A 24 page review based on a bibliography of over a thousand items illustrates the ever increasing research into fossil insects, their environments and their significance.

This volume, assembled in honour of the pioneering work of Professor Russell Coope within the field of palaeoentomology, consists of 30 contributions, almost all of which are by former students of Russell, or by scientists greatly influenced by him. It is a mark of the important role that palaeoentomology has had to play in recent palaeoenvironmental research, as well as of the very wide influence that Russell has had in this field, that the contributions are so diverse in scope and application. They range in focus from, for example, the origins of the present and fossil faunas of Greenland, the theory of ?island biogeography?, and late Quaternary palaeoclimatology based on quantified temperature estimates, to the interpretation of synanthropic insect faunas preserved on archaeological sites. The geographical scope of the contents of this volume radiates to Antarctica, North America, several small Atlantic islands, Greenland, Africa and Europe. Most of the contributions consider coleopteran assemblages, but there are also articles on Acari, Muscidae, Chironomidae and Hymenoptera. Supplied with the volume, at no additional charge, is a disk containing a comprehensive bibliography of scientific publications concerning Quaternary insect assemblages. One of the articles also introduces a versatile, computerised data-base named ?Bugs?, which provides comprehensive information on numerous insect fossil records, as well as on the distributions and ecological preferences of much of the North European beetle fauna.

Presents the Quaternary Bibliography, which lists works on archaeology, insects, and other topics related to quaternary entomology. Posts contact information via e-mail. Provides an alphabetical index of listings. Lists compilers of the bibliography. Links to the BUGS Coleopteran Ecology Package and the Environmental Archaeology Laboratory (EALU) home pages.

Advances in Quaternary Entomology addresses the science of fossil insects by demonstrating their immense contribution to our knowledge of the paleoenvironmental and climatological record of the past 2.6 million years. In this comprehensive survey of the field, Scott A. Elias recounts development of scholarship, reviews the fossil insect record from Quaternary deposits throughout the world, and points to rewarding areas for future research. The study of Quaternary entomology is becoming an important tool in understanding past environmental changes. Most insects are quite specific as to habitat requirements, and those in non-island environments have undergone almost no evolutionary change in the Quaternary period. We therefore can use their modern ecological requirements as a basis for interpreting what past environments must have been like. Describes and identifies principal characteristics of fossil insect groups of the Quaternary period Ties Quaternary insect studies to the larger field of paleoecology Offers global coverage of the subject with specific regional examples Illustrates specific methods and procedures for conducting research in Quaternary Entomology Offers unique insight into overlying trends and broader implications of Quaternary climate change based on insect life of the period