When it comes to insects, no field guide is sufficiently comprehensive to cover all the possible species to be found in even a small geographic area. But sometimes, covering all the possibilities isn’t necessary; sometimes – particularly with beginning naturalists or the simply curious – even covering only a few is fine. Indeed, if they are chosen carefully by someone who understands them and their respective likelihood of being noticed, sometimes covering only few is perfect.
Dr. Robert Cannings, Curator Emeritus of Entomology at the Royal British Columbia Museum (RBCM) in Victoria, British Columbia is unquestionably someone who understands insects. And in his just published A Field Guide to Insects of the Pacific Northwest from Harbour Publishing, he has profiled just over sixty different species from nineteen Orders in the form of a handy, fold-out, waterproof, guide that’s just right for nature guides, teachers, or the simply curious to take along out in the field for easy use as a reference or visual aid whenever needed.
