Watching and 'ticking' butterflies is a rewarding hobby and one that is gaining popularity in South Africa. This handy pocket guide details more than 250 of the region's 670 species, from the tiniest blues and coppers to enormous swallowtails and emperors. The most commonly encountered butterflies are included, but there are also a few elusive

'specials', for those who enjoy a challenge. The book offers

• Concise text describing the habits, favoured habitat and early life stages of each butterfly (egg, larva and pupa)

• Details of seasonal and other variations

• Similar-looking species and status information

• Full-colour photographs and distribution maps

• Colour-coded calendar bars, showing at a glance when a particular butterfly is most abundant.

This handy little guide should prove invaluable to beginners and more experienced butterfly enthusiasts alike.

Steve Woodhall is a butterfly enthusiast and photographer who began watching and collecting butterflies at an early age. He is President of the Lepidopterists' Society of Africa, has contributed to several books, among them Living Butterflies of Southern Africa (Umdaus Press), and is author of Field Guide to Butterflies of South Africa and the highly popular What's that Butterfly? (both Struik Nature). When not chasing butterflies, Steve works as a technical manager in the plastics industry.