United States
£ GBP
British Craneflies is a guide to the identification and natural history of 350 species in six families of cranefly (Tipulidae, Pediciidae, Limoniidae, Cylindrotomidae and the less closely related Trichoceridae and Ptychopteridae). Alan Stubbs describes the distribution and habitat of each species, based on over 50 years of cranefly recording. The 128 pages of identification keys, illustrated with thumbnail drawings, enable all species to be named. Colour plates show the markings and venation of the wings of 180 species, and also live examples of some distinctive and some common craneflies. The male genitalia are illustrated for all species of Tipulidae and for most genera of other families, with specific variation covered in the keys. The introductory chapters include a full account of the enemies of craneflies, from other insects to birds and mammals.
"[...] The main ‘meat’ of the book, as with the others in the series, is the identification keys and species accounts. As noted above, the test keys (which are standard dichotomous keys) were trialled for several decades and are probably as user-friendly as is possible without losing the rigour required to bring about accurate species-level identification. You will need specimens and a stereo microscope to see some of the features, but the book also emphasises how much can be achieved in the field with just a 20× hand lens. [...] I would strongly recommend this book (and the others in the series) to anybody wishing to broaden his or her natural-history interests and keen to gain new and exciting perspectives on the sites, habitats and landscapes which they visit. Like all such books, it is one you will need to grow into, but in time it may become a treasured item on your bookshelf."
– Steven Falk, British Wildlife 33(7), June 2022
