Twenty years
ago the first edition of Bumblebees was published. One of a series of ecology
and identification handbooks for naturalists, it has been substantially revised
for this latest, third edition. It is much more than an identification guide,
dealing extensively with the natural history of bumblebees. This is based around the original research of
one of the authors, and the final chapter contains useful information to help
anyone interested in doing their own research to get started.
Several
questions buzzed around my brain as I read this splendid handbook. I remembered
that Alan Morley had written about unseasonal winter activity from buff-tailed
bumblebee queens in Natur Cymru edition 10. It turns out that this species is
regularly found starting a winter nesting cycle. A couple of bumblebee species
that I see fairly regularly are not included as recent records on the map for my
County, but the text makes clear that some areas are not well recorded, and the
onus is on me to pass my records on!
As well as
maps at the end of the book showing the distribution of species, there are many
line drawings and superb plates contributed by Tony Hopkins. They add detail
and delight to a wonderfully informative text about a fascinating group of
insects.
James
Robertson
Editor of
Natur Cymru
This review
was first published in the summer edition of Natur Cymru, June 2012
No comments:
Post a Comment