, whether terrestrial or aquatic, which I'rof Miall 

 confidently decides as the former, mainly from the 

 universal presence of trachea- and functionally active 

 spiracles even in purely aquatic insects, showing that 

 such as arc fitted for breathing only dissolved air are 

 those that deviate from the general and primitive rule. 

 The chief aquatic Coleoptcra are taken first, and certain 

 curious structures in the larva and imago of several 

 families somewhat fully described. Among these we 

 may mention the mouth organs of the larva of Uyliscus, 

 NO. I 34 I. VOL. 52] 



which have been a subject of controversy from the time 

 of Swammerdam and De (^.eer up to .Meinert, Schiodte 

 and Burgess, whose description has been verified by I'rof 

 .Miall, and also the well-known tarsal clasping suckers of 

 the adult male, the real structure and action of which 

 was first pointed out by I.owne. The method of re- 

 spiration in the adult Hydrophilus is well explained, and 

 the extraordinary arrangement for obtaining air from 

 ca\ities in submerged roots adopted by the larva of 

 Donacia, as discovered by Siebold. Flies with aquatic 

 lar\a receive considerable attention, no less than 1 22 pages 

 being devoted to these extremely interesting creatures, 

 which from their transparence, in many cases, have long 

 been fa\ourite objects with microscopists. The develop- 

 ment of the (Inat, Chironomus, Simulium, Eristalis, and 

 numerous others is fully gone into, and the amateur 

 naturalist will find plenty of occupation, and derive no 

 little benefit, by following out their structure with this 

 book as his guide. There is a short account of that very 

 beautiful aquatic hymenopterous insect I'olynema, which, 

 according to Cianin, deposits its eggs in the eggs of a 

 Dragon-fly ; and another form, .Vgriotypus, said to be 

 parasitic on a Caddis-worm. Caddis-flics (Trichoptera), 

 Sialis, the alder-fly of anglers, the stone-flies, may-flies, 

 dragon-flies, pond-skaters, water-boatmen, and all the 

 rest of the host of insects which pass a large part of their 

 existence in the water, are dealt with in due order, and 

 the descriptions arc frequently supplemented with biblio- 

 graphies, which will be useful to those who require further 

 information on special points. A word must be said for 

 the illustrations, which in large part have been drawn by 

 Mr. .-\. R. Hammond for this work ; they are extremely 

 clear and well executed — quite a relief, indeed, from the 

 old cliches usually considered good enough by publishers 

 to adorn a work of this kind. Altogether, the " Natural 

 History of Aquatic Insects" is a very good and useful 

 specimen of its class. 



- 



* 



OUR BOOK SHELF. 



The Royal Natural History. Edited by Richard 



Lydekker, K. R.S., ..tc. \'olunie iii. (London: Warne, 



1895.) 

 Thi; third volume of this excellent "Natural History" 

 finishes the mammals, and commences the birds. 



Among the former the Cetaceans, the Rodents, the 

 Edentates with the pouched mammals, and the Mono- 

 tremes are describetl at appropriate length. The in- 

 formation is generally up to date, and the illustrations 

 are good. To the notices of the occurrence of Sowcrliy's 

 whale on the coasts of England and Scotland, may be 

 added th.it of its being captured some years .igo in 

 Brandon Bay, Kerry, the head of the specimen being in 

 the Dublin Museum. The immense grou]) of llic Rodents 

 is judiciously treated, most of the more im])orlant fads 

 of their history being given. Only six pages arc devoted 

 to the egg-laying mammals, and there is no figure of ihe 

 duckbill's egg. 



The chapters on the perthiiij^ 1)iids and I'icaria- ;ue 

 contributed by Mr. 11. A. Macphcrson and Dr. Bowdler 

 Sharpe. "The number of the existing species of birds 

 being in all pioliability considerabh- over ten thousand," 

 the authors are obliged to treat of them even in a more 

 condensed form than were the mammals ; still the order 

 of Passeres, which includes by far the majority of known 

 birds, is fairly treated, and most of the well-known or 

 interesting birds are alluded to. Dr. Sharpe confesses 



