The Butterfly Book: A Popular Guide to a Knowledge of the Butterflies of North AmericaHolland, W. J. (William Jacob)
Science
The Butterfly Book: A Popular Guide to a Knowledge of the Butterflies of North America
Holland, W. J. (William Jacob)
Butterflies -- North America
In 1860 the Smithsonian Institution published a "Catalogue of the
Described Lepidoptera of North America," a compilation prepared by the
Rev. John G. Morris. This work, though very far from complete, contains
in a compact form much valuable information, largely extracted from the
writings of previous authors. It is not illustrated.
With the book prepared by Dr. Morris the first period in the development
of a literature relating to our subject may be said to close, and the
reader will observe that until the end of the sixth decade of this
century very little had been attempted in the way of systematically
naming, describing, and illustrating the riches of the insect fauna of
this continent. Almost all the work, with the exception of that done by
Harris, Leconte, and Morris, had been done by European authors.
_Later Writers._--At the close of the Civil War this country witnessed a
great intellectual awakening, and every department of science began to
find its zealous students. In the annals of entomology the year 1868 is
memorable because of the issue of the first part of the great work by
William H. Edwards, entitled "The Butterflies of North America." This
work has been within the last year (1897) brought to completion with the
publication of the third volume, and stands as a superb monument to the
scientific attainments and the inextinguishable industry of its learned
author. The three volumes are most superbly illustrated, and contain a
wealth of original drawings, representing all the stages in the
life-history of numerous species, which has never been surpassed.
Unfortunately, while including a large number of the species known to
inhabit North America, the book is nevertheless not what its title
would seem to imply, and is far from complete, several hundreds of
species not being represented in any way, either in the text or in the
illustrations. In spite of this fact it will remain to the American
student a classic, holding a place in the domain of entomology analogous
to that which is held in the science of ornithology by the "Birds of
America," by Audubon.
A work even more elaborate in its design and execution, contained in
three volumes, is "The Butterflies of New England," by Dr. Samuel
Hubbard Scudder, published in the year 1886. No more superbly
illustrated and exhaustive monograph on any scientific subject has ever
been published than this, and it must remain a lasting memorial of the
colossal industry and vast learning of the author, one of the most
eminent scientific men whom America has produced.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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