Welcome to The Ray Society
The Ray Society was founded by George Johnston in 1844 to honour the name of John Ray (1628-1705), one of the most eminent and influential naturalists of his time. Ray published works on birds, mammals, fish, insects and plants, bringing order to the chaotic mass of names in use by contemporary naturalists.
The Ray Society is not about John Ray himself but exists to publish books on natural history with special, but not exclusive reference to the flora and fauna of the British Isles. To date, 178 volumes have been published.
Handbook of the Bees of the British Isles, Volumes 1 and 2, by George R Else and Mike Edwards
This volume, number 180, has now been published. It is available now to order from the web site.
Retail price is £150 + £9 p&p. It is available to members at the concessionary price of £80 + £9 p&p. Members' price to purchase more than one copy is £120.
Latest Publications
Volume 181. Francis Hamilton's Gangetic Fishes in colour, edited, with introduction and commentary by Ralf Britz Francis Hamilton-Buc...
Volume 180. Handbook of the Bees of the British Isles. George R. Else and Mike Edwards ‘Bees of the British Isles’ provides a comprehen...
Volume 179. Charles Parish– Plant Hunter and Botanical Artist in Burma. Dudley Clayton Charles Samuel Pollock Parish (1822-189...
Volume 175: Menageries in Britain 1100-2000. Christine E. Jackson. Menageries in Britain 1100-2000 traces the history of menageries ('...a ...
The Rev. Leonard Jenyns (later Leonard Blomefield) was an important 19th century naturalist. A brief biography included here explains ho...
“Volume 173: John Ray’s Cambridge Catalogue (1660) translated and edited by P. H. Oswald and C. D. Preston 2011” John R...
"Volume 171: Rifle-Green by Nature. A Regency Naturalist and his Family, William Elford Leach. K.Harrison and E.Smith. 2008." ...
Ray Society volumes are available to members at very reduced prices. Concessionary sales, limited to one per member are usually about half the retail price. Further sales to members are 20% off the retail price. There is a standard charge of £9 p&p per order on all sales.
Membership of the Society
Membership costs £10 per year and entitles members to purchase a copy of each volume at the members' concessionary price. Other volumes are available at 20% discount. Special offers, for members only, appear on the web site several times a year.