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Volume 45, Number 4
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products and nobody knows these larvae better than Neunzig. There are excellent SEM photographs of a few of the important antennal characters, and some may find the photographs of the adults helpful in identifying species. There are some new biological data, but because many of the larvae are general scavengers, the specific identifications of some host plants are not meaningful.
In general, the species descriptions and the genitalic illustrations are no improvement and often inferior to those in Heinrich's revision. Particularly annoying are the squiggly lines in the aedeagus, presumably the vesica, which obscure the sometimes diagnostic cornuti. The overall quality would have been better had Neunzig abandoned the MONA structure and used the format of his 1988 revision of the genus Salebriaria (N.C. Agric. Res. Serv. Tech. Bull. 287) with its well-presented descriptions and diagnoses of adults, larvae, and larval biologies; its excellent line drawings of genitalia, larvae, and pupae; and its black and white photographs of the adults—all for a mere $6.00 a copy.
Fascicle 15.3 is neither the worst nor the best of the MONA series, which, with its apparent lack of editorial guidelines over the last 20 years, seems to cater to the whims of the contributors, cannot seem to decide what constitutes a fascicle or a part of a fascicle, and continues to be plagued by inconsistency. About the only constants are the flimsy beige soft cover, the verbosity and superfluous white space in the text, and the "anything-worth-doing-is-worth-overdoing" series of little color photographs of mostly grey and white moths. Black and white close-ups would be more helpful in identifying species and might reverse the rapidly escalating MONA prices, now approaching the dollar-a-species-level. (Have mercy! There are more than 10,000 species of North American Lepidoptera!)
This is definitely a volume for the specialist and the "completist," but at $55 for 81 species the cost-conscious lepidopterist would be better served to seek out a copy of Heinrich's 1956 revision with its broader coverage and superior descriptions and genitalic illustrations bound in a hard cover. The editorial board of MONA might look to that same volume with its concisely written descriptions, diagnoses, distributions, and larval hosts as a model for drawing up guidelines for future contributors.
John De Benedictis, Department of Entomology, University of California, Davis, California 95616.
Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society 45(4), 1991, 383-384
Foodplants OF World Saturniidae, by Stephen E. Stone. Forward by Claude Lemaire. 1991. The Lepidopterists' Society, Memoir Number 4. xv + 186 pp. 1 color plate. Soft cover, 16 x 23 cm, ISBN 0-930282-05-1, $7.20 (members of the Society), $12.00 (non-members), plus $2 (postage and handling).
Foodplants of World Saturniidae is an important source book that far exceeds the quality and usefulness of older publications. Attractively produced, its cover is illustrated with a painting by John Cody of a mature larva of the Hickory Horned Devil (Citheronia regalis). The forward by Claude Lamaire points out that knowledge of larval morphology, behavior, and foodplant preferences is often gained only by rearing the immature stages. He correctly implies that moth rearers often do not keep detailed records of successes and failures, so that their observations are not as useful to others as they could be. The single color plate illustrates five seldom seen larvae, but more importantly, illustrates the range of larval diversity found in this large family.
The two-part organization of the book is easy to use, and helpful for searching out prospective larval foodplants for the 503 species (139 genera) of Saturniidae covered. Part I is alphabetized by moth genera and species. Under each species, the foodplant records are provided with a reference identifying the source of that information. The
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reference is important as it will often lead the user to additional biological information that may be critical for successful rearing. This section also includes foodplant records for hybrids. Part II is an alphabetical listing of foodplant genera and species, which also identifies the plant family as well as which Saturniidae have been reported from each. Helpful additions are the two indexes, one for moths and one for plants, and an appendix of vernacular and Latin plant names.
It is difficult to evaluate the completeness of the literature search when one considers that saturniids occur in almost all countries and continents not covered by ice. The greater than two hundred references appear to span the globe, with no obviously significant omissions. In general, there appear to be far fewer errors than might be expected in a work of this kind.
This publication was not intended to discuss Saturniidae biology or rearing techniques, nor does it identify which hosts are most commonly accepted. Instead, the book does well what it set out to do, that is, to help you identify alternative foodplants for the larvae you want to rear, with information arranged in an easy-to-use format. Foodplants of World Saturniidae is ideal for anyone interested in rearing Saturniidae.
Paul M. Tuskes, 3808 Sioux Avenue, San Diego, California 92117.