Jeffrey E. Belth
Indiana University Press
344 pages, 854 color photographs, 148 range maps
4.5 x 7.5
Paperback; $20
This is the first field guide to Indiana’s butterflies and their close relatives, the skippers. All species and subspecies recorded from the state are shown. An illustrated “Quick Key” narrows the identification process to several similar species. Photographs with arrows pointing to “field marks” then highlight the differences between those species and allow easy identification, even for people just beginning their study of butterflies. Text, range map, and abundance graph are opposite the photographs for easy reference. Eggs, larvae, and chrysalises of many species, and numerous plants important to butterflies as larval hosts or nectar sources, are also depicted. Fully illustrated chapters describing how to find butterflies, watching and photographing butterflies, and butterfly biology, behavior, and conservation, are also included.
“This unique effort is the most complete guide to butterfly watching I’ve ever seen—with visual identification keys that a true novice can follow, supplemented with accurate status updates, distribution maps and abundance and seasonal graphs. If these were all it included, it would be an admirable accomplishment—but there are another 150 pages devoted to butterfly life history, habitats, conservation, gardening, photography, and much more. This is the complete guide to the appreciation of Indiana’s butterflies.” —John A. Shuey, Director of Conservation Science, Indiana Chapter of The Nature Conservancy
“[T]his is unquestionably the finest local butterfly field guide ever produced … I would suggest this field guide to everyone who has an interest in North American butterflies. Although it treats only the fauna of Indiana, its significance extends well beyond the boundaries of that state. If I were to write my dream field guide, it would surely resemble Butterflies of Indiana.” —News of the Lepidopterists’ Society
“My excitement about our state’s butterflies jumped several notches after reading this superbly illustrated book. It is a must-have book for anyone interested in these jewels of the insect world.” —Michael A. Homoya, author of Wildflowers and Ferns of Indiana Forests: A Field Guide
Here are a few sample pages:
