44 
Psyche 
[March 
Book Review 
A Laboratory Guide to the Study of the Evolution of the 
Wings of Insects, by J. Chester Bradley. 2nd ed. Ithaca, N. Y. 
Daw, Illston & Co. 160 pages, 70 plates. 1939. 
This is a revision of a similar guide published in 1931. The 
first 15 pages deal with venational nomenclature, origin of 
wings, nature of veins, and the archetype venation. It is 
noteworthy that the concept of the anterior and posterior 
media and cubitus is used in the discussion of the latter topic. 
The remainder of the guide consists of a synopsis of the 
venation in the principal orders of insects, both recent and 
extinct. This part of the text is arranged systematically, 
with the more generalized groups considered first. The dis- 
cussion under each group stresses the evolutionary signifi- 
cance of the wings concerned. The 70 plates at the end of the 
guide include drawings of wings of 83 insects ; the lettering 
of the veins has been left for the student. 
This guide should prove very useful in general courses in 
entomology, as well as those dealing with morphology and 
evolution. It contains much information otherwise avail- 
able only in numerous journals. In a few instances, how- 
ever, statements about the wings of fossil insects are some- 
what out-of-date. On page 40, for example, reference is made 
to the fact that Permotipula is known from only a single 
wing, so that we have no means of ascertaining whether this 
insect had two or four wings. However, a complete Permo- 
tipulid, having four wings present, was described by Tillyard 
in 1937 (Nature, Jan. 9, p. 66) . One obvious error has crept 
into the text: on page 26 and plates 10 and 12, the ordinal 
name Protoblattaria has been used for all fossil cockroaches. 
Professor Bradley tells me that this use of the term Proto- 
blattaria was unintentional, and is the result of an oversight 
which probably occurred when the manuscript was being 
arranged. 
F. M. Carpenter. 
