An Insect a Day: Bees, Bugs, And Pollinators For Every Day Of The Year

by Dominic Couzens, Gail Ashton

Richly illustrated stories of fascinating insects from across the globe in 366 daily entries. 

In this beautifully produced collection, nature experts Gail Ashton and Dominic Couzens tell the stories of hundreds of insects with information about behaviour, migration and protection mechanisms, as well as their involvement in folklore, history, literature and more. Learn the scientific name for each bug and why they are important while reading what both poets and scientists have recorded about them over the years. 

Discover the story of the gnat, whose wings beat at 1000 times a second, the glowworm, who has captured the power of light, and the sacred scarab beetle, worshipped in Egypt thousands of years ago.

Illustrated with stunning photographs and works of art, showcasing the colours, textures and strange and unique features of these fascinating creatures, this collection is a celebration of insects and their special place in our ecosystems and culture.

Genres: Nonfiction

368 pages, Hardcover

First published November 5, 2024

About the author

Dominic Couzens is an expert bird guide and author. He has published numerous books and articles on natural history, including for BBC Wildlife and Bird Watching, specialising in birds and mammals. His books include Extreme Birds, Atlas of Rare Birds, The Secret Lives of Garden Birds, and Top 100 Birding Sites of the World.

He travels widely for writing and speaking, and his website is www.birdwords.co.uk.

Reviews

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

The majority of people, do not think about insects most of the time, or if at all. However, there are two moments when you become very aware of these six-legged creatures that we share the planet with. The first is that moment that you are just dozing off to sleep. and you can hear the tiny whine of a mosquito in the bedroom. The second is when you unfurl a picnic blanket and unpack food on a fine summers day and from nowhere the wasps arrive.

These are just two of the one million known insect species. And one million is around 10% of the total number of species that is thought to number around 10 million in total. And we are utterly dependent on them. They clear up the dead, pollinate countless plants, a lot of which we eat and are key to the immense amount of life on the planet.

I am not sure how you even begin to distil the one million known species down to the 366 different type that the authors have chosen for this book, but somehow they have managed to do it. There are insects in the book that are big, bold and beautiful. There are the weird and the wonderful, the mundane and common and a fair number that are a bit disgusting! They have chosen species that have very specific role and that fill a particular niche

The pictures of the selected insects in the book are amazing. My favourites are the butterflies and moths, but I do have a liking for the bigger beetles, such as the stag beetle, rhino beetle and the iridescent beetles. And who doesn’t love a bee, the range and colours of these insects is staggering.

I found this book endlessly fascinating. Couzens and Ashton have compiled and interesting set of facts, figures and information for each of the chosen insects as well as how they fit into the wider context of ecosystems. If you like insects then this book would be right up your street, and even if you’re not a fan then I would still recommend this book as I am sure you would learn an awful lot.

[Mark Clarke · Rating 5 out of 5]

As an iNaturalist addict, I loved getting a glimpse at so many insects with adaptations you couldn't dream of.