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Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society
the moths and many larvae are shown in a natural resting repose. Toward the back of the book is a set of 24 color plates showing all 109 Finnish and 26 hypothetical species pinned and spread. At least one male and one female are illustrated for every species, but many species are represented by up to eight individual specimens to show variation of the species. Additionally, five more color plates show inflated or freeze-dried larvae and pupae and cocoons.
Most of the species covered in this book range throughout much of Europe, and many taxa range across Siberia to the Far East, some even in Japan. Therefore, the coverage of this book should be of interest to lepidopterists in many regions. Lepidoptera conservationists should find the species treatments of endangered fauna such as Lemonia dumi (L.), of particular interest.
Andrew D. Warren, 310 Thorn Apple Way, Castle Rock, Colorado 80104, USA and Richard S. PEIGLER, Department of Biology, University of the Incarnate Word, 4301 Broadway, San Antonio, Texas 78209, USA
Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society 52(2), 1998, 226-227
Moths of Thailand, Volume 2, Sphingidae, by Hiroshi Inoue, Robert D. Kennett, and Ian J. Kitching. 1997. Published by Chok Chai Press, 45 Soi Isarapab 12, Klong San, Rangkok, 10600 Thailand, vi+149 pages, 44 color plates. Hard cover, 18.5 cm x 26.5 cm, dustjacket. ISRN: none. Available from Rrother Amnuay Pinratana, St. Gabriel's College, Rangkok 10300, Thailand. Price US $35.00.
Several series of works are in progress to cover moths of tropical Asia, including ones for Taiwan, Nepal, Sumatra, Rorneo, and China. This is the second volume of the series Moths of Thailand, of which volume 1 by A. Pinratana and Rudolf Lampe appeared in 1990 covering Saturni-idae. This new volume covering Sphingidae, with 176 species known from Thailand, is more than twice as thick as the one for Saturniidae, with only 29 known species from Thailand. In the volume for Saturniidae, those authors acknowledged that much more collecting needed to be done, especially in southern Thailand. The present volume addresses that issue by bringing together authors from diverse abilities to contribute—one from Japan, one a resident of Thailand who has collected there intensively for more than ten years, and the other at The Natural History Museum (London). Dr. Inoue spent several years dissecting genitalia of Thai sphingids in order to clarify their taxomony and nomenclature.
The book will serve perfectly to identify specimens collected in Thailand and several neighboring countries, with photographic plates showing all species, subspecies, and color forms. The brief text for each taxon gives the synonymy, key literature references, notes, habitats, flight times, host-plants (cited as genera and families, but not particular plant species), and general distributions. No larvae are figured. There are 50 black and white photographs showing male and female genitalia, conveniently arranged together for easier comparison.
I found only a few typographical errors, and for books cited in the bibliography, the city of the publisher is given, but generally not the publishers name itself. However, the bibliography appears to be complete and up-to-date, with numerous entries published in the 1990s.
The color plates show how diverse yet uniform the hawk moths can be. Some are obvious bee mimics, and there are large and spectacular species depicted as well, of which some were discovered and named relatively recently like Rhodambuhjx schnitzleri. The introduced North American Darapsa myron is also treated, with the note that its permanent establishment in Thailand remains uncertain (see I. J. Kitching & S. A. Rudge, 1993,/. Lepid. Soc. 47:240-242).
With extensive field work by all three authors and taxonomic input by Inoue and Kitching, the nomenclature and systematics in this book are probably highly reliable. As a taxonomist interested in tropical Asian moths, yet one who is not expert on Sphingidae, I question whether the subspecies concept has any validity for such mobile insects, when it is rapidly losing ground among formally trained taxonomists who work with Saturniidae and other lepidopteran families. The other taxonomic question that troubles me is that some of these sphingids appear very similar to ones we have in the New World, yet they are cited under different generic names. I assume that
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some generic synonymizing is inevitable as we continue to harmonize the lepidopteran faunas from different continents. However, these taxonomic issues should not be considered deficiencies of the present volume, since they are purely subjective.
The book can be described briefly as having a sturdy physical quality, well organized text, numerous color figures, and very few errors (none of which are serious). Considering these points along with the low price, this book is to be highly recommended to any individual interested in Sphingidae in particular or Asiatic Lepidoptera in general, and it should be added to many libraries around the world. I believe it will stimulate additional field collecting and conservation efforts in Thailand.
RICHARD S. PEIGLER, Department of Biology, University of the Incarnate Word, 4301 Broadway, San Antonio, Texas 78209-6397 USA
Date of Issue (Vol. 52, No. 2): 21 July 1998