Southern Africa has a particularly rich and varied insect fauna, consisting of 26 orders, 579 families and about 80,000 species (currently recorded). This wealth of information on the systematics and biology of southern African insect groups has not been comprehensively treated before and is here condensed by 48 contributors, each of whom is an authority on a particular group. A work of this nature requires a balance between scientific accuracy and utility so that the information will be easily accessible and comprehensible to professional and amateur entomologists alike. In this work, the scientist will find enough general information to lead him or her to more detailed works while the amateur entomologist will find sufficient explanation in the text, beautiful color illustrations and glossary.REVIEWS Southern Africa has a particularly rich and varied insect fauna, consisting of 26 orders, 579 families and about 80,000 species (currently recorded). This wealth of information on the systematics and biology of southern African insect groups has not been comprehensively treated before and is here condensed by 48 contributors, each of whom is an authority on a particular group. A work of this nature requires a balance between scientific accuracy and utility so that the information will be easily accessible and comprehensible to professional and amateur entomologists alike. In this work, the scientist will find enough general information to lead him or her to more detailed works while the amateur entomologist will find sufficient explanation in the text, color plates, and a glossary. IAN'S RECOMMENDATION: For those with a technical interest in the insects of the region.Ian Paulsen, BirdBooker Report, Guardian newspaper, 2012/04