Stephens' Catalogue of British Insects. 127 



of its synonymy, which bears the impression of having been throughout 

 collated with the greatest care. 



Those who have not attended to the subject, and those also who are 

 not acquainted with the extent of several of the collections at present in 

 London, will be surprised at the announcement that very nearly ten thou- 

 sand distinct races of insects are known to exist in the British Islands. 

 The mass of these is contained in four orders ; upwards of three thou- 

 sand being Coleopterous ; the Hymenoptera exceeding two thousand in 

 number ; the Lepidoptera amounting nearly to two thousand ; and the 

 Diptera being more than two thousand six hundred. To furnish a com- 

 plete list of the whole of these is Mr. Stephens' primary object, and this 

 he has effectually done throughout the whole series, with the exception 

 of a few instances among the Hymenoptera and Hemiptera, where he has 

 contented himself with merely indicating the number of undescribed species 

 in some of the groups, deeming it unnecessary to affix names where the 

 plan of his work did not admit of his pointing out either the distinguish- 

 ing marks, or even the immediate affinities of the insects. Each species 

 is referred to the genus to which it belongs, the groups of modem au- 

 thours having been freely and almost universally adopted. In his sub- 

 division Mr. Stephens has gone beyond the writers of France and Ger- 

 many, in whose works up to the time of his publication he shows himself 

 thoroughly versed, and has named and indicated many new groups in 

 each of the orders ; the total number of genera employei by him amount- 

 ing to fourteen hundred and forty, giving on an average somewhat more 

 than seven species to a genus. In indicating the synonymy of these 

 groups, of the families, and of the orders, the proper plan is pursued of 

 pointing out whether the correspondence between each of them and those 

 of the authours quoted is partial merely, or complete, and whether the 

 authour referred to has actually described the group or merely adopted 

 the name of it. The synonymy of the species is also so arranged as to 

 convey much information, showing at a glance whether the insect has 

 been described by the authour quoted, or whether the information given 

 by him respecting it is limited to an indication of some particulars re- 

 lating to its locality, habits, &c. 



These useful indications and many others which give to the work a 

 value far beyond that of a mere catalogue, are conveyed by marks usually 



