Scientific writing is not just writing about science; it is the technical

writing that scientists do to communicate their research to others.

Entomological literature
Literature, most generically, is anybody of written works.

Literature term derives from Latin word litaritura/litteratura “writing formed with letters,”

Literature is a term used to describe written and sometimes spoken material. Derived from the Latin
word literature meaning "writing formed with letters," literature most commonly refers to works of
the creative imagination, including poetry, drama, fiction, nonfiction, and in some instances,
journalism, and song.

Choose a topic, develop your inquiry

 Consider what you already know, what parts you find interesting and what areas you
want to explore further.

Search the literature

Find out what other people have discovered and how they did it.

 Make a list of search terms that describe your topic

 Use databases and search tools that fit your topic.
 Ask a Librarian if you need help.

Refine your Search

Narrow down your choices.

 Add and subtract terms from your searches as you learn which words best "match" the
literature and your topic.
 Start with the general and work your way toward the specific (example: cooking ->
baking -> pastries).

Search better
Computers cannot understand language so it's important to give them simple and
logical instructions. There are four basic techniques you can use to improve your search
skills: keyword searching, Boolean expressions, phrase searching, and truncation.
All of these techniques can be combined together to create precise or broad searches.

 Keywords
 AND / OR / NOT
 Phrase Searching
 Truncation
Keywords
Most of us are familiar with keyword searches: you enter in words and you get back
results which contain those words. It's important to choose your keywords carefully
otherwise you will get no results or the wrong results. Use these basic tips to improve
your keywords:

 Choose the most basic form of a word to use in a search (i.e. use "pizza" instead of
"pizzeria")
 Avoid contractions, uppercase letters, and punctuation.
 Do not search in sentences or sentence fragments (unless it's a phrase).

Boolean
The term "Boolean," often encountered when doing searches on the Web
(and sometimes spelled "boolean"), refers to a system of logical thought
developed by the English mathematician and computer pioneer, George
Boole (1815-64). In Boolean searching, an "and" operator between two words
or other values (for example, "pear AND apple") means one is searching for
documents containing both of the words or values, not just one of them. An
"or" operator between two words or other values (for example, "pear OR
apple") means one is searching for documents containing either of the words.
denoting a system of algebraic notation used to represent one of two possible values, 0 (false)
or 1 (true).

AND (find all)

When you combine keywords with AND you will only get results which contain all of the
keywords joined by AND.
Use AND when you need to narrow a search to contain ALL keywords.
Example search: Whitefly AND Pink bollworm
Search results will only contain items which contain the words " Whitefly" and "dog Pink
bollworm "; search results will exclude items only on Whitefly or only on Pink bollworm.

OR (find either)
When you combine terms with OR you will get results which contain any of the terms
joined by OR.
Use when you want to broaden a search to search for related terms or variant spellings
(example: "climate OR climatic OR climates")

Use OR between words that mean the same thing.

E.g. adolescent OR teenager

This search will find results with either (or both) of the search words.
NOT (ignore)
NOT is used to specify keywords to ignore. Some search engines and databases don't
support NOT (Google uses "-" instead for example). NOT can be useful when you are
searching for a word with multiple meanings or need to exclude certain topics from a
search.

Use NOT to exclude words that you don’t want in your search results.

E.g. (adolescent OR teenager) NOT “young adult”

Example search: Whitefly NOT Management

Search results should contain non- management.

Phrase searching
A phrase is a group of words that stands together as a single grammatical unit,
typically as part of a clause or a sentence. To search for a phrase or multi-word
concept place the words or phrase in quotation marks. The quotation marks tell the
search to find all of these words together in this order.
E.g. “physical activity” will find results with the words physical activity together as a phrase.
Example searches:
"To be or not to be" AND shakespeare
"new york city"
"unmanned aerial vehicle"
“The sports car”

Truncation
shortening something by removing part of it. Truncation is a way to place "wildcard"
characters in your searches. This is useful when trying to include word variations in your
searches. You need to be careful where you truncate a word - if you truncate too early
you may end up with unexpected results that contain unrelated words with the same
spellings. The asterisk (*) is the symbol most indexes use for truncation.
Example good truncation search: bacteri*
This search will return results for bacteria and bacterium. This is a good use of
truncation.
 
Example bad truncation search: creat*
This search will return results for: creature, creation, create, creating, creator, etc. This
is not a good use of truncation.
New species and name changes are published in many various publications.  There are a number of
catalogues and other reference works that organize this information.  Zoological Record (ZR) is the
primary one.  
The Zoological Record (ZR) is an electronic index of zoological literature that also serves as the
unofficial register of scientific names in zoology.
It was started as a print publication in 1864 by the Zoological Society of London, as The Record of
Zoological Literature, and changed its name to the Zoological Record in 1870. From 1980 to 2004,
the ZR was published by BIOSIS,( bibliographic database service, with abstracts and citation
indexing) from 2004 to 2016 it was published by Thomson Reuters, and from 2016 to the present it
has been published by Clarivate Analytics (Clarivate Analytics is a company that owns and
operates a collection of subscription-based services focused largely on analytics, including scientific
and academic research, patent analytics, regulatory standards, trademark protection,
pharmaceutical and biotechnology intelligence, domain brand protection and intellectual
property management). The print version ceased in 2016, but the publication continues as an
electronic index.[1]
To search for this type of information in ZR place your term in the search box [enter phrases with
quotation marks] in the 'Subject Descriptor' field [see drop down menu right of search box).  The
records have Descriptor Data, Taxa Notes, Super Taxa, and Systematics fields as well as citation
data for the source publication.

Although Zoological Record (ZR) is a major resource for this type of information (our database now
goes back to volume 1 so you won't need to search using the print version), there are other
specialized lists, many that are listed in Diane's book. In some cases authorities create Web sites for
the insects they study.  As you can imagine, these sites may or may not be easy to locate. 

Zoological Record is the world's oldest continuing database of animal biology. Content
consists of:

 Approximately 5000 journals from over 100 countries

 Books, reviews, conferences, and other non-serial publications

Major fields of study include:

 Behavior
 Biodiversity  Morphology
 Conservation  New techniques
 Distribution  Paleontology
 Ecology and the environment  Parasitology
 Evolution  Taxonomy
 Genetics  Veterinary sciences (wildlife)
 Marine and Freshwater  Zoogeography
Biology

A number of Web resources, like the following, are aspiring to create detailed species information for
large groups of species, and some even are attempting to name, describe, and classify all life on
earth.  With these initiatives the challenge of locating taxonomic information promises to get less
daunting.

Butterflies and Moths of North America

Common Names of Insects and Related Organisms.  (1997) 595.70012 C737 1997 Funk Library 
(Also see, Accepted Changes and Corrections to ESA's Common Names of Insects and Related
Organisms 1997).
Discover Life from the Polistes Foundation
Encyclopedia of Life: Insects
Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)
Global Taxonomy Initiative (GTI)
Handbook of Cryo-Preparation Methods for Electron Microscopy. 2009. Methods in
Visualization Series.   502.825 H191 Funk Library
Index to Organism Names (ION): .. contains all the animal, plant, and virus names data found
within the Thomson Reuters BIOSIS literature databases — Zoological Record™, BIOSIS
Previews® and Biological Abstracts®.
iSpecies   Test of E O Wilson's idea of a web page for each species.
ITIS. Integrated Taxonomic Information System. 
International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature (ICZN). 
Melville, R.V., and Smith J.D.D.  Official Lists and Indexes of Names and Works in Zoology.
(1987) Q.016.591014 OF2 Oak Street Library (must be requested).
Nearctica's Checklists, Catalogs, and Authority Files. Annotated list of web catalogs and
checklists; some resources with worldwide coverage.
Pankhurst, R.J.  Practical Taxonomic Computing. (1991) 574.012 P194P Funk Library
The PhyloCode   … a formal set of rules governing phylogenetic nomenclature,  designed to name
the parts of the tree of life by explicit reference to phylogeny.
The Systematic Entomology Laboratory.  Database access; insect identification request forms,
electronic reprints from SEL scientists.
Taxon Lift to Taxa  from University of California Museum of Paleontology
Taxonomy Browser  from Consortium for the Barcode of Life (CBOL)
Tree of Life
TreeBASE  ... a relational database of phylogenetic information hosted by the University at Buffalo
(formerly hosted by Harvard University Herbaria, Leiden University EEW, and the University of
California, Davis).  Includes all types of phylogenetic data (e.g., trees of species, trees of
populations, trees of genes) representing all biotic taxa.
Winston, J.E. Describing Species: Practical Taxonomic Procedure for Biologists. (1999) 570.12
W733D Funk Library
Web Resources in Entomology and Wildlife
Ecology
 Iowa State Entomology Index of Internet Resources

A complete, annotated guide to insects and insect-related information on the internet. [Internet
Archive]

 Illinois Natural History Survey

Produced by a nationally known state agency, this site includes links to Entomology information
under the “Research” link, including several “Insect-related databases” that are of international
importance, such as the Ecological Database of the World’s Insect Pathogens and the Soybean
Insects Bibliographic Database.

to investigate the diversity, life histories, and ecology of the plants and animals of the state;

 Entomological Society of America (ESA)

Basic information about this important organization, including annual meetings, educational
information, job opportunities, and a list of their publications and online journals. Each year
approximately 3,500 entomologists and other scientists gather to exchange scientific
information. More than 7000 members.

 Sampling Methods for Forest and Shade Tree Insects of North America Vols. I and II

An online database of 131 papers on sampling of 59 species of forest and shade tree insect
pests. From researchers Jeffrey Fidgen, Quintin McClellan, Christopher Fettig and Scott Salom of
Virginia Tech University.

 West Nile Virus Information

Links to Web sites, appropriate home pages (such as the CDC, which has its own page, West
Nile Virus), textual and graphical information about this important disease carried by mosquitos
that affects horses, birds and humans. Includes several fact sheets.

 Cornell University Insect Collection

A virtual tour of a large collection of preserved insects at Cornell, arranged by types, with a
searchable index. The availability of the site varies as it is frequently taken offline for revision.

 Butterflies and Moths of North America

Extensive list of species accounts and distribution records for U.S states and counties. Combines
the previous web sites from the Northern Prairie Wildlife Center and the Big Sky Institute at
Montana State University. Many entries include photographs.
 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

A general introduction, guide and directory to this important bureau within the U.S. Department of
the Interior. It includes an overview of the service, a list of activities, offices, and people, and
news, including an electronic journal, Fish and Wildlife News, which is viewed as downloadable
PDF files.

 USGS National Wildlife Health Center

Field Manual of Wildlife Diseases is available under "Data and Tools"

 Smithsonian Institution North American Mammals

Based on the books The Smithsonian Book of

North American Mammals by Don E. Wilson and Sue Ruff
and Mammals of North America by Roland W. Kays and Don
E. Wilson, it is a searchable database of living mammals in
North America.

 Endangered Animals - Rare, Threatened and Endangered animals & mammals

An extensive list of threatened or endangered species compiled by Paul Massicot, formerly of the
Maryland Department of Natural Resources. Includes indexes by species, by groups, and by
country. Each entry is extensive, includes the IUCN status, description, taxonomy, and history of
distribution, as well as references to the scientific literature.

 Fish and Wildlife Service Endangered Species Program

Excellent source for identifying existing and proposed endangered species. Includes sections on
laws and policies, program news, and a number of full text publications, both monographs and
the journal Endangered Species Bulletin. Also provides contact information for local agencies and
partners.

 USDA Wildlife and Biological Resources

Resources listed by the National Agricultural Library, one of five national libraries of the United
States which houses one of the world's largest collections devoted to agriculture and its related
sciences.

 USGS - Wetland and Aquatic Research Center

Conducts relevant and objective research, develops new approaches and technologies, and
disseminates scientific information needed to understand, manage, conserve, and restore
wetlands and other aquatic and coastal ecosystems and their associated plant and animal
communities throughout the Nation and the Southeast.

 Society for Conservation Biology

From an organization “committed to developing the scientific and technical means for the
protection, maintenance, and restoration of the earth’s biological diversity,” this site includes
 general and membership news, drop-down menus for information, publications, and activities,
and a section of links to pages from partner organizations. A Resources section provides listings
of conservation jobs and educational opportunities.

 The Conservation gateway

The Gateway is for the conservation practitioner, scientist and decision-maker. Here we share the
best and most up-to-date information we use to inform our work at The Nature Conservancy.

 Northeast Landscapes

Series of essays and maps that describe current conservation assets in the Northeast region of
the U.S. Designed to help research to meet "a key challenge for the protection of habitat and
other natural resources: elevating these concerns into the broader policy framework of land use
decision making. This is especially true for lands and waters in and around the nation's ten
megaregions: conglomerations of metropolitan areas with most of the nation's population and
economic growth.

 Welcome to BugGuide.Net! - BugGuide.Net

From an "online community of naturalists who enjoy learning about and sharing our observations
of insects, spiders, and other related creatures." Hosted by Iowa State University.

 Home Page | Global Rangelands Knowledge System

Provides international perspective on rangeland themes, including a database which contains full-
text articles, reports, videos, learning tools and key websites.

 naaee - North American Association for Environmental Education

"We bring the brightest minds together to advance environmental literacy and civic engagement
through the power of education to create a more sustainable future for all."

Entomology Library Research Guide: Finding Journal

Articles

Recommended Journal Article Databases

 Biological Abstracts

via Web of Science 1969 - present: Citations with abstracts for journal articles covering all aspects of the life
sciences dealing with animals (including humans), plants and microorganisms. UHM Library Biological
Abstracts LibGuide

 CAB Direct (CAB Abstracts)

 1910 - present: Citations with abstracts to international literature in the agricultural sciences, including
tropical agriculture and ecology. This database covers journals, monographs, conference proceedings,
theses, technical reports, patents, and other sources, most with English-language abstracts. UHM Library
CAB Direct LibGuide

 Web of Science

via Web of Science 1980 - present: Multidisciplinary index covering the journal literature of the sciences.
Allows citation searching as well as searching by topic or author. UHM Library Web of Science LibGuide

 Google Scholar

Full-text @ UH Manoa links should automatically display. If the links are not displaying you can manually set
the links to UH Manoa subscriptions by clicking the menu icon in the upper left corner of the Google Scholar
search page. Go to Settings. Click on Library links and search for Hawaii. Select University of Hawaii at
Manoa - Full Text @ UH Manoa and save your preferences.

Google Scholar provides a simple way to broadly search for scholarly literature. From one place, you can
search across many disciplines and sources: peer-reviewed papers, theses, books, abstracts and articles,
from academic publishers, professional societies, preprint repositories, universities and other scholarly
organizations. Google Scholar helps you identify the most relevant research across the world of scholarly
research.

 Zoological Record (Web of Science)

via Web of Science 1978 - present: Citations with abstracts for publications covering all aspects of zoology,
including entomology.

 JSTOR

JSTOR provides full-text journal backfiles of selected journals in many disciplines including general science,
biological sciences, ecology and evolutionary biology, economics, and mathematics.

 PubMed Medline

1946 - present: A premier index of medical and biological journal literature that is linked to our full-text
journal subscriptions. Use this database to search for literature on insects as vectors of disease. Search
Guide (PDF from NLM) | UHM Library PubMed LibGuide

 PubAg

(National Agricultural Library, USDA) PubAg is a portal to USDA-authored and other highly relevant
agricultural research. At launch, it delivered over 40,000 full-text journal articles by USDA staff and includes
nearly 450,000 citations. Open access; no login required.

 AGRICOLA

via EbscoHost 1970 - present: Citations, most with abstracts, for publications in agriculture and related
areas such as pest and the economic impact of pests.

 ScholarSpace
 (UH Manoa Library) This UH Manoa digital repository provides full-text searchable access to the full-text of
many UH Manoa publications and other research materials including Proceedings of the Hawaiian
Entomological Society. Open access; no login required.

By Content Type
 Bibliographies  Keys
 Blogs  K-12 Recommended R
 CD-ROM  Lesson Plans
 Checklists  Mailing Lists
 Collections  Meetings and Confere
 Companies  Online Courses
 Databases  Pesticides
 Directories  Professional Societies
 Image Galleries  Research Programs
 Institutions  Software
 Integrated Pest Management  Sounds
 Job Opportunities  Video
 Journals and Newsletters

By Taxonomic Group
 Blattodea (cockroaches)  Mecoptera (scorpionf
 Coleoptera (beetles)  Neuroptera (lacewing
 Collembola (springtails)  Odonata (dragonflies
 Dermaptera (earwigs)  Orthoptera (grasshop
 Diptera (flies)  Phasmida (stick insec
 Embiidina (web-spinners)  Phthiraptera (lice)
 Ephemeroptera (mayflies)  Plecoptera (stoneflie
 Grylloblattodea (rock crawlers)  Protura (proturans)
 Hemiptera (true bugs)  Psocoptera (psocids)
 Homoptera (aphids, scale insects, leafhoppers, cicadas)  Siphonaptera (fleas)
 Hymenoptera (wasps, ants, bees)  Strepsiptera (twisted
 Isoptera (termites)  Thysanoptera (thrips)
 Lepidoptera (butterflies, moths)  Trichoptera (caddisfl
 Mantodea (mantids)  Zoraptera (angel inse
 Mantophasmatodea (heelwalkers)

By Entomological Subdiscipline
 Biology, Ecology and Behavior  Extension
o Apiculture (Beekeeping) and Social Insects  Medical and Veterina
o Behavior and Ecology  Physiology, Biochem.
o Biological Control  Regulatory
 o Insect Pathology, Microbial Control  Systematics, Morphol
o Insect Vectors, Plant Disease
o Quantitative Ecology
 Crop Protection
o Host Plant Resistance
o Urban Entomology