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The insects overwhelm all other organisms of the world in species numbers and diversity. However, there are relatively few insects that inhabit the sea. Most of them are confined to the intertidal zone, with only five species of sea skaters, genus Halobates, having been successful in colonizing the open ocean. We discuss the ecology of both coastal and pelagic Halobates and the closely related genus Asclepios, focusing on their distribution ranges and adaptive strategies to marine environments accompanied by brief discussions of their biology. Updated information on the known localities for three species of Asclepios and some 40 coastal species of Halobates are presented. Many species live in vulnerable coastal habitats exposed to environmental pollution and coastal development. As a case study we trace the historical changes in populations of three Japanese sea skaters, Asclepios shiranui, Halobates matsumurai and H. japonicus, all designated as endangered species. For oceanic Halobates, we present an updated distribution map along with global current systems and sea-surface temperatures, examine interactions between distribution ranges and physical factors at the airÁsea interface and discuss spatio-temporal variations in populations of each species. Finally, we infer the life history strategy of oceanic Halobates through theoretical considerations.

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: We hoped to extract support information to enable the selection of the well-suited garments to fit threedimensional body (hereafter 3D-body) shape images of young women. The 3D-body simulations for evaluating the shape images were created by means of non-tactile 3D-body measurement. Two hundred words were selected to describe various body shape images. Six key words indicating full-length body images (As : A1. Underweight, A2. Feminine, A3. Ideal, A4. Standard, A5. Masculine, and A6. Overweight figures) and 19 key words for partial body image (Bs : B1. Leg thickness to B19. Body shape) were extracted for the classification. The 3D-body shape images of 82 young females were evaluated on a scale of 1 to 5 using these key words. Six principal components of 3D-body shape images (As and Bs) were extracted, and 7 3D-body shape image groups (5 full-length and 2 partial) were classified using those 5 principal component scores.

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