Book Reviews
TAXONOMISTS'GLOSSARYOF MosQuITO AI'\ATOMYby Ralph
E. Harbach and Kenneth L. Knight. 1980. Plexus Publishing, Inc., Marlton, N. J. xi + 415 pp., 83 pI. $24.95.
T AXONOMISTS'GLOSSARYOF MOSQUITO ANATOMYby Ralph
E. Harbach and Kenneth L. Knight. ]980. Plexus Publishing, Inc., Marlton, N.J. xi 4 + 415 pp. pp. $24.95.
The family Culicidae is undoubtedly the most thoroughly
studied and best known family in the animal kingdom. The
acquisition by mankind of so much knowledge has resulted
from the labor of hundreds of workers who have used
hundreds of descriptive terms. As the literature has exploded,
the need for uniformity has become more acute. This need
has been especially obvious to those concerned with identification and classification. Botha de Meillon recognized this
need and vigorously promoted the preparation of a glossary.
The task involved many individuals,
prominent
among
whom were the late Jean L. Laffoon and the late John N.
Belkin. Most of the financial support for the project came
from the U. S. Army Medical Research and Development
Command, the National Library of Medicine (NIH, HEW),
North Carolina State University, and the Smithsonian
Institution. As the work progressed, parts of the glossary were
published in Mosquito
Systematics.
Thus culicidologists
throughout the world had a chance to criticize and recommend. The present volume will not disappoint
the many
individuals who have looked forward with interest to its
completion.
This attractive book is far more than a glossary for students of mosquitoes.
It is an invaluable book for all entomologists interested in insect anatomy and systematics. It
contains far more than definitions of anatomical structures
since it contains extensive references to the literature (more
than 500 citations). The annotated list of synonyms for and
comments on numerous terms is one of the most useful parts
of the book. The main divisions of the volume include introduction, explanation, adult, egg, larva, pupa, vestiture, literature, and index. There are 83 beautiful and clearly labelled
text figures.
I found only a few spelling errors (for example, "egg burster," page 138) and a few cases where the legend did not
identify the structure
labelled in a figure (for example,
"ADL" in figure 20).
Although the authors list the word "terminalium"
as being
synonomous with genitalia, there is a very distinctive difference between the two. Terminalium
includes the eight uromere whereas the genitalia are primarily made up of modified parts of the ninth sternum. The term "terminalium"
includes structures which are not involved in copulationfor example, the eighth uromere is not necessarily directly
involved in coitus.
The objective of the project was to produce "a glossary
naming, defining, and illustrating each sclerotized structure
of all life stages of the mosquito ... listing all synonyms of
these names." Following the introductory
material there are
5 parts to the book: adult, egg, larva, pupa, and vestiture,
Each recommended
or accepted term is listed in bold face,
capital letters followed by an abbreviation,
references to
figures and literature, a definition, synonyms, and sometimes
additional explanations. Some unacceptable terms are listed
in bold face, lower case letters largely because they are too
vague to be considered synonyms. In selecting recommended
terms "an effort was made to accept the oldest appropriate
name for each structure." Obviously what is "appropriate"
is
a matter of some subjectivity
I was surprised to see the authors promote the term "posttarsus" for the almost universally used term "pretarsus,"
especially since the latter was used long before 1923 and since
the authors do not point out specific reasons for a "widespread dissatisfaction"
with the old term.
Some of the specialized terms seem unnecessary,
for
example, the term "anterior mandibular apodeme" is a more
descriptive word than the word "preartis."
I heartily recommend this book to all entomologists.
indispensable to mosquito specialists.
It is
Jack Colvard Jones
Department of Entomology
University of Maryland
College Park. M D 20742
R. E. Snodgrass was fond of pointing out the difference
between anatomy and morphology. The former is descriptive; the latter is interpretive. Different interpretations
evoke
emotional responses among morphologists
and taxonomists. Some of the interpretations
accepted by Harbach and
Knight will be rejected by some culicidologists
on the
grounds that insufficient attention was given to phylogeny,
other Diptera, Latin root words, proper grammar, or something else. This reviewer urges restraint. Users of the book
should not quibble or emote. They should be thankful for the
availability of a unique compilation which will make taxonomic research on mosquitoes easier.
A REVISION OF THE A t"DES SCUTFU.A RIS GROUP OF TONGA
(DIPTERA: CULICIDAE), by Yiau-Min Huang and James
C. Hitchcock.
1981. Contributions
of the American
Entomological
Institute, Medical Entomology StudiesXII, Vol. 17, No.3. 107 pp.
The Aedes scutellaris complex consisting of about thirty
species represents a mosq uito group of major medical importance. A number of the species are important
vectors of
wuchererian and brugian filariasis and in some areas dengue
viruses. The complex is widely distri buted on the islands of
the South Pacific and in parts of the Oriental region. It is an
extremely difficult taxonomic group. Many ofthe species are
separated only on the basis of very subtle differences and
identifications
based on single specimens
are often
impossible.
Accompanying
the definitions are 365 superb drawings
and scanning electron micrographs, and 23 tables for comparisons of terminologies
of various authors. The list of
references cited covers 23 pages; the index, 64 pages.
Although we have a good understanding
of mosquito classification there is still much work which will have to be done at
the structural level if we are going to elucidate species complexes some of which are causing baffling problems with
respect to disease transmission. This glossary will be a truly
indispensable aid for beginning students as well as experienced specialists.
The present study is a revision of the scutellaris
the Tonga Islands of the South Pacific
group of
The authors, on the basis of the examination
of more than
9,000 specimens including 1,866 individual rearings with
associated larval and pupal skins, have recognized three
species and one subspecies from these islands. These include
William E, Bickley
65/6 40th Ave.
University Park. M D 20782
147