Barry Bolton
Encyclopedia
Myrmecology
Myrmecology is the scientific study of ants, a branch of entomology. Some early myrmecologists considered ant society as the ideal form of society and sought to find solutions to human problems by studying them. Ants continue to be a model of choice for the study of questions on the evolution of...
, the world's leading expert on the classification, systematics and taxonomy of ant
Ant
Ants are social insects of the family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from wasp-like ancestors in the mid-Cretaceous period between 110 and 130 million years ago and diversified after the rise of flowering plants. More than...
s, who long worked at The Natural History Museum (London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
). He is known especially for monographs on African and Asian ants and for three encyclopaedic global works including the Identification Guide to ant genera (1994), a full catalogue of ant taxa (1995, updated in 2007) and a synopsis and classification (2003). Now retired, Bolton is a Fellow of the Royal Entomological Society
Royal Entomological Society of London
The Royal Entomological Society of London is devoted to insect study. It has a major national and international role in disseminating information about insects and improving communication between entomologists....
and Myrmecologist, Biodiversity Division, Department of Entomology, The Natural History Museum, London.
Literature
- Bolton, B. (1994) Identification Guide to the Ant Genera of the World, Harvard University PressHarvard University PressHarvard University Press is a publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University, and focused on academic publishing. In 2005, it published 220 new titles. It is a member of the Association of American University Presses. Its current director is William P...
.
- Bolton, B., Gary Alpert, Philip S. Ward and Piotr Naskrecki (2007). Bolton's Catalogue of Ants of the World 1758-2005, Harvard University PressHarvard University PressHarvard University Press is a publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University, and focused on academic publishing. In 2005, it published 220 new titles. It is a member of the Association of American University Presses. Its current director is William P...
.
- Bolton, B. (2003). Synopsis and Classification of Formicidae. Memoirs of the American Entomological Institute, vol 71., pp.1-370. Bolton's Synopsis and Classification of Ants of the World
- Bolton's publications. List of publications and pdfs at antbase.org.