A BUTTERFLY NOTEBOOK by Douglas Hammersley,
reviewed by Rob Parker
DR TATIANA’S SEX ADVICE TO ALL
CREATION by Olivia Judson
reviewed by David Walker
Anyone who appreciates the artistry of "Benningfield's Butterflies" or the precision of Richard Lewington's work will be delighted with Doug Hammersley's illustrations, published under the title of "A Butterfly Notebook". He has captured grace of movement in addition to natural beauty, with a nice blend of scientific accuracy and art. To complement the paintings, Doug has written interesting and amusing accounts of his observations, describing the images of courtship, feeding and pairing shown on the facing pages, and offering anecdotes that reflect the changes in distribution and scarcity over the years.
A skilled medical illustrator by profession, and keen naturalist in retirement, the author has created a "notebook" of the butterflies of his acquaintance, most of the British species, with a smattering of attractive Continentals to add a little spice. Each picture is accompanied by his note of where and when found`, from Northumberland to his familiar West Harling Forest, Norfolk, and with occasional forays to the Pyrenees and the Adriatic. As the illustrations are so much larger than life, he includes one life-size image on each page as a point of reference. In some cases, the larger pictures serve very nicely to assist with identification, and to highlight the points of difference between two similar species. Reading his account of the features separating Small and Essex Skippers leaves a clearer understanding than many of the field guides, for example. The volume is nicely produced, and the choice of paper has catered well for the reproduction of texture and fine brushwork, without generating the reflection that often spoils glossy photographs. There is only one photograph, and that is a whimsical portrait inside the dust cover, capturing the author in a moment of repose.
So this is neither a comprehensive work of reference, nor a superficial coffee table book. It falls nicely into the niche of what many lepidopterists would like to find in their Christmas stocking, a book to read and re-read, images to view with pleasure. Itis published by The Book Guild and is available from all good bookshops, or by telephone order line on 01825 723398.
Rob Parker
The sub-title of this book is ‘The Definitive Guide to the Evolutionary Biology of Sex’, which seems rather misleading. In fact it provides a wide examination of successful sexual devices mainly in the animal world, but not necessarily from an evolutionary standpoint.
The presentational idea of the book is quite amusing. This is: letters to an ‘agony aunt’ from distressed individuals of a species, followed by homespun advice that incorporates the biological explanation of the deviant behaviour that is the cause of the problem. But, of course, without anthropomorphism the behaviour would not be deviant, nor would the account of it be so amusing.
I soon became tired of the format and struggled to get to the end, wishing to see some good, old-fashioned diagrams and life cycle drawings. However, I guess it will appeal to many. For the determined reader the reward is some fascinating information. There is also a very extensive bibliography. Perhaps it would make a good ‘coffee table’ volume to amuse, or embarrass, your guests!
David Walker
© 2003 Suffolk Naturalists' Society