Stephen Welton Taber and Scott B. Fleenor,
Texas Tech University Press, Lubbock, Texas, 2005,
322 pp., $45.00 (cloth), $24.95 (paper), ISBN 13 978-089672-542-3
(cloth), ISBN 13 978-089672-550-8 (paper)

This is the second regional guide by Taber and Fleenor that covers unique habitats in Texas; the first guide was Insects of the Texas Lost Pines (Taber and Fleenor 2003). What initially attracted me to this book was that it covers one of the many isolated aquatic habitats that dot the more arid regions of Texas. These island-like habitats often host a fascinating fauna of unique organisms. Also, the fact that the book included both insects and noninsect invertebrates made it even more appealing. Even though there are many other insect guides with geographic coverage that includes the Ottine Wetland area, located in south central Texas in and around Palmetto State Park, there is a definite need for publications like Taber and Fleenor's book that target an entire region that often offer greater detail not available in more general publications.

The authors were drawn to the Ottine wetlands because they occur in a semiarid region of Texas, isolated from the more extensive wetlands that occur to the east or the ephemeral wetlands known as playas that occur in west Texas. Furthermore, this Ottine region is uniquely situated at the center of two geographic transition zones (the 100th meridian and the Neotropical-Nearctic regions) that define the distributions of many plant and animal species. In spite of these qualities, there are few treatments of this biodiverse region of Texas.

The 322-page Invertebrates of Central Texas Wetlands begins with a preface followed by 13 chapters, two appendices, a glossary, bibliography and an index. Despite the title, the focus of this book is almost entirely insects; 30 pages are divided into three chapters that treat Crustaceans, Millipedes and Centipedes (Chapter 11), Spiders and Scorpions (Chapter 12) and Snails and Slugs (Chapter 13). The preface includes acknowledgments for land access and taxonomic assistance and recognizes the importance of obtaining the proper permits and permission to access private lands. This topic is rarely discussed but is important to consider and plan for.

Chapter 1 provides a very informative introduction to the Ottine Wetlands. The authors provide an overview of the historic geological and biological studies that have been conducted there. In addition, this chapter provides a detailed overview of the habitats found in the wetlands along with maps. This is one of the most useful chapters in the book, especially for those visiting or planning research in this area.

Taxonomic treatments of the invertebrates begin with Chapter 2 and continue through Chapter 13. Each chapter discusses an insect order or a group of related orders. Although scientific names are provided for all invertebrates identified, only common names are used for orders. The organization of these chapters is peculiar because they are not arranged in any logical, alphabetical, or recognizable phylogenetic order. Even within chapters there is a distracting lack of organization; family designations are never used and genera belonging to one family are sometimes interspersed with those representing different families. Species accounts within each chapter include subsections that address each species' biology, general distribution, remarks, and similar species for which it might be confused. Most of this information was very general. Many times the reader is referred to outdated taxonomic references in these sections, even when newer literature is available. The remarks subsections often include comments about the species that were gleaned during the study, and are probably the most valuable for those seeking specific information about fauna found in the Ottine wetlands.

The book includes nearly 240 color photographs of invertebrates; most are pinned museum specimens. Unfortunately, the photographs are of varying quality, which often do not provide sufficient detail for identification purposes. To be fair, some of this quality may be compromised by the printing process, but often the photographs are small and too closely focused. For example, the soldier fly larva (Diptera: Stratiomyidae) on page 184 includes only the head and first two body segments. The photograph would make it difficult for anyone to identify this very distinctive larva.

The book discusses 215 insect species, distributed among 14 orders. Seventeen noninsect arthropods species and nine snail and slug species encountered in the Ottine Wetlands also are presented. Certainly the number of species covered is more than sufficient for a field guide, if they provide a general representation of the major taxonomic groups expected to occur the study area. However, the book never states the criteria used to select taxa for inclusion, and the choice of species discussed often appears haphazard or biased. For example, the swamp rabbit flea (Euphoplopsyllus affinis), the only flea discussed in Chapter 5 titled Diptera and Fleas, was encountered when "it leaped onto one of our arms." Many important aquatic groups associated with wetlands, such as mayflies (Ephemeroptera), caddisflies (Trichoptera), and midges (Diptera: Chironomidae) are not mentioned. The duration spent in the region, the frequency of collections, and collection techniques are not presented, which makes it impossible to evaluate how well the book represents the invertebrates in the region.

The undertaking of a field guide that covers the invertebrates inhabiting a region, even a small region, is an ambitious undertaking, and would certainly require the taxonomic expertise of many taxonomic specialists. The authors discuss the difficulty keying out many of the insects presented in the book, but seldom mention whether the identification was confirmed by a recognized authority. Based on acknowledgments and comments made in the preface, I suspect many of the species were confirmed but this should have been specifically acknowledged. This acknowledgment is important because once a species record is "in print," its distribution will be adjusted whether the original identification was correct or not.

The primary value of this book is that it highlights and draws attention to a unique habitat. This is important because it may generate new interest and maintain current support for protection of this very important natural resource. Unfortunately, aside from the first chapter, the book probably has little to offer to the scientific community. But the guide may be valuable to novices as they encounter invertebrates in the area.

James H. Kennedy
Department of Biological Sciences,
University of North Texas, Denton, TX 76203,
E-mail: james.kennedy@unt.edu

Annals of Entomological Society of America
Vol. 102, No. 6, November 2009, Page 1165 - 1166