Author Description

This book is an illustrated identification guide to the 870 butterfly species recorded in Kenya. All the adult butterflies are illustrated on 64 color plates which show 1,500 museum specimens especially photographed for this volume. The plates are supplemented by black-and-white drawings of earlier stages for some of the species. The text includes 11 introductory chapters on butterfly biology, ecology, and behavior in the Kenyan environment, followed by detailed accounts of the species. These describe appearance, field characteristics, Kenyan and African distribution, subspecies, habits, larval food plants, and additional information. No other book on the East African butterfly fauna approaches the depth of coverage given here. The author combines attractive visual information with scientific natural history to provide a reference work that will be welcomed by butterfly enthusiasts, entomologists, ecologists, and naturalists all over the world.