Show-Me Bugs! <small> by Michael Reinke </small>

As I write this there are approximately 900,000 species of insects/bugs/spiders/etc. that have been identified in our world. Many specialists and folks in the know estimate that this is only scratching the surface and that there quite well could be 10 million species when all is said and done.

I note these figures so that this little book can be placed in perspective. Here in a few pages, 50 different species of the above named critters are named and identified. Now if you live in Missouri, or have spent any times in any part of the state, you will no beyond a doubt that we have many more `bugs' in our state than that. I sometimes feel (literally) when I am working a river bottom on a hot summer evening that all 10 million species have decided to visit me all at once. Fifty is not many, but for the purposes of this book, is plenty.

Be that as it may, this is another wonderful work produced and published my Missouri Conservation Department. As I have said before, I certainly have had many issues with this department in the past, and indeed, more so at present than ever before, but I cannot fault their many fine publications. They do a class act in this area from start to finish.

This little book is an absolute gem. It is geared more for the younger set but I can assure you that any person, at any age who has the slightest interest in natural history will find this work to be an absolute delight.

Steve Buchanan, the illustrator of this and other works, is simply one of the best in the business. His paintings of these fifty animals are some of the most realistic I have ever seen and are a joy to the eyes. The drawings/paintings are of the type that are difficult to distinguish from actual photographs and in many ways, are superior to most photographs I have reviewed as to allowing the reader to identify a particular species.

This little book addresses insects, bugs, spiders and their like. Probably the only objection I have with the book is its titles which include the word "Bugs," which is technically quite misleading. That is a miner beef on my part and of little moment.

Each of the fifty insects or bugs included in this work are given two pages; one for the wonderful illustration, the other which includes the species (including scientific name), the habitat and food, and the life cycle. The book is filled with very interesting little facts.

As I said, this work is geared toward the younger crowd and should not be considered a comprehensive field guide by any means. It should though be considered a good starter kit to stimulate the interest of the child, and adult too, for that matter.

I not that this work is in several of the class rooms where I act

as substitute teacher (third and fourth grades) and I note that during free time and reading time that this work, along with Show-Me Herps are in constant use and extremely popular.

This work belongs in your child's nature library, and unless I am completely wrong, I suspect that you, the parent or grandparent, will be fighting the little one over reading time with it.

Don Blankenship
The Ozarks

Show-Me Bugs!