Using
the Biological Literature
Web Resources
|
Using
the Biological Literature |
Entomology is "the study of insects," according to the Oxford Dictionary of Biology, 4th ed, 2000. Strictly speaking, the true insects are only those belonging to the class Insecta, which does not include the spiders and other animals often thought of as insects such as millipedes or ticks. However, this chapter includes material on both insects and their close relatives since many resources treat these related groups together. Applied entomology is largely excluded, although some basic tools are mentioned.
Associations
American Mosquito Control Association. c/o Pamela Toups, 2200 E. Prien Lake Road, Lake Charles, LA 70601.
Founded in 1935, 2,000 members. Web site includes membership information, "Mosquito Links" (primarily links to mosquito control districts and other technical resources), and a nice page with general information on mosquitos and their control. Publishes Journal of the American Mosquito Control Association, AMCA Newsletter (available online free from 1998 to date), Wing Beats (some issues available for free online), and AMCA Bulletin.
American Entomological Society. Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, 1900 Race St., Philadelphia, PA 19103. E-mail: aes@say.acnatsci.org.
Founded in 1859, 430 members. For professionals and amateurs. Publishes Entomological News, Memoirs of the American Entomological Society, and Transactions of the American Entomological Society. The Web site is primarily for membership information.
Coleopterist's Society. c/o Terry Seero at COFA-PPO, 3294 Meadowview Road, Sacramento, CA 95832-1448.
Founded in 1969, 775 members. "An international organization devoted to the study of all aspects of systematics and biology of beetles of the world." Publishes The Coleopterists Bulletin. Web site includes "Beetle Links", "Beetle Conservation", "Beetle Newsletters" (PDF files of newsletters published by the society)
Dragonfly Society of the Americas. c/o T. Donnelly 2091 Partridge Lane, Binghamton, NY 13903. E-mail: tdonnel@binghampton.edu.
Founded 1989, 200 members. Publishes Argaia and Bulletin of American Odonatology. Formerly Dragonfly Society of America.
Entomological Society of Canada/Société d'Entomologie du Canada. 393 Winston Ave., Ottawa, ON K2A 1Y8 CANADA. E-mail: entsoc.can@sympatico.ca.
Founded 1868, 550 members. Publishes The Canadian Entomologist, Bulletin of the Entomological Society of Canada, Memoirs of the Entomological Society of Canada, Occasional Publications. Web site includes downloadable version of Common Names of Insects in Canada (zip file), information on entomology in Canada, and entomological links as well as membership information.
Entomological Society of America. 9301 Annapolis Rd, Lanham, MD 20706-3115. E-mail: info@entsoc.org.
Founded 1953, 8,500 members. The largest US entomological society; publishes American Entomologist, Annals of the Entomological Society of America, Arthropod Management Tests, Entomological Society of America-Newsletter, Environmental Entomology, ESA Newsletter, Insecticide and Acaricide Tests, Journal of Economic Entomology, Journal of Medical Entomology, and Discover Entomology (Careers). Also publishes many monographic works. Formed by the merger of the American Association of Economic Entomologists and the former Entomological Society of America. Absorbed the American Registry of Professional Entomologists. Site includes membership information, publications, job information, educational information for children, links to other entomological sites, and free e-postcards with insect images. A good site for general information on entomology.
International Bee Research Association (IBRA) 18 North Road, Cardiff, S. Glam, CF1 3DY UK. E-mail: ibra@cardiff.ac.uk.
Founded 1949, 800 members. Publishes Apicultural Abstracts, Bee World, Journal of Apicultural Research. The extensive Web site lists publications, library services, and bee links in addition to membership information.
International Centre for Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE). P.O. Box 30772, Nairobi, Kenya. E-mail: directorgeneral@icipe.org.
Founded 1970, 310 members. Publishes Annual Report, Current Themes in Tropical Science series, Dudu, and ICIPE Profile, and Insect Science and its Applications. Web site has extensive information on ICIPE’s programs and services.
The International Society of Hymenopterists. c/o John Huber, Biological Resources Program/ECORC, Agriculture Canada-Research Branch, KW Neatby Building. CEF. Ottawa, ON KIA 0C6 CANADA. E-mail: huberj@ncccot.agr.ca.
Founded in 1982. Publishes Journal of Hymenoptera Research; web site primarily for membership information.
International Union for the Study of Social Insects. c/o Dr. M. D. Breed, EPO Biology, University of Colorado, Campus Box 334, Boulder, CO 80309.
Founded in 1952, 800 members. There are several country-specific chapters. Publishes Insectes Sociaux/Social Insects. Web site includes links to information about social insects and links to various chapters.
Lepidopterists' Society. c/o Ernest H. Williams, Department of Biology, Hamilton College, Clinton, NY 13323.
Founded 1947, 1,600 members. "Open to all persons interested in any aspect of Lepidopterology." Publishes Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society, News of the Lepidopterists' Society, a biennial membership directory and Memoirs of the Lepidopterists' Society. Also makes available Catalogue/Checklist of the Butterflies of America North of Mexico. Web site includes extensive list of lepidoptera and other entomology links and a statement on collecting butterflies and moths.
Royal Entomological Society. 41 Queen’s Gate, London SW7 5HR UK.
Founded 1833, 2,000 members. Publishes Ecological Entomology, Physiological Entomology, Systematic Entomology, Medical and Veterinary Entomology, Insect Molecular Entomology, Agricultural and Forest Entomology, Antenna. Web site has entomological links listed under "Places of Interest to Visit" but otherwise is mostly for membership information.
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Atlases, Checklists, and Identification Manuals
Termites of the World. Toronto: Urban Entomology Program, University of Toronto, 1998.
This site is part of the University of Toronto's Urban Entomology Program's Web site and features color photographs of 161 termite genera out of the 285 genera found world wide. There are no descriptions or detailed distribution information.
Benoit, Paul. Nomenclatura Insectorum Canadensium/Noms d'Insectes au Canada/Insect Names in Canada. 5th ed. Sainte-Foy, Quebec: Laurentian Forest Research Center, Canadian Forestry Service, 1985. 299 p. ISBN 0662533747. Supplement, 1986.
Since 1993, the list has been updated in electronic format only. It is currently available on the Entomological Society of Canada's Web. A DOS zip file is also available for downloading at this site. English and French common names are included for each species, as well as scientific names and order and family names.
Common Names of Insects and Related Organisms. Committee on Common Names of Insects. 4th ed. Lanham, MD: Entomological Society of America, 1997. 232 p. $45.00. ISBN 0938522647.
This list of standardized common names of insects provides names for 2,046 insects from the US. Official common names are needed when communicating with the general public, and even with other scientists, and this is the official list for the United States. There are four sections: insects listed by common name, insects listed by scientific name, a hierarchical listing of names, and a final section listing vernacular equivalents for higher taxonomic groups (Aleyrodidae=whiteflies, for instance). Updated on the ESA's Web page.
Harp, Chuck E., Paul A. Opler, Richard S. Peigler, Michael Pogue, Jerry A. Powell, and Michael J. Smith. Moths of North America. Jamestown, ND: Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, 1999. (Version 17FEB2000).
A massive effort, containing distribution maps, species accounts, and photos for the moths of the United States and northern Mexico. Canadian moths will be added in the future. There are also checklists for counties in the US and states in Mexico, and an Identification of Butterflies and Moths FAQ.
Opler, Paul A., Harry Pavulaan, and Ray E. Stanford (coordinators). Butterflies of North America. Jamestown, ND: Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center Home Page, 1995. (Version 17FEB2000).
A companion to Harp's Moths of North America web page, above, containing the same types of information.
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Dictionaries and Encyclopedias
Torre-Bueno, J.R. de la, et al. The Torre-Bueno Glossary of Entomology, rev. ed. New York: New York Entomological Society in cooperation with the American Museum of Natural History, 1989. 840 p. $60.00. ISBN 0913424137.
This is a revised and expanded edition of Torre-Bueno's 1937 Glossary of Entomology, and includes the 1960 Supplement A by George S. Tulloch. The terms covered include systematic, descriptive, and general terms. The editors have also included an extensive list of sources and other references. The portion of the glossary dealing with social insects is available at the American Museum of Natural History's Social Insects Web site.
Arnett, Ross H., Jr., G. Allan Samuelson, and Gordon M. Nishida. The Insect and Spider Collections of the World. 2nd ed. Gainesville, FL: Sandhill Crane Press, 1993. (Flora and Fauna Handbook, 11). 310 p. $30.00. ISBN 1877743151.
"The main purposes of this compilation are to inform those doing systematic research of the availability of stored data in the form of specimens and associated information." It is arranged by country, with general information on each country (population, size, biogeographical region) as well as detailed information on each major insect collection in the country. An updated version is available at Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum Web site. All collections that have a Web site are linked.
Directory of Entomology Departments and Institutes (DEDI). Davis, CA: Scientific Reference Resources, 1999.
Intended to provide a single source of information on entomological research centers around the world. As of 1999, the site listed over 1500 departments, institutes, and other organizations from 150 countries. A printed version of the directory is also available.
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Entomology is well-supplied with electronic resources, ranging from very technical checklists of obscure insect families to cute bug pages for children. Most of the resources are specialized classification or identification tools, and most major insect collections have an Internet presence. There are a few freely-accessible Internet glossaries, bibliographies, and other reference tools but these are scattered and incomplete. Most of the major entomological societies listed above also have useful collections of links.
Best of the Bugs. University of Florida Entomology and Nematology Department.
"The sites listed here are judged to be in the top 5% of insect- or nematode-related WWW sites by a committee of professional entomologists and nematologists." This site lists about 10 high-quality Web sites.
The Entomology Index of Internet Resources. John Van Dyke. Iowa State University.
This directory covers a wide range of subjects, from beekeeping to pesticides, and an equally wide range of resource types, from bibliographies to newsgroups.
Systematic Entomology Laboratory World Wide Web Page. Beltsville, MD: Systematic Entomology Laboratory (USDA).
This Web site contains information about the Systematic Entomology Laboratory, plus a great deal of general information on insects such as "BUGS: Good, Bad & Ugly!", several searchable databases on specific insect orders, and a collection of entomology links.
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12-07-01 DCS