While translating this book, I was in close communication with the author, S. S. Shvarts (Schwarz), who read and commented on the entire translated manuscript. In particular, any ambiguities as to the identity of organisms described only by common names in the original text were removed, because the author kindly supplied the Latin names in all such cases. Com- mon names are retained in the translation, but the Latin names are also added where needed. Some of the terminology used in the Russian is a transliteration from English words employed now more by European workers than Americans. I...