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George McGavin

The Good Bug

A Celebration of Insects (and What We Can Do to Protect Them)

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Details

Imprint: O'Mara Books

Publication date: 20/06/2024

ISBN: 9781789296693

Subject: Non-Fiction

Category: Environment & Green Issues

Binding: Hardback

Size: 178 x 129 mm

Extent: 192 pages

Illustration: b&w line drawings

Territorial Rights: World (All Languages)

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Summary:

Following on from the success of The Good Bee, this beautifully illustrated celebration of insects by leading entomologist George McGavin highlights the pivotal role they play in our ecosystems, and what we can do to help them survive and thrive.

Insects are fascinating and ingenious. They also play an incredibly important role in maintaining life on planet Earth, and are particularly pivotal to our own survival. And yet they are under threat because of us. Since they appeared on land 420 million years ago, these small six-legged animals have been pioneers and ultimate survivors. Around 87 per cent of all plant species need animal pollination and most of this is delivered by insects – they also maintain healthy soil, assist in decomposition and are essential to the food web.

This book is a celebration, and also a call to arms. One of the UK’s foremost entomologists and respected academics, George McGavin, explains all the amazing things that insects do, what we’re doing as humans to threaten their habitats and most importantly what we can do now to protect them.

Reviews:

A fascinating peek into the incredible secret lives of insects, based on a lifetime of observation.

Dave Goulson, Professor of Biology at the University of Sussex, author of the Sunday Times bestseller A Sting in the Tale, Bumblebees: Their Behaviour and Ecology and Silent Earth: Averting the Insect Apocalypse

The Good Bug is an approachable and thoroughly enjoyable guide to the world of insects. McGavin wears his expertise lightly and is as passionate an advocate for the many qualities of these much maligned creatures as you could hope for. Perfect for insect lovers and haters alike.

Lev Parikian, author of Into the Tangled Bank (longlisted for the Wainwright Prize) and Taking Flight: The evolutionary story of the wing

This is the perfect bug book: an irresistible cocktail of insect delights on their evolution, ecology, diversity, and the critical role they play in our planet. Why do they look so splendid? How do their bizarre behaviours make them so successful? McGavin's pithy one-stop guide to insects will keep you up at night, because you simply can't put it down! If you read one insect book this year, make it The Good Bug. McGavin's lively storytelling brings the technicolour splendour of insects to life. Rooted in robust science, his entertaining style makes for an unstoppable read. Captive to his magical, entertaining prose, McGavin's book will convert the most begrudging bug skeptic into a bug fanatic with his whirlwind tour through the life's most diverse and important group of animals.

Seirian Sumner, Professor of Behavioural Ecology at University College London and author of Endless Forms: Why You Should Love Wasps

Sales points:

  • Accompanied by beautiful and informative black and white line illustrations, this is the perfect gift for all nature lovers

  • There was a lot of publishing a few years ago around bees when scientists revealed how seriously their environments were being threatened – this attention is now being turned to insects more widely and the pivotal role they place in our own survival

  • George McGavin is an expert in this field and passionate about insects in all their forms – an experienced writer and an advocate for insect conservation

  • The insect conservation charity, Bug Life, are keen to be associated with this book and will help with promotion around publication

  • From the publishers of The Good Bee (Over 21,500 copies sold in the English language).

About the Author:

George McGavin

Dr George McGavin is one of the UK’s foremost entomologists and leading authorities on the natural world, and a respected academic, author, television and radio presenter, explorer and speaker on all things bug related.

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