African Wildlife & Environment Issue 79

GOOD READS

Mushrooms Gryzenhout, Marieka (2021). Pocket Guide Mushrooms of South Africa . Struik Nature, an imprint of Penguin Random House South Africa (Pty) Ltd, Cape Town. Soft cover, 10x18 cm, 160 pp, illustrated in colour throughout with photographs and maps. ISBN 978-1-77584 -749-6. R200. Mushrooms appear in an astonishing variety of shapes, sizes and colours,

Insects Scholtz, Clarke, Jenny Scholtz and Hennie de Klerk (2021). Pollinators, Predators & Parasites: The Ecological Roles of Insects in Southern Africa. Struik Nature, an imprint of Penguin Random House South Africa (Pty) Ltd, Cape Town. Hard cover, 22x29 cm, 448 pp, illustrated in colour throughout with photographs, diagrams and maps. ISBN 978-1-77584 -555-3. R590. I spent 18 years of my life as a medical entomologist, and I was the editor of the revised edition of Skaife's African Insect Life , published in 1979. Illustrated with Anthony Bannister's superb colour photographs of insects (all on film in Hasselblad and Nikon cameras), this book was the benchmark for naturalists, students and researchers for many years. A number of field guides to insects and specialised groups such as butterflies, dragonflies and damselflies were published over the years, the latter books by Warwick and Michèle Tarboton employing astonishing technology in the preparation of illustrations from digital images of the actual insects.

and their diversity is amazing, with an estimated minimum number of 171,500 species in South Africa alone! This handy little pocket guide makes an ideal companion for your hikes and nature walks, as it will help you to identify a selection of the most commonly found species in the field. Each of the species described is assigned a full page with colour photographs, an informative account with the distinguishing characters highlighted, and a quick reference at the top of each page about edibility (or not). Many of our mushrooms are poisonous and the book carries a clear warning about the need for great care and circumspection before attempting to eat any specimens collected from the field. But for those who take the trouble to learn more, and go into the field with experienced collectors, some of the edible species are extremely tasty. I have wonderful childhood memories of delicious breakfasts with fresh Field Mushrooms Agaricus campestris collected by my parents on the farm after summer rains. The majority of mushrooms in this little pocket guide are not edible, but the challenge of identifying them will make your outdoor experiences that more fulfilling. If you would like to learn more about this fascinating group of organisms, it is highly recommended that you visit the following blog site where you find lots of information and references: www.themycologyblog.com. Humorously subtitled 'The site where you can learn fungus', the blog shares information with experts, including the author of this pocket guide, Marieke Gryzenhout.

Colophon beetle (Photograph: Hennie de Klerk)

9 | African Wildlife & Environment | Issue 79 (2021)