564 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. XXII. No. 566. 



lowest to the highest, and the structural char- 

 acteristics, habits and transformations are 

 discussed in some detail for the more impor- 

 tant representatives of each family. The 

 work includes also supplementary chapters on 

 the relation of insects to flowers and the fer- 

 tilization of plants, color and pattern and 

 their uses, including also a discussion of pro- 

 tective resemblance, warning colors, mimicry, 

 etc., and a chapter on the relation of insects 

 to disease, discussing in some detail the rela- 

 tion of mosquitoes to malaria, yellow fever 

 and filariasis. An appendix covers the gen- 

 eral subject of collecting and rearing insects. 

 The scope of the volume, therefore, is seen to 

 be a very broad one. In some respects it 

 reminds one of Dr. Sharp's excellent work, but 

 falls short of the English publication in the 

 character of the illustrations and in the gen- 

 eral dignity of style. Professor Kellogg's work 

 is designated apparently to arouse popular in- 

 terest in the subject, and is somewhat uneven 

 in style, varying from popular statement with 

 an occasional indulgence in the rhapsody of 

 the nature lover, to very technical and scien- 

 tific matter. 



The illustrations are very copious, including 

 some 812 text figures and 13 plates, the latter 

 mostly color-process reproductions from photo- 

 graphs. There are also many purely decora- 

 tive figures. The text illustrations serve their 

 purpose very well in supplementing the de- 

 scriptive matter, but are of very unequal 

 quality. Many of them are original, the work 

 of Miss Mary Wellman; but many others are 

 reproductions from standard European and 

 other works and from the publications of 

 various experiment station and other ento- 

 mologists of this country. Very often old 

 figures have been thus copied where much 

 more accurate and better ones could have 

 been substituted. Much of this reproduc- 

 tion and copying has evidently been done 

 by means of photo-processes, and the result 

 is rather unfortunate, especially in the case 

 of the smaller figures, which are often mere 

 blotches of black or at least have lost much 

 of the structural detail which they origi- 

 nally possessed. The colored plates are most 

 of them very good, and will enable the ready 



recognition of the insects portrayed. The 

 excuse is doubtless a valid one that, in a work 

 as numerously illustrated as is this, the ques- 

 tion of expense renders impracticable the care- 

 , ful preparation of all the illustrations. 



Synoptical tables or keys to the different 

 orders and families of insects are given 

 throughout the book which will enable the 

 student, with the aid of the illustrations, to 

 form at least a rough classification of his col- 

 lections. 



An examination of the subject matter of 

 the different chapters shows considerable care 

 in getting the main facts and putting the in- 

 formation into semipopular language which 

 may be readily understood by the student. 

 While necessarily very largely a compilation, 

 personal studies of the author in various spe- 

 cial subjects greatly enrich the volume- and 

 give it freshness and originality. A great deal 

 of interesting matter is thus contained in the 

 volume, and the information given is reliable 

 and correct as a whole. One notes, however, 

 occasional errors of statement, evidently re- 

 sulting from haste in the preparation of the 

 work or careless compilation from original 

 sources. Eor example, in the discussion of 

 the fig insect, the Blastophaga is stated to 

 have been imported directly from Asia Minor 

 to California, when, in point of fact, the suc- 

 cessful importations were from Algeria. In 

 the discussion of luminosity of insects the 

 matter is given a final status which is far 

 from warranted by present knowledge of this 

 interesting phenomenon. In the nomenclature 

 the author has not followed the latest informa- 

 tion, but in this particular he is perhaps justi- 

 fied, owing to the uncertain status of insect 

 nomenclature and the frequent changes which 

 are taking place, especially in the names of 

 different genera. Some of the names em- 

 ployed can not, however, be excused on these 

 grounds, and perpetuate old errors which 

 have long been corrected in modern literature. 

 The volume has no list of illustrations, but 

 has a very full and useful index. The minor 

 defects noted detract little from its real value, 

 and Professor Kellogg's volume will be wel- 

 comed as one of the best general text-books 

 on the subject covered. C. L. Marlatt. 



