This unique book is the first of its kind to explore the diversity of interactions between insects and birds. A group of international experts enthusiastically agreed to contribute to the four sections of the book following the success of an Entomological Club Conference on Insect and Bird Interactions. The first section covers population management issues, discussing effects on birds highly relevant to the planting of large areas of GM crops, new opportunities for increasing biodiversity in farming landscapes, and the novel aspect of managing insects by exploiting birds as biological control agents. This is followed by a section discussing the effects of insecticides on bird populations, and includes a contribution from the RSPB, as well as a re-appraisal of the effects of DDT on raptors. Next, the foraging behaviour of birds on insects is discussed, with chapters also on ‘warning’ coloration in insects and learning by birds. The first chapter in this section is unusual in having been written by an ophthalmologist and covers colour vision in birds, more specifically ultraviolet vision in relation to insect coloration. Finally, the authors look at insects that are parasites of birds or feed on the detritus in nests, and review the ecology and evolution of the co-adaptation of insect ectoparasites with birds. Insect and Bird Interactions is unparalleled in scope and coverage and will be of interest to entomologists, ornithologists, and ecologists alike.

In this modern era of mathematical modeling, applications have become increasingly complicated. As the complexity grows, it becomes more and more difficult to draw meaningful conclusions about the behavior of theoretical models and their relations to reality. Alongside methods that emphasize quantitative properties and the testing of scientific details, there is a need for approaches that are more qualitative. These techniques attempt to cover whole families of models in one bold stroke, in a manner that allows robust conclusions to be drawn about them. Loop analysis and time averaging provide a means of interpreting the properties of systems from the network of interactions within the system. The authors' methodology concentrates on graphical representation to guide experimental design, to identify sources of external variability from the statistical pattern of variables, and to make management decisions. Although most of the examples are drawn from ecology, the methods are relevant to all of the pure and applied sciences. This relevance is enhanced by case studies from such diverse areas as physiology, resource management, the behavioral sciences, and social epidemiology. The book will be useful to a broad readership from the biological and social sciences as well as the physical sciences and technology. It will interest undergraduate and graduate students along with researchers active in these disciplines. Here the reader will find a strong rationale for maintaining a holistic approach, revealing what insights and advantages are retained by the broader perspective and, more explicitly, by the synergistic effects that cannot be discerned by reducing systems to their smallest parts.