Dr. McAlister has captured her affection for the Diptera in The Secret Life of Flies, a short, rich book by turns informative and humorous, both a hymn of praise to her favorite creatures and a gleeful attempt to give readers the willies. -- New York Times An enjoyable and informative read. Highly recommended for anyone interested in biology and in particular those intrigued by entomology and zoology. -- Library Journal Stories and science about nature's most complex, crucial and highly adaptive insect. The Secret Life of Flies takes readers into the hidden world of snail killers, con artists, crazy sex and a great many silly names. It dispels common misconceptions about flies and reveals how truly extraordinary, exotic and important are these misunderstood creatures. There are 10 chapters: 1. The immature ones -- Squirmy wormy larvae can be just a bit unnerving. 2. The pollinators -- Those annoying No See Ums, or midge flies, are the only pollinator of the chocolate-producing cacao tree. 3. The detritivores -- These garbage eaters are often fluffy and thus water-repellent, good for a life spent in a sewer. 4. The vegetarians -- Entomological spelunkers, many of these flies prefer plant roots. 5. The fungivores -- The mushroom eaters include the dark-winged fungus gnats. 6. The predators -- Here are the most devious and imaginative methods of luring, capturing and eating prey. 7. The parasites -- Their methods of survival are often disgusting but the evolutionary genius is admirable. 8. The sanguivores -- Exactly why do we have blood-sucking disease-spreading mosquitos? 9. The coprophages -- The champions of dung, detritus and other unpleasant things. 10. The necrophages -- The body eaters without which we would be in a most disagreeable situation. In clear language, McAlister explains Diptera taxonomy and forensic entomology, and describes the potential of flies to transform their relationship with humans from one of disease vector to partner in environmental preservation. She has a wonderful knack for storytelling, deftly transforming what could be dry descriptions of biology, reproduction and morphology into entertainment. She takes readers to piles of poo in Ethiopia by way of underground caves, latrines and backyard gardens, and opens the drawers at the Natural History Museum to rhapsodize over her favorite flies.

A chance encounter with Silver's career in South Africa set Charles van Onselen on a twenty five-year obsession: a journey to reconstruct the shadowy life and times of-in some ways to match wits with-a devious master criminal. From Russian Poland in the 1860s, where Silver was born Joseph Lis, to London in the 1880s, turn-of-the-century New York, Argentina, and Africa, van Onselen recaptures the dangerous demimonde of the Atlantic world. Silver's notoriety was found among the most confidential correspondence of a dozen countries; what those in law enforcement kept to themselves, however, was how their officers had attempted to use Silver as an informer to infiltrate syndicates built on vice, only to have him outwit them as he moved in the risky space between police and prostitutes. Such is the meticulousness of van Onselen's research that The Fox and the Flies is as rich in history as it is in the detail and drama of Silver's career, as layer after layer of his life and times are revealed. And it has an extraordinary pay-off, for van Onselen contends that Joseph Silver's darkest secret of all lay in London in the autumn of 1888 when, before he embarked on his legendary life of crime, he was, indeed, Jack the Ripper.

Fruit flies are born, begin attending to their fruit-fly agendas almost immediately, then succumb to old age before witnessing a single change of season. Likewise, we live and die in the virtual blink of an eye. Unfortunately, we often ignore our own mortality and simply coast through our days without ever checking out the bowl of fruit on the other side of the kitchen. The life we hoped for can wait for another day, we think. But another day often slips through our grasp, and we learn that we can't wait another day . . . that if we are to live consciously, we must learn to live like a fruit fly, not tomorrow but at this very moment, the one we are experiencing now. We are responsible for creating our own destiny. Our gut, our instincts--the GPS we're all born with--will never lead us astray if we trust it. Silver linings--more fruit to feast on--will always be within reach if only we're willing to explore.

Winner of the National Outdoor Book Award for Natural History and a New York Times Editors Choice Pick "After reading Super Fly, you will never take a fly for granted again. Thank you, Jonathan Balcombe, for reminding us of the infinite marvels of everyday creatures." —Sy Montgomery, Author of How to Be a Good Creature From an expert in animal consciousness, a book that will turn the fly on the wall into the elephant in the room. For most of us, the only thing we know about flies is that they're annoying, and our usual reaction is to try to kill them. In Super Fly, the myth-busting biologist Jonathan Balcombe shows the order Diptera in all of its diversity, illustrating the essential role that flies play in every ecosystem in the world as pollinators, waste-disposers, predators, and food source; and how flies continue to reshape our understanding of evolution. Along the way, he reintroduces us to familiar foes like the fruit fly and mosquito, and gives us the chance to meet their lesser-known cousins like the Petroleum Fly (the only animal in the world that breeds in crude oil) and the Chocolate Midge (the sole pollinator of the Cacao tree). No matter your outlook on our tiny buzzing neighbors, Super Fly will change the way you look at flies forever. Jonathan Balcombe is the author of four books on animal sentience, including the New York Times bestselling What A Fish Knows, which was nominated for the PEN/E.O. Wilson Award for Science Writing. He has worked for years as a researcher and educator with the Humane society to show us the consciousness of other creatures, and here he takes us to the farthest reaches of the animal kingdom.

Every science, including the study of insects, may have circumscribed limits, but its deeper principles open up new worlds of possibility. Milward uncovers these hidden principles by examining the daily lives and habits of insects. His studies lead him to fascinating speculations, taking the reader into the realms not only of literature, as suggested by the subtitle, but also of philosophy and theology. When Milward discusses what everybody knows about insects and what he has personally observed, he relates insects to human life in general. His insights help us feel a certain fellowship with the insects, or at least with some of the more familiar insects. He does not let us forget that there is an important diff erence between human beings and insects. Human beings think. It is our ability to think that makes us what we are, but it is thinking that enables us to discover our affi nity with insects. The Secret Life of Insects does not probe into the hidden lives of insects or treat them as individuals. His main interest is the light insects may throw on our human experience, and the assistance they may lend us as we seek to transcend our human experience. Milward aims at the level of common knowledge. In contrast to entomological scientists, Milward finds shadowy glimpses of hidden meaning in the insect world. Th ese intimations or shadowy glimpses reveal thoughts and possibilities that will extend the human imagination. As a consequence, this work will inspire philosophers, as well as general readers interested in refl ecting on the profundity of ordinary life.

Advance praise for Flies Stephen A. Marshall has delivered one of the most beautiful and useful accounts of insect life ever written. -- Edward O. Wilson, Research Professor Emeritus, Harvard University Meticulously researched and illustrated with more than 2000 color photographs taken by the author, Flies is a landmark reference book that will be indispensable to any naturalist, biologist or entomologist. Most photographs in this encyclopedic reference were taken in the field and show the insects in their natural environment. All of the world's fly families are included, with photographic coverage spanning the range from common deer flies and fruit flies through to deadly tsetse flies and malaria mosquitoes, with thousands of spectacular species such as exotic stalk eyed flies, giant robber flies and hedgehog flies in between. Flies is broken up into three parts: Life Histories, Habits and Habitats of Flies; Diversity; and Identifying and Studying Flies. The 20 pages of profusely illustrated keys linked to the unprecedented photographic coverage of the world's fly families and subfamilies enable the reader to identify most flies quickly and accurately, and to readily access information about each family as well as hundreds of distinctive genera and species. Flies includes: Part 1: Life Histories, Habits and Habitats of Flies Chapter 1 -- Life Histories of Flies Chapter 2 -- Flies, Plants and Fungi Chapter 3 -- Flies and Vertebrates Chapter 4 -- Flies and Invertebrates Part 2: Diversity Chapter 5 -- Origins and Distribution of the Diptera Chapter 6 -- The Lower Diptera Chapter 7 -- The Lower Brachycera and Empidoidea Chapter 8 -- The Higher Brachycera or Cyclorrhapha Part 3: Identifying and Studying Flies Chapter 9 -- Collecting, Preserving and Rearing Flies Chapter 10 -- Identifying Fly Families