Insects of the Pacific Northwest

by Peter Haggard, Judy Haggard

Insects of the Pacific Northwest descriptions of more than 450 species of common, easily visible insects and some non-insect invertebrates; beetles, butterflies and moths, dragonflies, grasshoppers, crickets, cicadas, flies, bees, wasps, ants, spiders, millipedes, snails, and slugs; more than 600 color photographs; helpful visual keys to orders and families; a clear color-coded layout; and coverage of southwestern British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, northern California, from the coast to the mountains, from wetlands to high desert. It's a handy reference for hikers, fishers, and naturalists.

Genres: Science, Nature, Field Guides, Nonfiction, Reference, Biology, Wildlife

Paperback

First published March 1, 2006

Reviews

[Stella]

ISBN-13: 978-0-88192-689-7; 296 pages.
I haven’t actually “finished” this book. It is a field guide to a variety of insects occurring in the Pacific Northwest. I have flipped through all the pictures, read the major topics and categories, and generally got the feel for how to use the book. I recognized a few, but got overwhelmed by the sheer number of insects around us. Some are very similar looking, others are quite unique. I hope to get better at insect identification over time.

[Brian Lehman]

Though not quite as good as the Birds of the Pacific Northwest field guide, it is solid, and the authors love bugs and some personal notes on certain species really hits the mark. I just wish there was more notes and behavioral details like in the Timber Press Birds guide. But, I think it is not realistic to ask for that with the shear volume of insects compared to birds. They are grouping by Order and Genus in this guide while the bird guide can talk about family groups and species in-depth.

[Aldene]

Wonderful Resource filled with Good Information and beautiful color Photographs. I don't think I have ever cracked up laughing when reading descriptions of bugs before. This book you can tell was a labor of love for the natural world around us. I was charmed by the funny details added about The Insects and bugs each seemed to have a special personality. This added to the difficulty to photograph or study these bugs and insects in the wild.

[Jenn]

I suspect this might be more aptly named, "Insects of Northern California." It's true that the authors even say that it's only meant as an introductory guide, and thus a small sampling of the insect life to be found, but it seems like it leaves just a bit too much out--like whole families. I was particularly disappointed not to see any aquatics. Supposedly, part of their selection criteria was only including insects that people had shown an interest in--I'd be really surprised to learn that nobody had ever shown an interest in caddisfly larvae, or water skaters. Likewise, "it doesn't photograph well" seems like a poor reason to leave out the mosquito. In Oregon and Washington, the running joke is that they are the state bird--but other than their biting pestiness, most people don't know much about mosquitoes and their position in the ecosystem. This book would have been a perfect vehicle to entertain and inform the public on that. I was also disappointed that the photos of most the insects included didn't show the complete life cycles. Instead, one might show the larva, another only the adult, and some, only the eggs.