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Dragonflies and Damselflies of Northeast Ohio. Larry Rosche. Illustrated by Jacquelyn Haley, Jennifer Brumfield and Kevin Metcalf. 2002. 94 p, approximately 200 colour illustrations. $18.95.
Dragonflies and Damselflies are the most popular group of insects among non-specialist nature watchers after the Lepidoptera. They have long been of interest to many people because of their large size, diurnal habits, and great beauty. In Japan many nature reserves have been made primarily to protect Odonates and in many countries they have their own societies. It is no surprise, then, to see more identification literature being published on them.
I was a little wary of reviewing a book on American species, being a European entomologist myself; however, the Journal editors believed my knowledge of the Odonata would be sufficient for the job, and so I have attempted it. The book is a field guide, designed to be taken out into the countryside and used in situ for the identification of living species. It covers 124 species from the 9 counties of Northeastern Ohio and each species is illustrated in colour, often with additional illustrations of the important abdominal segments. The book is ringbound, which gives it the advantage of staying open at whatever page you lay it down open, something that is quite useful in the field.
Each species is also described textually and information is supplied on rarity, habitat preferences, and flight times as well as on physical structure....