Artikelname: Ant (sleigh)
Artikelbeschreibung: This book examines ants in these and many other such guises, and in so doing opens up broader issues about the history of science and mankinds relations with the natural world. It will be of interest to anyone who likes natural history or cultural studies.

Artikelname: Ant Colony Optimization
Artikelbeschreibung: The complex social behaviours of ants have been much studied by science, and computer scientists are now finding that these behaviour patterns can provide models for solving difficult combinatorial optimisation problems. The attempt to develop algorithms inspired by one aspect of ant behaviour, the ability to find what computer scientists would call shortest paths, has become the field of Ant Colony Optimisation (ACO), the most successful and widely recognised algorithmic technique based on ant behaviour. This book presents an overview of this rapidly growing field, from its theoretical inception to practical applications, including descriptions of many available ACO algorithms and their uses. The book first describes the translation of observed ant behaviour into working optimisation algorithms. The ant colony metaheuristic is then introduced and viewed in the general context of combinatorial optimisation. This is followed by a detailed description and guide to all major ACO algorithms and a report on current theoretical findings. The book surveys ACO applications now in use, including routing, assignment, scheduling, subset, machine learning and bioinformatics problems. AntNet, an ACO algorithm designed for the network routing problem, is described in detail. The authors conclude by summarising the progress in the field and outlining future research directions. Each chapter ends with bibliographic material, bullet points setting out important ideas covered in the chapter and exercises. Ant Colony Optimization will be of interest to academic and industry researchers, graduate students and practitioners who wish to learn how to implement ACO algorithms

Artikelname: Ants of Surrey
Artikelbeschreibung: Despite being one of the most urbanised parts of the country, Surrey is one of the best places to study Britain?s ants as it supports 30 out of 42 native species currently recorded from the British Isles. With practice a host of different species can easily be found in almost every corner of the county, from back gardens to woodlands, chalk downland to heathland and include within their number, Formica rufibarbis, a species now only found in Surrey, but currently restricted to just four nests and as such, arguably the single rarest animal in mainland Britain.

Written to appeal as much to the interested beginner as it is the experienced entomologist, the Ants of Surrey follows the format established by earlier titles in the Surrey Wildlife Atlas Series and includes a comprehensive account of each species including notes on biology, habitat, distribution and status. In addition, the book also includes an illustrated key to workers of ants recorded in Surrey, one of a number of introductory chapters which also cover topics such as general biology and anatomy, the ecological impact of ants, habitats and conservation, ant mimics and species associations (myrmecophily) together with notes on collecting and observing ants in captivity. The book also includes a series of superb colour photographs illustrating many of the species contained in the book including three plates, which show key diagnostic features as an aid to identification.

As with all the superb Surrey Wildlife publications the book is useful in every county in the UK.

Artikelname: Bees of the World
Artikelbeschreibung: The diversity of lifestyles, behaviors, and life cycles that bees possess is astounding, and Bees of the World is a well-rounded reference to these fascinating creatures. Presenting comprehensive coverage of bee species from around the world in an engaging format, this volume will delight readers and inform them about all aspects of the life of bees. The book first answers the question: What are bees? It then goes on to discuss the different families and distribution of bees. The expert authors also describe solitary bees - miners, masons, leaf-cutters, and carpenters - as well as social bees. Readers gain insight into the intricacies of bees' lives through the authoritative text, with special coverage of bees and their special relationship with flowers. The history of association between humans and bees, especially the honey bee Apis mellifera, is also addressed. Bees of the World is fully illustrated with detailed line illustrations and stunning color photographs, making it an ideal reference source for professional naturalists and amateurs alike.

Artikelname: Behaviour and Social Evolution of Wasps
Artikelbeschreibung: In this book, Itô presents data on tropical wasps which suggest that kin-selection has been overemphasized as an evolutionary explanation of sociality. He concentrates on the Vespidae (paper wasps and hornets), a group much discussed by evolutionary biologists because it exhibits all stages of social evolution: subsociality, primitive eusociality, and advanced eusociality. The author reports field observations by himself and others in Central America, Asia, and Australia, showing that multiple egg-layers in a nest are not uncommon. Because coexistence of many 'queens' leads to lower relatedness among colony members than in single-queen colonies, he suggests that kin-selection may not be the most powerful force determining observed social patterns. Instead, subsocial wasps may first have aggregated for defense purposes in habitats with a high risk of predation, with mutualistic associations among many queens. Through parental manipulation and then kin selection, differentiation into within-generation castes may have followed. Of interest to all students of ecology, evolution, and behavior, this book beautifully demonstrates the author's ability to combine wide-ranging data with thoughtful questions.

Artikelname: Bumblebee Economics
Artikelbeschreibung: In his new preface Bernd Heinrich ranges from Maine to Alaska and north to the Arctic as he summarizes findings from continuing investigations over the past twenty-five years,by him and others,into the wondrous "energy economy" of bumblebees.

Artikelname: Bumblebees
Artikelbeschreibung: Bumblebees have always been favored subjects for scientific study, but research has accelerated in recent years. Many new discoveries have been made with regard to their ecology and social behavior. The last twenty years has seen the commercialization of bumblebee breeding or pollination, and the invasion of new parts of the globe by bumblebee species, with potentially far-reaching consequences. Despite this, there is a great deal that we do not know about bumblebees. Their nests are hard to locate, so that those of some species have never been found. Fundamental aspects of the behavior of many species, such as mating, have never been seen. Bumblebees are undergoing a widespread decline, but his has not yet caught the attention of the general public to the same extent as, for example, the plight of rare butterflies or birds. But bumblebees are probably of far greater ecological and economic importance than these groups because the pollination of crops and the survival of many wildflowers depend upon them. This book attempts to draw attention to the importance of conserving dwindling bumblebee populations. It synthesizes the current state of knowledge of the behavior and ecology of these fascinating and charismatic organisms, and identifies some of the many gaps that remain in hope of stimulating further research.

Artikelname: Carpenter Ants of the United States and Canada
Artikelbeschreibung: The carpenter ant is one of the most common and destructive pests affecting homes and businesses. However, in natural areas, these ants also play an important role in forest ecology: they break down dead wood and are the principal food source of the pileated woodpecker. In the first book devoted entirely to carpenter ants, Laurel D. Hansen and John H. Klotz cover the ants' life history and foraging behavior, then turn to their economic importance. The authors provide a comprehensive overview of carpenter ant ecology, morphology, taxonomy, and distribution as well as a detailed chapter on control and management that will appeal especially to urban pest control programs and pest management officials.

Artikelname: Cuckoo Wasps
Artikelbeschreibung: Among the British aculeate Hymenoptera, the Chrysididae constitute a spectacularly coloured but little known group of parasitic wasps, commonly referred to as cuckoowasps, ruby-tailed-wasps or jewel-wasps. They have a thick and usually heavily sculptured cuticle, richly coloured in brilliant metallic reds, greens, blues and golds. The adults feed at flowers and extra-floral nectaries of plants; the larvae of the British species develop in the cells of solitary bees and wasps, and in the cocoons of saw flies (Hymenoptera). Chrysidid wasps favour bright sunlight and are on the wing from late April to early September, when they can be observed investigating holes in various substrates, the possible nesting sites of their hosts.

Artikelname: Ecology and Natural History of Tropical Bees
Artikelbeschreibung: Humans have been fascinated by bees for centuries. Bees display a wide spectrum of behaviours and ecological roles that have provided biologists with a vast amount of material for study. Among the types observed are both social and solitary bees, those that either pollinate or destroy flowers, and those that display traits allowing them to survive underwater. Others fly mainly at night, and some build their nests either in the ground or in the tallest rain forest trees. This highly acclaimed book summarises and interprets research from around the world on tropical bee diversity and draws together major themes in ecology, natural history and evolution. The numerous photographs and line illustrations, and the large reference section, qualify this book as a field guide and reference for workers in tropical and temperate research. The fascinating ecology and natural history of these bees will also provide absorbing reading for other ecologists and naturalists.

Contents include:

Preface; Acknowledgments; Part I. Introduction: 1. Approaches to tropical bee biology; 2. Diversity of tropical bees; Part II. Foraging and Pollination: 3. Resources gathered by bees; 4. Mechanisms of resource collection; 5. Foraging and flight activity; 6. Pollination ecology; Part III. Nesting and Reproduction Biology: 7. Bee nests; 8. Nest predators, associates and defense; 9. Mating and brood production; Part IV. Community Ecology: 10. Seasonality, abundance and flower preference; 11. Composition of bee assemblages; 12. Roles of bees in communities; References; Index; Appendices.

Artikelname: Fire Ants
Artikelbeschreibung: In this text, five economically important species of fire ant take centre stage. These are the red imported, the black imported, the tropical, the southern and the golden fire ant. A general introduction and a history of their invasion of North America open the door to a range of topics.

Artikelname: Honeybees of Africa
Artikelbeschreibung: A comprehensive review of the honeybees of Africa on a subspecies as well as by country basis. Includes an updated multivariate analysis of the subspecies based on the merger of the Ruttner database (Oberursel) and that of Hepburn & Radloff (Grahamstown) for nearly 20,000 bees. Special emphasis is placed on natural zones of hybridisation and introgression of different populations; seasonal cycles of development in different ecological-climatological zones of the continent; swarming, migration and absconding; and an analysis of the bee flora of the continent. The text is supplemented by tables containing quantitative data on all aspects of honeybee biology, and by continental and regional maps.

Artikelname: Identification Guide to the Ant Genera of the World
Artikelbeschreibung:

From subarctic tundra to equatorial rainforest, deep in the soil and at the tip of the highest tree, ants are found the world over. This book offers a definitive guide for identifying these insects, by providing identification keys to all the living ant subfamilies and genera, presented in alphabetical order and separated by zoogeographical region. Designed for professional and amateur myrmecologiasts alike, this guide also includes information about the function and use of identification keys, instructions for preparing specimens for examination, and an illustrated glossary of morphological terms. Over 500 scanning electron microscope photographs illustrate the taxonomic keys. Each subfamily is introduced with a diagnosis of the group, followed by synoptic classifications of all genera within each subfamily, notes on broad distribution and a list of references to all species-rank publications useful to identification. The book also contains a short summary of the extinct subfamilies and a checklist of every name ever proposed in the classification of ants, from the rank of family down to subgenus, showing the current status and usage of each.

REPRINTING, PLEASE CHECK AVAILABILITY BEFORE ORDERING

Artikelname: Journey to the Ants
Artikelbeschreibung: Journey to the Ants" combines autobiography and scientific lore to what study of ants can offer. Bert Holldobler and E.O. Wilson interweave their personal adventures with the social lives of ants, building, from the first minute observations of childhood, an account of these abundant insects' evolutionary achievement.

Also available in card covers at £14.00

Artikelname: Natural History and Evolution of Paper-wasps
Artikelbeschreibung: The diversity of social behaviour among birds and primates is surpassed only by members of the Hymenopteran insects (bees, andts, and wasps). The paper-wasps are a large and varied group, and have been studied extensively by a wide range of biologists interested in the evolution of sociality. This book comprises an in-depth survey of most major areas of research on the paper-wasps - from syntheses of taxonomy and phylogeny, natural history (nesting behaviour, social organization, orientation, and natural enemies) to topics of general theoretical interest such as the evolution of cooperation, social parasitism, kin recognition, and the division of labour.

Contents Include: 1 Polistes: analysis of a society 2 Phylogeny and biogeography of Polistes 3 Learning, individual programs, and higher-level rules in construction of behaviour of Polistes 4 Ecological factors influencing the colony cycle of Polistes 5 Social parsitism and its evolution in Polistes 6 Lek-like courtship in paper-wasps; 'a prolonged, delicate, and troublesome affair' 7 Homing in paper wasps 8 The evolution of exocrine gland function in wasps 9 Kin recognition in social waps 10 The role of cuticular hydrocarbons in social insects: is it the same in paper wasps? 11 Selective altruism towards closer over more distant relatives in colonies of the primitively eusocial wasp, Polistes 12 Behavioural screening and the evolution of polygyny in paper wasps 13 The origin and maintenance of eusociality: the advantage of extended parental care 14 Polistes in perspective: comparative social biology and evolution in Belanogaster and Stenogastrinae 15 The evolution of eusociality, including a review of the social status of Ropalidia marignata 16 Wasps make nests: nests make conditions 17 Wasp societies as microcosms for the study of development and evolution 18 Some epistemological reflections on Polistes as a model organisms References

Artikelname: Parasitic Wasps
Artikelbeschreibung: The parasitic Hymenoptera are a highly successful and important group of insects comprising probably over a million species. Despite the vast amount of research that has been carried out on the group over the last 100 years or so, there are still many unexplained aspects of their biology. In recent years interest in the parasitic Hymenoptera has grown as a result of the increasing demand for biological methods for pest control and their possible use as natural enemies. Parasitic wasps are also tremendously important in research on pollution dynamics and on host-parasite interactions. In this unique volume Donald Quicke provides an up-to-date review of the biology of parasitic wasps which focuses primarily on genetics, developmental biology, physiology, anatomy and molecular biology, though many aspects of behaviour and ecology are also covered. Attention is drawn to the importance of both life history strategy an phylogeny to many features of parasitic wasp biology, and exciting new areas of research are highlighted. Parasitic Wasps provides an extensive guide to the relevant literature. The book will prove invaluable to researchers working on this group and to those with broader interests in entomology, physiology, behaviour, ecology and pest control. Contents Include: Introduction, Sex and Genetics, Life history strategy, Preimaginal development: gametogenesis to syngamy, Preimaginal development: from embryo initiation to pupa, Adult morphology and adaptations, Physiological adaptations of parasitic wasps and their hosts, Adult behaviour, Non-physiological host defence strategies, Parasitic wasp phylogeny and Taxonomy. Appendix A :- Parasitic Hymenoptera frequently studied in culture, Appendix B:- Utilisation of host groups by different families of parasitic Hymenoptera.

Artikelname: Rearing the Parasitic Hymenoptera
Artikelbeschreibung: This booklet aims to provide enough background information on the general biology of parasitic Hymenoptera to enable relatively inexperienced entomologists to understand what is likely to be going on when they rear them accidentally, and especially to give practical advice on how to rear and study parasitic Hymenoptera for those who wish to do so deliberately. Perhaps most importantly of all, I will try to stress how to ensure that the best scientific advance can be made from the results in either case. I also hope that it will encourage a general interest in parasitic Hymenoptera, in particular so that these extremely specialised and vulnerable insects are given the much greater conservation attention that they need and deserve, as our fauna is undoubtedly diminishing much faster than we can appreciate at present.

Artikelname: Shell Shocked: From Arakan to Mandalay 1942-1945
Artikelbeschreibung: The generals have long since written their memoirs of Word War Two, it now befalls the duty of the common soldier to portray what happened through the eyes of the lowest rank in the British Army! – namely William McC. Bryden, Regiment number 904486, 130 Field Regiment RA (TA) and the First Royal Scots, 1939- 1946. The conditions were appalling – tired and hungry, exposed to extremes of heat and disease and in constant fear of being cut off by the enemy, the British fought to drive the Japanese out of Burma. In 1943, Bill Bryden was only twenty-one, and a signaller with the Royal Artillery when his party came under heavy fire from anti-personnel shells. The next half hour was to be filled with such horror that it would take a lifetime to get over it. In this gripping account Bill Bryden describes his wartime experiences in South-East Asia and his slow recovery from shell-shock. In doing so he pays tribute to the brave men who fought alongside him for a better world – a world which many of them would never live to see.

Artikelname: The Ants of Northern Australia:A Guide to the Monsoonal Fauna
Artikelbeschreibung: This book will help in the identification of the 1500 or more ant species occurring in monsoonal Australia, an area which encompasses much of the northern third of the continent. Until this publication, no book has described the northern Australian ant fauna below genus level. Such a treatment is required to support and promote the numerous ecological studies involving ants, especially in the context of their use as bioindicators.

Professionals and paraprofessionals in the research sector and in land management departments and agencies will find this book particularly useful. It will also be of interest to high school teachers and students, and amateur naturalists.

Artikelname: The Bees of the World (mitchell)
Artikelbeschreibung: A comprehensive, worldwide treatment of all groups of bees - 1200 genera and subgenera, including more than 16,000 species. In extensive introductory sections, Charles D. Michener examines the evolution of bees from wasps, the relations of the families of bees to one another, the evolution of bees in relation to that of flowering plants, the nesting behaviour of solitary and social bees, and the structure of immature and adult bees. Drawing on these considerations as well as the fossil record, he speculates on the attributes of the protobee, the common ancestor of all bees. He also cites the major literature on bee biology and describes the need for further research on the systematics and natural history of bees, including their importance as pollinators of crops and natural vegetation. The greater part of the work consists of a treatment of bee systematics, with keys (many of them regional) for identification to the subgenus level. For each genus or subgenus, Michener includes a brief natural history describing geographical range, number of species and noteworthy information pertaining to nesting or floral biology.

Artikelname: The Bumblebees of Essex
Artikelbeschreibung: A superb regional fauna guide to the Bumblebees of Essex. Covers species, distrubution, etc. A very useful county fauna guide which would prove useful in most other counties.

Artikelname: The Guests of British Ants:Their Habits & Life Histories
Artikelbeschreibung: Published in the the same year as the revision of British Ants: their life histories and classification took place(also by Donishorpe).

This book deals with myrmecophiles of British ants, some of them ants themselves (e.g. Formicoxenus and Anergates). It also mentions and debunks theories regarding the effect that the presence of a species of beetle (of the genus Atemeles) has on the number of pseudogynes in colonies of the larger formica (ant) species.

Artikelname: The Hive: The Story of the Honeybee and Us
Artikelbeschreibung: Ever since men first hunted for honeycomb in rocks and daubed pictures of it on cave walls, the honeybee has been seen as one of the wonders of nature: social, industrious, beautiful, terrifying. No other creature has inspired in humans an identification so passionate, persistent or fantastical. The Hive recounts the astonishing tale of all the weird and wonderful things that humans believed about bees and their 'society' over the ages. It ranges from the honey delta of ancient Egypt to the Tupelo forests of modern Florida, taking in a cast of characters including Alexander the Great and Napoleon, Sherlock Holmes and Mohammed Ali. The Hive is also a history of ideas, taking us through the evolution of science, religion and politics, and a social history which explores the bee's impact on food and human ritual. In this beautifully illustrated book, Bee Wilson shows how humans will always view the hive as a miniature universe with order and purpose, and look to it to make sense of their own.

Artikelname: The World of the Harvester Ants
Artikelbeschreibung: The native red ants of Texas, favored prey of the endangered Texas horned lizard, are but one of many New World ants known as "harvesters." The two genera Pogonomyrmex and Ephebomyrmex range from southern Canada to southern Argentina and the western half of the Caribbean island of Hispaniola (Haiti).Harvester ants are generally noted for their habit of building large gravel mounds in the center of huge clearings, for "harvesting" the grain of favorite grasses, and for their fiery stings. Some early naturalists believed that harvesters planted their favored grasses around their mounds-a claim that, though mistaken, could be imagined to be true of these well-organized, highly social insects. Two hundred years of study are summarized in this volume, which covers all aspects of the lives of the harvester ants. The book begins with the mythology and folklore surrounding the harvester ants of the Southwest and Mexico: the Aztecs believed that the red harvester brought corn to humankind, and Native Americans of the southwestern deserts invoked special rituals to placate the ants when their mounds were disturbed. Following sections describe the ants' evolution, distribution, nest structure, habits, foods, predators and cohabitors , defenses, chemistry and communication, and sex life. The final chapter considers the ants' interaction with humans, including its perception as a pest and the history of pesticide use.Appendixes give the scientific and common names of each harvester ant species, explain how to identify harvesters without technical devices, and provide a complete key to all sixty species. The key is supplemented by illustrations and distribution maps for every species. An extensive bibliography and a detailed index are included.This beautifully illustrated book will serve as both a general guide to harvester ants for the lay audience and a quick, accurate, and inclusive reference for scientists.