Latin names explained

Most books covering the natural world now use Latin names in referring to individual species. This welcome trend enables a species to be identified, regardless of its common name, and is applicable throughout the world. However, most people have little or no idea what the Latin names mean, or indeed why the names are given. Many natural historians and biologists, although fully conversant with the Latin names of the species in which they are interested, are unable to explain the reasoning behind these names. This book is an attempt to remedy this situation. Of the thousands of species of…