Product Description

In Dragonflies of the World Jill Silsby provides a comprehensive worldwide guide to the order Odonata, describing the unique attributes of dragonflies in general and the distinctive features of individual families and subfamilies. The book contains full-color photographs of more than three hundred species, all of which are identified by both their scientific and common names.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1079618 in Books
• Published on: 2001-08-17
• Released on: 2004-08-30
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 1 pages

From Amazon
In the handsomely illustrated volume Dragonflies of the World, entomologist Jill Silsby and a team of colleagues introduce readers to the little-explored world of the dragonflies and their damselfly cousins, the order Odonata.

The odonates, Silsby writes, are among the oldest of the earth's living creatures, ancient even by the age of the dinosaurs. That they have survived while so many other species of the time did not hinges on several adaptations, including the development of large compound eyes, wings that move independently of one another, and a highly streamlined body shape, all of which "has made odonates superb hunting machines." Strictly carnivorous, dragonflies are also wide-ranging--some species have been known to travel across oceans--and are found in most parts of the world; one family, the Synlestidae, or sylphs, are distributed throughout southern Africa, Australia, China, and the Caribbean island of Hispaniola, but, strangely, nowhere in between. (For all its ubiquity, though, the dragonfly figures little in the world's art, literature and mythology.) But all 6,000 species of dragonflies depend on one habitat in particular that is becoming ever more rare: clean, usually slow-moving bodies of water. The volume closes with a consideration of conservation measures that are needed if the odonates are to survive beyond the present age, including the establishment of protected areas worldwide.

A pleasure to read and constantly informative, this compendium makes a welcome addition to any nature buff's collection. --Gregory McNamee

From Booklist
Dragonflies are magnificent insects--large, predatory bugs that anyone can recognize. Their somewhat fearsome appearance and inquisitive nature makes them obvious to even the most oblivious to nature. Dragonflies and their smaller relatives, damselflies, are also among the most ancient of living animals, having arisen some 300 million years ago. Silsby addresses both interested amateurs and experienced zoologists. Introductory chapters reveal the evolution of dragonflies, their life cycle, structure, and behavior. The bulk of the book is a look at the damselflies and dragonflies of the world. The approximately 6,000 species are divided into 29 families, and each family is discussed separately, with general facts about ecology, behavior, and appearance. Superb color photographs illustrate the text; in fact, this is the first book to illustrate at least one species from every family and subfamily of these insects. A glossary of the somewhat exotic terms used to describe dragonflies, along with a list of dragonfly societies, completes a book that, despite its steep price, belongs in every library. Nancy Bent
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

About the Author
Jill Silsby served as Honorary Secretary of the British Dragonfly Society for eight years, was a founding member of the Worldwide Dragonfly Association and, since its foundation in 1997, has been its Honorary Secretary and Treasurer. She is author of Inland Birds of Saudi Arabia (1995).