Spider-hunting wasps (Hymenoptera: Pompilidae) of Poland by Bogdan Wisniowski, published towards the end of 2009, is the first full-colour book about Pompilidae produced anywhere in the world.

Poland has a rich invertebrate fauna and hosts 89 of the 284 spider-hunting wasps found in Europe, around twice the figure for mainland Britain. This includes all but one of the active British list, Aporus unicolor.

Consequently the book, sumptuously produced with 432 pages and providing detailed keys to subfamilies, genera and individual species, is of considerable value to British hymenopterists, not least because it is written in English. The pages dealing with Arachnospila species females are shown above to give an indication of the rigorous methods applied.

The author, Bogdan Wisniowski, is employed in a senior position at Ojcow National Park north-west of Krakow. Aculeates, principally wasps and especially Pompilidae, are his speciality and he was kind enough to show me most of the best sites for wasps in south-eastern Poland on a visit in 2009. His knowledge, experience and enthusiasm shone through.

To confirm the value of the book, there are nearly 30 Scanning Electron Micrograph (SEM) images of particular physical features – Pompilidae can be notoriously difficult to identify – and more than 100 photos of species in the field or, the majority, of specimens in the laboratory showing such aspects as wing venation and antennae, as above. Most of the portraits are my images, including three taken in Poland in 2009.
There are chapters on morphology, biology and specimen collection, and appendices covering locations of capture in Poland and summaries of biotope preferences, flowers visited and spiders used as hosts.

The bulk of the book, though, consists of detailed analysis of each of the 89 individual species. As the images here of tbe entry about Arachnospila spissa reveal, there is not only a physical description but also notes of distribution in Poland and elsewhere, biotopes used, flowers visited, nesting methods and hosts. Each species also has a distribution map within Poland and, an invaluable resource, a phenology diagram based on comprehensive analysis by the author.

The quality of the work, which was printed in a limited edition of 350, is clear. Given the relevance of Spider-hunting wasps of Poland to professionals and enthusiastic amateurs alike across Europe, there is no doubt that the book will be in demand.

Happily, for anyone wishing to make a purchase, I am able to offer copies on behalf of the author at £28 plus £5 post and packing within mainland Britain. Please e-mail me at Spider-hunting wasps of Poland with your details and any queries. Cheques or postal orders should be made payable to Jeremy Early and sent to me at 30 Park Lane East, Reigate, Surrey RH2 8HN.

Images © Bogdan Wisniowski and Jeremy Early. All rights reserved.