Moths of Western North America ‐ by J. A. Powell and P. A. Opler

Moths of Western North America by Powell, J. A. and Opler, P. A. , with contributions from Epstein , M. E. and Adams, J. K. . 2009 . University of California Press , Berkeley, California, U.S.A. 383 pp. ISBN 978-0-520-25197-7 , hardback, US $95.00. Living west of the 100th meridian, I have always been envious of the books available to lepidopterists of eastern North America. As a student, I wished for a guide on western moths, such as Charlie Covell's wonderful FieldGuide to Moths of Eastern North America (Covell, 1984) or Louis Handfield's Le Guide des Papillons du Quebéc (Handfield, 1999). That wish has been granted. Moths of Western North America is a masterpiece. Drawing on over a century of experience, Jerry Powell and Paul Opler have produced a beautifully illustrated book documenting the diversity of moths in western North America. Unlike many other works, this book treats the lesser-known micro-moths in addition to the more popular macro-moths. According to the authors, was inspired by Ian Common's Moths of Australia (Common, 1990). The first time I saw this book was in 2008 at the Entomological Society of America meeting in Reno, Nevada. It was unbound and shockingly thick, due mainly to the large number of colour plates. I realized then that the scope of this book goes much beyond standard field guides. To represent such a diverse fauna, the authors chose to discuss ~25% of the named species for each family, subfamily and larger genus, which was an impressive undertaking. Although not every genus was discussed, the authors focused on widespread species, or those with economic, conservation, or biological importance. The biological information that accompanies the descriptions for species in this book provides a depth rarely attained elsewhere. The book is divided into two major parts, first an introduction to Lepidoptera and then species treatments with associated figures. The first section introduces the reader to lepidopteran morphology, biology and evolution, and provides the basic background needed to understand and recognize the diversity of the western lepidopteran fauna. Brief discussions on morphological structures are provided to aid understanding of the species-level text, and a glossary is provided to clarify some of the more specialized terms. Within this section, the authors also provide a synopsis of the history of moth collecting in western North America, adding a unique human element to the book. To read the stories behind the names I have seen on collection labels was fascinating. This historical treatment was humbling, as it demonstrated clearly the dedication and perseverance shown by these early pioneers, whose hard work laid the foundation for all subsequent lepidopteran research in the western region. Forming the bulk of the book is the classification and natural history of the moths of western North America. Species descriptions are organized based on the phylogenetic relationships hypothesized by Kristensen & Slatkin (1999). Each hierarchical rank (superfamily, family, subfamily and occasionally tribe) are briefly described, highlighting the biological traits and morphological characteristics that define the group. At the species level, diagnostic characteristics, such as wing coloration, behaviour and larval host are described. Accompanying these descriptions are close to 2350 colour images, along with 254 line drawings, making this book richly illustrated. Nearly every taxon discussed is illustrated, including both adults (with multiple images if variation exists), and a selection of larval images. This section ends with a brief discussion of collecting and preserving techniques, providing direction for those new to the field of lepidopterology. The detail provided within the Moths of Western North America testifies to the authors' dedication and experience. However, this level of detail make the text less accessible to the nonspecialist or novice lepidopterist. Even with the introduction and glossary, many specialized terms are used to describe diagnostic traits or morphological characters. Furthermore, navigating the text requires some understanding of lepidopteran phylogenetic relationships and classification. For novices, identifying moths even to family can be daunting, making this type of organization intractable. A key introducing the moth families would have increased user-friendliness. Given the immense moth diversity facing researchers in western North America, this book will be an unparalleled resource for years to come. Although many of the species contain rich biological information, such as larval host etc., the authors carefully point out the gaps in our understanding. Many groups lack basic knowledge, such as larval host or numbers of species, providing rich fodder for an enterprising young naturalist. The only way to improve our understanding of western moths is to identify these gaps and strive to answer these biological questions. Although this is not your standard field guide that will be thrown into a backpack and carried to the top of the mountain, you can be certain that it will be prominent on the shelves of future moth collectors for years to come. Amanda Roe 1

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