The Concise Atlas of Butterflies of the World (Relié)

The Collections of the British Museum (Natural History) are, by universal agreement, the most important and comprehensive butterfly collections in the world. The world renowned series Butterflies of the World is, in effect, the author's synoptic compression of those collections into the 20 volumes that have been published to date. In order to facilitate the publication of these (and other works), the author and his wife established Hill House Publishers in 1982.
These famous volumes, whilst being indispensable reference works for lepidopterists, are both too large to transport and expensive to replace. Consequently, the author has undertaken to compress the 20 volumes into a single portable and inexpensive volume, for use as a first reference guide in the field. While not as comprehensive as the larger volumes, the Atlas is in effect, a necessary primer for those who would like to have at their Bager-tips, a reliable guide for the identification of butterflies, at least to generic level.
The book is arranged to follow the systematics of the larger volumes, and in doing so the author has made corrections and additions to them wherever possible. In this work are published several new genera, new species and a long awaited review of the Neotropical genus "Merle" (Lycaenidae). In order to effect a satisfactory compression of as much information as possible into the book's portable dimensions, the author has reduced the colour figures to less than natural size, as well as combined halves of specimens where appropriate.
The accompanying text, while not running synchronously with the plates, is brief and telegraphic in style. Needless to say, this portable volume is extensively referenced to the larger volumes, which are in tom referenced to the main collections in the B.M.(N.H.). It must be emphasised that this volume does not replace the larger volumes, but is a most necessary supplement to them. The author hw had a fascination for butterflies and moths since he was three years old.
Such an early interest in these beautiful insects led him as a child, to begin to ponder deeply, the mysteries of other living things, as well as of the Created Universe. His school years were spent under the patient guidance of the Jesuits, who inculcated in him the Socratic method, and later the Benedictines, who introduced him inter alto to the philosophy of the Scholastics. In 1965 he graduated from university in Australia, with majors in the History and Philosophy of Science (Scientific Thought), and History.
Later, he took a Diploma in Education, and for some years practised as a teacher. While all this was going on, he married his wife Lucille, raised a family, and travelled to many countries, where the passion for lepidoptera was practised and developed. In 1969 he began his studies of the peerless lepidoptera collections in the B.M.(N.H.) in London, and has continued his work in the collections of that institution to the present day.