WINNER OF THE 2010 GUARDIAN NATURE BOOK OF THE YEAR WINNER OF THE 1991 NATURAL WORLD BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARD The Butterflies of Britain & Ireland provides comprehensive coverage of all our resident and migratory butterflies, including the latest information on newly discovered species such as Cryptic Wood White and the Geranium Bronze. When first published in 1991 it won the Natural World Book of the Year Award and won plaudits from all quarters. Fully revised, considerably expanded and reset in 2010, it was judged that year's Guardian Nature Book of the Year. Now revised again to reflect the latest research findings, and with up-to-date distribution maps, this remarkable book is THE guide to the appearance, behaviour, life cycle and ecology of the butterflies of Britain and Ireland.

Islands are special places; they can be havens for unique plants and animals and refuges for wildlife. This book investigates the biogeography of butterfly species over the British islands, particularly the factors that influence their presence on the islands and that have made each island's butterfly fauna distinctive. The book contains a full log of records of species on the islands and much supporting information. The first three chapters set the scene, illustrating the basics of island biogeography theory, their changing circumstances during the current Holocene interglacial, and studies of natural history of British butterflies that mark the islands as the most intensively studied region for wildlife in the world. The book advances by increasing resolution downscale from a European continental perspective, through patterns and changes on the British mainland, a comparison of the two dominant islands of Britain and Ireland, to a close inspection of the dynamics of species on the multitude of offshore islands. Detailed investigations include contrasts in species' richness on the islands and then of the incidences of each species. Case studies highlight the continual turnover of species on islands. Attention is then given to evolutionary changes since the time that glaciers enveloped Europe. A powerful message is conveyed for the maintenance of butterfly species on the smaller British islands now experiencing population losses at a rate unprecedented since the spread of the last ice sheets: the incontrovertible importance of maintaining populations of species on nearby mainland sources for islands as pools for future migrants.

A comprehensive guide to Insects of Britain & Ireland - by Paul D. Brock, Scientific Associate of the Natural History Museum, London, and author of the acclaimed 'Photographic Guide to Insects of the New Forest' is the most complete guide to insects of Britain and Ireland ever produced with over 2700 full colour photographs and fully comprehensive sections on all insect groups, including flies, bees and wasps.

This entertaining and informative book traces the history of butterfly collection in Britain from the 17th century, when the study of natural history had its beginnings. Laced with anecdotes and quotations, the beautifully illustrated volume describes the equipment used and gives brief biographies of 101 deceased lepidopterists. 58 illustrations, 42 in color.

'If you thought butterflies were special, the clear intelligible science in this superb page-turner will make you realise they're ultra-special' - MATTHEW OATES This new addition to the British Wildlife Collection is a unique take on butterfly behaviour and ecology, written by the former Chief Executive of Butterfly Conservation, Martin Warren. It explores the secret lives of our British species (also drawing on comparative examples from continental Europe), revealing how they have become adapted to survive in such a highly competitive natural world. Combining personal anecdote with the latest discoveries in the scientific literature, this book covers everything from why we love butterflies and their life-cycle from egg to adult, to their struggle for survival in a world of predators and parasites and the miracle of migration. The final chapters explore how butterflies are recorded, the change in their ranges and abundance during the 20th and 21st centuries, and the significance of managing habitats at a landscape scale, concluding with a passionate plea for why we must act now to reverse butterfly declines. Insightful, inspiring and a joy to read, Butterflies is the culmination of a lifetime of careful research into what makes these beautiful insects tick and how and why we must conserve them.