Nature and the natural world: general interest Books

Book SynopsisGiddy up! Your guide to horseback riding is here! There's nothing quite like the sound of a horse's gallop. Add to that the sight of its mane catching wind as its powerhouse body criss-crosses the boundary of strength and graceful agility. They are majestic creatures to beholdand if you've caught the equine bug, Horseback Riding For Dummies is all you need to get saddled up and started on your journey to riding into the sunset! Inside, riders at the beginner level will discover the differences between Western and English riding styles, get the knowledge to select the best stable and instructor, and so much more! Choose the riding discipline that best suits your interests Find a qualified riding instructor Learn how to enter the competitive riding world Fit and care for the saddle, bridle, and other equipment Once you've fallen for one of these beautiful animals, it's hard to hold your horsesand this guTable of ContentsIntroduction 1 About This Book 1 Foolish Assumptions 2 Icons Used in This Book 2 Beyond the Book 3 Where to Go from Here 3 Part 1: Horseback Riding Basics 5 Chapter 1: Giddy Up! Welcome to Horseback Riding 7 Discovering the Horse’s Mind and Body 8 Taking Riding Lessons 8 Getting into Riding Shape 9 Keeping Yourself Safe around Horses 10 Selecting the Right Riding Style and Gear 10 Riding High from the Start 11 Preparing on the ground 12 Mounting and dismounting 12 Getting a grip on gaits 12 Jumping 13 Adjusting to Advanced Riding 13 Stepping up your current riding routine 14 Buying your own horse 14 Looking after your horse 14 Enjoying Fun and Games on Horseback 15 Chapter 2: Head to Hoof: The Mind and Mechanics of a Horse 17 Understanding How Horses Think 18 Getting a grip on equine society 18 Interpreting equine expressions 18 Getting along with horses 20 Examining the Equine Body 22 The parts of a horse 22 The height of a horse 23 The buildup: Horse conformation 24 Stepping out: The gaits of a horse 24 Colors and markings 27 Sifting through Breed Differences 30 Realizing that breed may matter 30 Picking through popular breeds 30 Chapter 3: School’s in Session: Taking Riding Lessons 35 Finding the Best Stable for Your Needs 36 The initial search: Identifying stables in your area 36 Your major: Finding a school that offers your discipline 36 Campus visit: Evaluating stables with a sharp eye 37 Choosing an Instructor or Trainer 38 Deciding between a riding instructor and a horse trainer 39 Understanding what to look for in an instructor or trainer 39 When you strike out with stables: Seeking out a different teacher 40 Getting the Most from Your Lessons 41 Deciding between individual and group lessons 41 Setting up your lesson schedule 42 Working with your instructor or trainer 43 Chapter 4: Mind and Body: Conditioning Yourself for Riding 47 Understanding Why You Need to Condition Yourself 47 Getting into Riding Shape 48 Lightening the load: Shedding those extra pounds 48 Developing endurance with aerobic exercise 50 Building strength 50 Cross-training: Practicing yoga and Pilates for flexibility and strength 53 Stretching yourself: Increasing flexibility just before you mount 53 Preparing Your Mind 57 Knowing your role as the horse’s leader 57 Banishing your fear 58 Chapter 5: Safety First: Protecting Yourself around Horses 61 Dressing the Part with Safe Clothing 62 Covering your head 62 Slipping into the right shirt 64 Protecting your legs 64 These boots are made for riding: Donning the right footwear 65 Removing your jewelry 66 Keeping a Close Eye on Horses When You’re on the Ground 66 Being in close confines with a horse 66 Moving around a tied horse 67 Identifying dangerous horse moves 68 Staying Secure on a Horse 69 Checking your tack before you saddle up 69 Riding with others 70 Hitting the trail by yourself 71 Part 2: Getting Set with the Right Riding Style and Gear 73 Chapter 6: Off into the Sunset: Western Riding 75 Looking at the Nitty-Gritty of Western Riding 75 Uses 76 Tack and apparel 76 The horses 77 The ride 77 Checking Out Western Riding Activities 78 Hitting the trail 78 Horsing around at shows 78 Working with cattle 81 Chapter 7: Not Just for the Brits: English Riding 83 Examining the Basics of English Riding 83 Uses 84 Tack and apparel 84 The horses 85 Brushing Up on the Basic English Styles 86 Jumping in hunt seat and riding on the flat 86 Making moves in dressage 87 Chapter 8: Dressing Up Horses with Saddles 89 Going Over the Basic Makeup of a Saddle 90 The Heavy Hitters: Western Saddles 91 The pleasure saddle 92 The barrel racing saddle 93 The roping saddle 94 The trail saddle 95 On the Smaller Side: English Saddles 96 The all-purpose saddle 97 The close-contact saddle 97 The dressage saddle 99 Setting Yourself Up with Saddle Pads 99 Playing Matchmaker as You Fit Saddles 101 Fitting a horse 101 Fitting yourself 103 Chapter 9: Getting a Heads-Up on Bridles 105 Breaking Down the Basic Parts of a Bridle 105 Gearing Up with Western Bridles and Bits 107 Looking at Western headstalls 107 Gaining leverage with Western bits 108 Nosing around hackamores 110 Examining English Bridles and Bits 111 Discovering English headstalls 111 Directing attention to English bits 112 Chapter 10: Equipping Yourself with Other Important Gear 115 Dressing in High Style 115 Choosing clothes for safety and comfort 116 Following tradition: Western dress 117 Staying conservative: English dress 119 Reviewing Artificial Aids 123 A leg up: Spurs 123 Tap it out: Whips 124 Part 3: Settling into the Saddle and Easing into Riding 127 Chapter 11: Working from the Ground, Saddling, and Bridling 129 Handling Horses from the Ground 130 Play catch: Approaching horses 130 Buckle up: Haltering horses 131 Follow me: Leading horses 133 Take care of loose ends: Tying horses 134 Putting on a Saddle Properly 137 Western saddles 138 English saddles 140 Saving the Bridling for Last 143 Chapter 12: Mounting and Dismounting 147 Get Set: Preparing to Mount 147 Checking tack 148 Choosing a mounting location 148 Get on Up: The Mechanics of Mounting 150 Western mounting 150 English mounting 152 Wrap It Up: Preparing to Dismount 155 Get Down: The Mechanics of Dismounting 155 Western dismounting 156 English dismounting 158 Chapter 13: Enjoying the Walk 161 Body Language: Helping Your Riding with the Natural Aids 162 Your hands 162 Your legs 162 Your seat 163 Your voice 163 Asking a Horse to Go for a Walk 163 Western cues 164 English requests 164 Riding the Walk in Western 164 Positioning your body 165 Trying your hand at holding the reins 166 Putting your legs in position 167 Moving with the Western horse 168 Riding the Walk in Hunt Seat 168 Positioning your body 169 With both hands: Holding the reins 169 Putting your legs in position 169 Moving with the hunt seat horse 170 Riding the Walk in Dressage 170 Positioning your body 170 Get a grip: Holding the reins 171 Putting your legs in position 171 Moving with the dressage horse 172 Maneuvering the Horse at the Walk 172 Pulling out all the stops 172 Turning left and right 173 Circling the horse 176 In reverse: Calling for backup 179 Trying a Couple of Walking Exercises 181 Using barrels in Western riding 181 Crazy eights: Turning a figure eight in English riding 183 Chapter 14: Bumping Up Your Skills with the Jog or Trot 185 Asking the Horse to Pick Up the Pace 186 Western jog requests 186 English trot cues 186 Riding the Jog in Western 187 Positioning your body 187 Holding the reins in Western 188 Putting your legs in position 188 Moving with the Western horse 189 Riding the Trot in Hunt Seat 189 Positioning your body 189 Holding the reins 190 Positioning your legs in hunt seat 190 Moving with the hunt seat horse 190 Riding the Trot in Dressage 193 Positioning your body 193 Holding the reins 193 Putting your legs in dressage position 194 Moving with the dressage horse 194 Maneuvering the Horse at the Jog or Trot 196 Stopping the horse 196 Turning left and right 197 Circling the horse 200 Trying Some Exercises 202 Following a serpentine pattern in Western riding 202 Circling jump poles in English riding 204 Chapter 15: Getting on the Fast Track with the Lope or Canter 207 Cueing the Horse to Lope or Canter 208 Western: Telling your horse you want to lope 208 English: Requesting a canter 208 Riding the Lope in Western 209 Positioning your body for Western 209 Holding the reins 210 Putting your legs in loping position 211 Moving with the Western horse 211 Riding the Canter in Hunt Seat 211 Positioning your body for hunt seat 212 Holding the reins 212 Putting your legs in cantering position 213 Moving with the hunt seat horse 213 Riding the Canter in Dressage 214 Positioning your body for dressage 214 Holding the reins 215 Putting your legs in position 215 Moving with the dressage horse 215 Maneuvering the Horse at the Lope or Canter 216 Whoa, Nelly! Stopping the horse 216 Turning in an L-pattern 217 Circling the horse 220 Trying a Couple of Balancing Exercises 222 Look, Ma, no hands! Western lunge line work 223 One-handed English lunge line work 224 Chapter 16: Making the Leap into Jumping 225 Delving into Different Types of Jumping 226 On the inside: Arena jumping 226 Out there: Cross-country jumping 227 Checking Out Types of Fences 228 X marks the spot: Crossrails 229 Get some air: Verticals 230 Go the distance: Oxers 230 Not as scary as they look: Walls 230 A test of stamina: Cross-country jumps 231 Making Your Way through the Jumping Process 231 Practicing the two-point position 231 Taking the leap 232 Riding over Multiple Jumps 234 Getting on the grid 235 Staying in line 236 Being on course 236 Overcoming Jumping Problems 237 Refusing to jump 238 Running out 239 Rushing 239 Part 4: Riding into Advanced Pastures 241 Chapter 17: Graduating to the Next Level of Riding 243 Finding a New Instructor or Trainer 243 Switching Disciplines 245 Growing Stronger with Advanced Conditioning 245 Improving Your Balance and Timing 246 Chapter 18: Taking the Plunge by Buying a Horse 249 Deciding Whether to Get a Horse of Your Own 249 Understanding ownership realities 250 Totaling costs 250 Figuring Out What Kind of Horse to Buy 254 Recognizing the ideal equine personality type 254 Taking age into account 254 Considering your riding discipline 255 Determining your interest in competition 255 Checking out breeds 256 Thinking about gender 256 Walking through the Horse-Buying Process 257 Finding help upfront 257 Looking in all the right places 258 Having a horse undergo a pre-purchase exam 260 Chapter 19: Exploring Horse Care 263 Gimme Shelter: Proper Horse Housing 263 Getting on board with commercial boarding facilities 264 No place like home: Keeping your horse on your own property 265 Chow Time: Dealing with Your Horse’s Hunger and Thirst 267 Feeding your horse 268 Watering your horse 269 Hey, Good Lookin’: Grooming Your Horse 269 Getting into gear 270 Brushing your horse 271 The horse wash: Scrubbing down 273 A Little TLC: Maintaining Your Horse’s Health 275 Providing preventive care 275 Recognizing signs of illness 279 Checking out common ailments 279 Part 5: Having Fun with Other Styles and Activities 283 Chapter 20: Step Up: Riding Gaited Horses 285 Defining the Four-Beat Gait 285 Checking Out Breeds Who Display Fancy Footwork 287 Riding a Gaited Horse 289 Positioning your body 289 Holding the reins 290 Putting your legs in position 290 Moving with the gaited horse 290 Chapter 21: Don’t Fence Me In: Trail Riding 291 Preparing for a Trail Ride 292 Using the right horse 292 Deciding where to ride 293 Gathering important gear 295 Getting ready for a ride of any length 297 Staying Safe on the Trail 298 Following some important guidelines 298 Handling spooks 299 Happy Trails: Minding Your Manners 300 Following etiquette when trail riding in a group 301 Encountering other riders when you’re out alone 303 Sharing the trail with non-riders 304 Chapter 22: Show Off: Riding in Competition 307 Understanding How Horse Shows Work 308 Looking at the judging system 308 An eye on the prize: Placings and awards 309 Surveying Different Types of Shows 310 Learning the ropes at schooling shows 310 Raising the bar at rated shows 312 Welcoming competition in open shows 313 Focusing on breed shows 313 Exploring specialty shows 314 Gearing Up for a Horse Show 315 Preparing yourself 315 Preparing your horse 317 Displaying Good Manners at Horse Shows 319 Behaving yourself 319 Handling your horse appropriately 320 Chapter 23: Even More Riding Styles and Activities 321 The Road Less Ridden: Trying Other Disciplines 321 Holding on with bareback 322 Getting your kicks in saddle seat 323 Sidesaddle: A feminine tradition 324 Horseplay: Surveying Sports, Exhibitions, and Other Equine Activities 326 Taking part in trail events 326 Playing polo, the sport of kings 329 Vaulting into gymnastics 329 Drilling on horseback 331 Riding in parades 332 Reenacting history 333 Traveling with a Horse 333 Field trips: Exploring faraway trails 334 Vacationing with your mount 334 Moving your horse with a trailer 336 Part 6: The Part of Tens 341 Chapter 24: Ten Rules of Riding Etiquette 343 Tie a Red Ribbon on a Kicker’s Tail 343 Go Slowly after You Mount 344 Communicate with Your Fellow Riders 344 Avoid Hollering 344 Keep a Safe Distance from Others 345 Approach Courteously from the Rear 345 Pass Left Shoulder to Left Shoulder 345 Prepare Your Horse for Trail Riding 346 Be Courteous during Water Breaks on the Trail 346 Help Others during Times of Trouble 347 Chapter 25: Ten Horseback Games to Improve Your Riding 349 Simon Says 349 Ride-a-Buck 350 Treasures on the Trail 350 Magazine Race 350 Ride and Tie 351 Red Light, Green Light 351 Follow the Leader 352 Boot Bucket Race 352 Egg and Spoon Carry 353 Around the World 353 Appendix: Resources for Riders 355 Index 359

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Book SynopsisIt''s a doggy-dog world, and this easy-to-use guide will help you navigate it.These days, people''s dogs have become bona fide members of the family. Moving from the kennel to the couch, they share our beds, family rooms, and holidays; and they are recipients of our kindest and utmost concern. A pet partnership is a lifetime commitment. Do it right, and your dog will become an important and valuable part of the family for many years. Do it wrong, and you''ve broken a sacred covenant between humankind and another living being. Dogs For Dummies, 2nd Edition, is for you if you are looking to adopt a dog, trying to improve the relationship with the one you have, or attempting to come up with fun things to do with your canine companion. This book is also for people who want to Choose the right veterinarian Explore the dog-breeding business Find breed-rescue groups Identify canine health problems Look for a Table of ContentsForeword xvii Introduction 1 Part 1: Bringing a Puppy or Adult Dog into Your Life 9 Chapter 1: Considering the Canine Possibilities 11 Chapter 2: Narrowing the Field 27 Chapter 3: Finding Out about Breeders, Shelters, and Other Sources 55 Chapter 4: Choosing and Bringing Home a Puppy 77 Chapter 5: Adopting and Settling In an Adult Dog 91 Part 2: Getting the Relationship Off to the Best Start 103 Chapter 6: All the Right Stuff 105 Chapter 7: Feeding Your Puppy or Dog 123 Chapter 8: House-Training Puppies and Dogs 141 Chapter 9: Early Puppy Training 153 Part 3: Keeping Your Dog Healthy 171 Chapter 10: Good Grooming 173 Chapter 11: Preventive Health Care for Puppies and Dogs 191 Chapter 12: Common Canine Health Problems 215 Chapter 13: Caring for an Aging Dog 227 Part 4: Living Happily with Your Dog 243 Chapter 14: Teaching Your Dog Manners 245 Chapter 15: Problem-Solving 269 Chapter 16: Canine Competitions: Fun Things to Do with Your Dog 289 Chapter 17: To Breed or Not to Breed 305 Chapter 18: Traveling with Your Dog 321 Part 5: The Part of Tens 343 Chapter 19: Ten Dog Myths — Debunked! 345 Chapter 20: Ten Questions to Ask When Buying a Purebred Puppy 353 Chapter 21: Ten Things You Need to Know to Prepare Your Dog for a Disaster 359 Chapter 22: Ten Ways to Have Both a Dog and a Nice Yard 367 Chapter 23: Ten Must-See Dog Sites on the World Wide Web 375 Index 385

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Book SynopsisTable of ContentsIntroduction 1 About This Book 1 Foolish Assumptions 2 Icons Used in This Book 3 Beyond the Book 3 Where to Go from Here 3 Part 1: Getting Started with Pit Bulls 7 Chapter 1: Pitting and Petting: The Pit Bull’s Past 9 Creating Canine Gladiators 9 Showing Off 12 Becoming America’s Sweetheart 15 Overcoming Pride and Prejudice 17 Growing in Popularity 18 The Michael Vick influence 19 The consequences of no-kill shelters 19 Breed-specific legislation 20 Finding the Middle Ground 21 Chapter 2: Sizing Up the Pit Bull 23 Toughing It Out 23 Building a Better Bulldog 24 The American Dog Breeders Association standard 25 The United Kennel Club standard 30 The American Kennel Club standard for the American Staffordshire Terrier 31 Strutting His Stuff 33 UKC conformation shows 34 AKC conformation shows 36 Chapter 3: Deciding whether a Pit Bull is Right for You 39 Making a Commitment 40 Making the Match 42 Getting to the Heart of the Matter (or Your Pit Bull) 43 Facing the Facts 45 Chapter 4: Shopping the Bull Market 53 Avoiding Bad Blood 53 Searching High and Low 54 Checking the classifieds 55 Buying from a breeder 55 Getting a dog from a shelter or rescue group 58 Checking the Bona Fidos 64 ADBA registration 65 UKC registration 65 AKC registration 66 Picking Your Pit 67 Part 2: Giving Your Pit Bull a Good Home 71 Chapter 5: Bringing Home Your New Best Friend 73 Puppy-proofing Your Home 74 Fencing In Your Pit Bull 75 Providing a Cozy Doghouse 77 Giving Your Dog a Comfortable Place to Sleep 77 Crates 78 Exercise pens 79 Shopping for Your Pit Bull 80 Toys 80 Food and water bowls 83 Collars 83 Leashes 85 Grooming supplies 86 Poop bags 87 Travel supplies 87 Chapter 6: Living with Your Pit Bull 89 Acting Like a Pit Bull in a China Shop: House Rules 89 Taking the Pit Stop Outside 90 When the Plumbing’s Broken 91 Trying Your Patience 92 Understanding Pit Talk 93 Becoming a Social Animal 95 Going to Kindergarten 97 Meeting the Children 98 Going for a Bull Run 100 Making a Splash 102 Hitting the Road 103 Finding a Pit-Sitter 107 Finding a Lost Love 108 Part 3: Training and Having Fun with Your Pit 111 Chapter 7: Coping with a Pit Bull Terrorist 113 Saving Your Home 113 Fighting Like Cats and Dogs 114 Cats 114 Dogs 115 Avoiding DogFights 117 Breaking Up a DogFight 119 Calming the Raging Bull 122 All in good fun? 122 Biting the hand that feeds 123 Dealing with Pit Bull Aggression 124 Plucking Up Courage 126 Corralling the Escape Artist 127 Digging Up Some Dirt 127 Tales from the Bark Side 128 Chapter 8: Training the Teacher’s Pit 129 Training Your Pit to Wag Her Tail 130 Working for food 131 Making ideas click quick 132 Getting the Timing Right 133 Following the Ten Commandments 134 1 Thou shalt not live in the past 134 2 Thou shalt not train your dog to be bad 134 3 Thou shalt not confuse 134 4 Thou shalt not speak in tongues 134 5 Thou shalt not use excessive force 135 6 Thou shalt not hurt thy friend 135 7 Thou shalt not beat a dead horse 135 8 Thou shalt not end on a low note 135 9 Thou shalt not go crazy 136 10 Thou shalt not lose your patience 136 Going to School 136 Getting the Right Stuff 137 Starting Basic Training 138 Coming to terms 138 Sitting bull 140 Staying power 141 Learning ups and downs 141 Walking well-heeled 141 Trying Every Trick in the Book 143 Chapter 9: Going Out to the Bull Games 145 Pulling His Weight and More 146 Training to pull 146 Becoming a S.T.A.R. 148 Being a Good Citizen 149 Staying in Step with Obedience and Rally 149 Overcoming Obstacles 151 Following His Nose 152 Getting a Grip on Schutzhund 152 Rounding Up a Herding Title 153 Taking a Flying Leap 154 Racing the Clock 154 Part 4: Keeping Your Pit Bull Healthy 155 Chapter 10: Feeding a Bottomless Pit 157 Starting with Dry or Moist Foods 158 Considering Raw 160 Boning Up on Nutrition 161 Eschewing the fat 162 Skin and bones 163 Feeding Time 164 Keeping Your Dog Hydrated 164 Chapter 11: Primping Your Pit Bull 165 Taking Your Pit to the Cleaners 165 Smelling Like a Rose 167 Debugging Your Dog 168 Making fleas flee 168 Ticking off ticks 168 Managing mange 169 Losing those lousy lice 170 Saving Your Dog’s Skin 170 Scratching the surface of allergic itching 170 Pyoderma and impetigo 171 Cooling down hot spots 171 Nailing Down Nail Care 172 Going in One Ear and Cleaning Out the Other 172 Keeping an Eye on the Bull’s Eye 174 Keeping Your Dog Armed to the Teeth 176 Chapter 12: A Clean Bull of Health 179 Examining Your Pit Bull 179 Gums 181 Body temperature 182 Pulse, heartbeat, and breathing rate 182 Establishing a Relationship with a Vet You Trust 183 Making Sense of Blood Tests 184 Giving Your Dog Medicine 185 Staying Up to Date on Your Dog’s Vaccinations 187 Puppy vaccinations 187 Rabies 188 Distemper 188 Hepatitis 188 Leptospirosis 189 Parvovirus 189 Coronavirus 189 Tracheobronchitis (kennel cough) 189 Lyme disease 190 Keeping Your Pit Free of Worms 190 Ascarids 191 Hookworms 191 Whipworms 192 Tapeworms 192 More worms 192 Dealing with Intestinal Parasites 193 Coccidia 193 Giardia 193 Preventing Heartworm 194 Chapter 13: Sick as a Dog 195 When Your Dog Just Isn’t Himself 195 Dealing with Diarrhea 196 Saying Vamoose to Vomiting 197 Coping with Coughing 198 Helping Your Dog with Urinary Problems 199 Understanding Endocrine Disorders 200 Hypothyroidism 200 Cushing’s syndrome 200 Investigating Immunological Problems 200 Banishing Blood Parasites 201 Ehrlichiosis 201 Babesia 201 Coping with Cancer 202 Looking into Lameness 202 An arm and a leg 203 From the hip 204 Doctoring Your Dog 206 Holistic medicine 206 Homeopathic medicine 206 Herbology 206 Chiropractic medicine 207 Acupuncture 207 Trying Home Remedies 207 Chapter 14: Pit Bull First Aid 209 ABCs of First Aid 211 Artificial respiration 211 CPR 212 Specific Emergencies 213 Poisoning 213 Seizures 215 Heat stroke 216 Hypothermia 216 Bleeding 217 Limb fractures 217 Bloat (gastric torsion, gastric dilatation-volvulus) 218 Insect stings and allergic reactions 218 Snakebite 219 Burns 219 Electrical shock 219 Chapter 15: Helping Your Dog Age Well 221 Eat and Run 222 Act Your Age 223 When You’ve Done Everything 225 Eternally in Your Heart 226 Part 5: The Part of Tens 227 Chapter 16: Ten Pit Bull Resources 229 Chapter 17: Ten Ways to Help the Pit Bull’s Reputation 233 Index 237

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Book SynopsisPrize-winning essays on our changing place in the natural world by the best-selling author of Moby-Duck.

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Book SynopsisRoze highlights the conservation issues that surround some porcupine species, such as the thin-spine porcupine of Brazil, which is so rare that it was thought to be extinct until its rediscovery in the 1980s.Trade ReviewPorcupines: The Animal Answer Guide presents solid, current, science of porcupine biology... A good general introduction into the biology of porcupines. -- Ian Paulsen Birdbooker Report Delightful. -- Jason Bittel Slate A fine survey recommended for any serious natural history holding. Midwest Book Review Roze has produced a useful guide to a familiar but often not entirely understood mammal... This informative, interesting volume will be a valuable addition to any academic library. Choice A tome that can be appreciate by trained biologists, interested general readers, and budding junior naturalists... Anyone interested in mammalian natural history will want to add this excellent work to their collection. -- John L. Koprowski Quarterly Review of BiologyTable of ContentsAcknowledgmentsIntroduction1. Introducing PorcupinesWhat is a porcupine?How many kinds of porcupines are there?Who's who among the Old World porcupines?Who's who among the New World porcupines?Why are porcupines important?Why should people care about porcupines?What is the current classification of porcupines?What characterizes the major groups of porcupines?When did porcupines evolve?Why is the North American porcupine successful?2. Form and Function of PorcupinesWhat are the largest and smallest living porcupines?Can porcupines see color?Can porcupines swim?Can porcupines burrow?What senses are best developed in porcupines?How do porcupines use their tails?How many quills does a porcupine have?Do quills provide good winter insulation?Does a porcupine throw its quills?What happens when a quill strikes a predator?How does a porcupine minimize self-quilling?How long does it take to replace a lost quill?How did porcupine quills evolve?Why are a porcupine's front teeth orange?Do porcupines have scent glands?How long does it take for a porcupine to digest a meal?Do porcupines suffer from old-age diseases?3. Porcupine ColorsWhat color are porcupine quills?Is there a reason for coat color patterns in porcupines?Do porcupine colors change with age?How does fur color indicate that a female porcupine is lactating?Are albino porcupines found in nature?Why do porcupines glow under a black light?4. Porcupine BehaviorAre porcupines social?Do porcupines fight?Do porcupines bite?Do porcupines play?How smart are porcupines?How do porcupines communicate?Do porcupines hibernate?How fast can porcupines run?How do porcupines climb trees?Do porcupines fall out of trees?How can I tell whether a tree is being used as food source by a porcupine?5. Porcupine EcologyWhich geographic regions have the most porcupine species?Do porcupines migrate?Can several porcupine species live together in the samearea?Are there porcupines in the desert?How do porcupines survive the winter?Do porcupines get sick?How can you tell if a porcupine is sick?Are porcupines good for the environment?What are the important porcupine predators?What possible mutualists live with porcupines?Do porcupines compete for food with other vertebrate herbivores?Do porcupines undergo population cycles?6. Reproduction and DevelopmentHow do porcupines reproduce?Do porcupines always reproduce in the same season?How is a male porcupine distinguished from a female?How long are porcupines pregnant?How is a baby porcupine born?How many babies do porcupines have?What is a baby porcupine called?Do porcupines care for their young?How long do female porcupines nurse their young?How fast do porcupines grow?How can you tell the age of a porcupine?At what age do porcupines start breeding?Do female porcupines go through menopause?How long do porcupines live?How do individual porcupines differ in reproductive success?7. Foods and FeedingWhat do porcupines eat?How do porcupines find food?Do porcupines scavenge?Do porcupines store food?Why do porcupines eat clay?How often do porcupines drink?8. Porcupines and HumansDo porcupines make good pets?Should people feed porcupines?What should I do if I find an injured porcupine?What should I do if I find a diseased porcupine?How can I see porcupines in the wild?Why are so many porcupines found as roadkills?9. Porcupine Problems (from a human's viewpoint)Are some porcupines pests?Why do porcupines sometimes gnaw the rubber tires of cars?How can I keep porcupines from my cabin in the woods?Can there be too many porcupines in a forest?How can I keep porcupines away from valuable trees?Are porcupines dangerous to people or pets?Do porcupines transmit human diseases?Is it safe to eat porcupines?How can I remove quills from a pet?What should I do if I'm injured by a porcupine?Can porcupines act as invasive species?10. Human Problems (from a porcupine's viewpoint)Are any porcupine species endangered?Will porcupines be affected by global warming?Why do people hunt and eat porcupines?Is there a hunting season for porcupines?What can I do to help porcupines?11. Porcupines in Stories and LiteratureWhat roles do porcupines play in religion and mythology?Are there porcupines in fables and folk tales?What role do porcupines play in native cultures?How are porcupines featured in poetry and literature?What king used the porcupine in his royal seal?What place names feature the porcupine?12. "Porcupinology"Who studies porcupines?Which species are best known?Which species are least known?How do scientists tell porcupine species apart?How can a researcher safely mark a porcupine for identification in the wild?What don't we know about porcupines?Appendix A: Porcupines of the WorldAppendix B: Worldwide Wildlife Rehabilitation OrganizationsBibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisRoze highlights the conservation issues that surround some porcupine species, such as the thin-spine porcupine of Brazil, which is so rare that it was thought to be extinct until its rediscovery in the 1980s.Trade ReviewPorcupines: The Animal Answer Guide presents solid, current, science of porcupine biology... A good general introduction into the biology of porcupines. -- Ian Paulsen Birdbooker Report Delightful. -- Jason Bittel Slate A fine survey recommended for any serious natural history holding. Midwest Book Review Roze has produced a useful guide to a familiar but often not entirely understood mammal... This informative, interesting volume will be a valuable addition to any academic library. Choice A tome that can be appreciate by trained biologists, interested general readers, and budding junior naturalists... Anyone interested in mammalian natural history will want to add this excellent work to their collection. -- John L. Koprowski Quarterly Review of BiologyTable of ContentsAcknowledgmentsIntroduction1. Introducing PorcupinesWhat is a porcupine?How many kinds of porcupines are there?Who's who among the Old World porcupines?Who's who among the New World porcupines?Why are porcupines important?Why should people care about porcupines?What is the current classification of porcupines?What characterizes the major groups of porcupines?When did porcupines evolve?Why is the North American porcupine successful?2. Form and Function of PorcupinesWhat are the largest and smallest living porcupines?Can porcupines see color?Can porcupines swim?Can porcupines burrow?What senses are best developed in porcupines?How do porcupines use their tails?How many quills does a porcupine have?Do quills provide good winter insulation?Does a porcupine throw its quills?What happens when a quill strikes a predator?How does a porcupine minimize self-quilling?How long does it take to replace a lost quill?How did porcupine quills evolve?Why are a porcupine's front teeth orange?Do porcupines have scent glands?How long does it take for a porcupine to digest a meal?Do porcupines suffer from old-age diseases?3. Porcupine ColorsWhat color are porcupine quills?Is there a reason for coat color patterns in porcupines?Do porcupine colors change with age?How does fur color indicate that a female porcupine is lactating?Are albino porcupines found in nature?Why do porcupines glow under a black light?4. Porcupine BehaviorAre porcupines social?Do porcupines fight?Do porcupines bite?Do porcupines play?How smart are porcupines?How do porcupines communicate?Do porcupines hibernate?How fast can porcupines run?How do porcupines climb trees?Do porcupines fall out of trees?How can I tell whether a tree is being used as food source by a porcupine?5. Porcupine EcologyWhich geographic regions have the most porcupine species?Do porcupines migrate?Can several porcupine species live together in the samearea?Are there porcupines in the desert?How do porcupines survive the winter?Do porcupines get sick?How can you tell if a porcupine is sick?Are porcupines good for the environment?What are the important porcupine predators?What possible mutualists live with porcupines?Do porcupines compete for food with other vertebrate herbivores?Do porcupines undergo population cycles?6. Reproduction and DevelopmentHow do porcupines reproduce?Do porcupines always reproduce in the same season?How is a male porcupine distinguished from a female?How long are porcupines pregnant?How is a baby porcupine born?How many babies do porcupines have?What is a baby porcupine called?Do porcupines care for their young?How long do female porcupines nurse their young?How fast do porcupines grow?How can you tell the age of a porcupine?At what age do porcupines start breeding?Do female porcupines go through menopause?How long do porcupines live?How do individual porcupines differ in reproductive success?7. Foods and FeedingWhat do porcupines eat?How do porcupines find food?Do porcupines scavenge?Do porcupines store food?Why do porcupines eat clay?How often do porcupines drink?8. Porcupines and HumansDo porcupines make good pets?Should people feed porcupines?What should I do if I find an injured porcupine?What should I do if I find a diseased porcupine?How can I see porcupines in the wild?Why are so many porcupines found as roadkills?9. Porcupine Problems (from a human's viewpoint)Are some porcupines pests?Why do porcupines sometimes gnaw the rubber tires of cars?How can I keep porcupines from my cabin in the woods?Can there be too many porcupines in a forest?How can I keep porcupines away from valuable trees?Are porcupines dangerous to people or pets?Do porcupines transmit human diseases?Is it safe to eat porcupines?How can I remove quills from a pet?What should I do if I'm injured by a porcupine?Can porcupines act as invasive species?10. Human Problems (from a porcupine's viewpoint)Are any porcupine species endangered?Will porcupines be affected by global warming?Why do people hunt and eat porcupines?Is there a hunting season for porcupines?What can I do to help porcupines?11. Porcupines in Stories and LiteratureWhat roles do porcupines play in religion and mythology?Are there porcupines in fables and folk tales?What role do porcupines play in native cultures?How are porcupines featured in poetry and literature?What king used the porcupine in his royal seal?What place names feature the porcupine?12. "Porcupinology"Who studies porcupines?Which species are best known?Which species are least known?How do scientists tell porcupine species apart?How can a researcher safely mark a porcupine for identification in the wild?What don't we know about porcupines?Appendix A: Porcupines of the WorldAppendix B: Worldwide Wildlife Rehabilitation OrganizationsBibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisAnyone who owns a gecko, has seen them in the wild, or has wondered about them will appreciate this gem of a book.Trade ReviewThis book is recommended if you are considering getting a gecko for a pet or if you just want to know more about the ecology and behavior of the 1,400 or so living species of these peculiar lizards. -- Whit Gibbons Aiken Standard [This book] successfully broadens our outlook and appreciation of these fascinating creatures. -- Aliza Gecko Time Anyone who owns a gecko, has seen them in the wild, or has wondered about them will appreciate this gem of a book. Northeastern Naturalist All you ever wanted to know about geckos is here in a nice, readable format. -- Robert E. Hoopes Wildlife Activist Geckos may very well be the most recognizable lizards, and their diversity is astounding across their near-global distribution. Geckos: The Animal Answer Guide therefore provides a general audience with a much-needed encyclopedia where they can get an answer to nearly any question they may have about gecko biology. There is no authority better suited than Aaron Bauer to compile a gecko book at any academic level, and he does a shining example here of making his astounding knowledge of geckos accessible to general readers. -- Matthew K. Fujita Quarterly Review of BiologyTable of ContentsAcknowledgmentsIntroduction1. Introducing GeckosWhat are geckos?Where does the name "gecko" come from?Why are geckos important?Why should people care about geckos?Where do geckos live?What is the difference between geckos and other lizards?How many kinds of geckos are there?What is the current classification of geckos?What characterizes the major groups of geckos?When did geckos evolve?What is the oldest fossil gecko?Where have fossil geckos been found?What did extinct geckos look like?2. Form and FunctionWhat are the largest and smallest living geckos?When are geckos active?Do geckos sleep?Why do geckos have big eyes?Can geckos see color?Do geckos have eyelids?Why do geckos lick their eyes?What are the bulges on the necks of some geckos?Are some geckos limbless?How do geckos climb?How fast can geckos run?Can geckos run upside down?What are flying geckos?How strong is a gecko's grip?Can geckos hang on when they are dead?Can geckos swim?Can all geckos lose and regrow their tails?Why do geckos shed their skin?At what temperatures are geckos most active?3. Gecko ColorsWhat colors are geckos?What causes the different skin colors of geckos?What color are a gecko's eyes?Is there a reason for specific patterns on a gecko's skin?Are male and female geckos colored differently?Do a gecko's colors change as it grows?Can geckos change color?Is there much geographic variation in a single gecko species?4. Gecko BehaviorAre geckos social?Do geckos fight?Do geckos bite?How smart are geckos?Do geckos play?How do geckos communicate?How do geckos make noise?Do geckos have good hearing?How do geckos avoid or escape predators5. Gecko EcologyWhere do geckos sleep?Which geographic regions have the most species of geckos?Do geckos burrow?How do geckos survive in the desert?How do geckos survive the winter?Do geckos bask?What animals eat geckos?Do geckos get sick?How can you tell that a gecko is sick?6. Reproduction and DevelopmentHow do geckos reproduce?How can you tell the sex of a gecko?Do all geckos lay eggs?How long do gecko eggs take to hatch?Where do geckos lay their eggs?Why do geckos lay hard-shelled eggs?Do geckos only lay eggs once a year?How many babies do geckos have?How is the sex of a baby gecko determined?Are some gecko species all female?Do geckos care for their young?How fast do geckos grow?How long do geckos live?7. Foods and FeedingWhat do geckos eat?How many teeth do geckos have?Do geckos chew their food?Why do geckos' eyes sink in when they bite?How do geckos find food?Can geckos taste?Are any geckos cannibals?Can geckos store energy from food?Do geckos drink?8. Geckos and HumansDo geckos make good pets?How do you take care of a pet gecko?Are geckos venomous?Do geckos feel pain?How can I see geckos in the wild?Do people eat geckos?Are parts of geckos used as medicine?Can gecko-style adhesion be useful to humans?9. Gecko Problems (from a human viewpoint)Are geckos pests?Do geckos have diseases and are they contagious?How do I keep geckos away from my house?10. Human Problems (from a gecko's viewpoint)Are any geckos endangered?What is the rarest gecko?Have any geckos become extinct because of humans?Are geckos protected by law?Will geckos be affected by global warming?What are the greatest threats to geckos?11. Geckos in Stories and LiteratureWhat roles do geckos play in religion and mythology?What roles do geckos play in native cultures?What roles do geckos play in popular culture?What roles have geckos played in poetry and other literature?12. "Geckology"Who studies geckos?Which species are best known?Which species are least known?How do scientists tell geckos apart?Appendix A: Geckos of the WorldAppendix B: Organizations and Publications Devoted (in Part) to the Study of GeckosBibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisThe Quick Guide to Wild Edible Plants is a great gift for the beginning naturalist and the perfect addition to every serious forager's library.Trade ReviewThe book is witty and full of commonsense. It is a jolly good read for anyone. Portland Book Review Whether this is your passion or merely something you might be interested in learning about, check out The Quick Guide to Wild Edible Plants... Should I ever get a craving for stinging nettle omelet or black locust fritters, I will know exactly which wild edible plant book to look in. Aiken StandardTable of ContentsAcknowledgments1. IntroductionWild Plants as FoodBefore You BeginEmergency FoodHow to Use This BookGuidelines for Using the Recipes .About Flavorings, Sweeteners, and OilsBeveragesRecipes for Failure2. Deadly HarvestPoison Ivy, Poison Oak, Poison SumacPoison HemlockMushrooms3. Nature's Storehouse of Edible Plants4. CondimentsSassafrasField Garlic5. AperitifsSwamp BayRed Spruce6. GreensChicoryCurly DockGlasswortKudzuStinging NettleBlack Walnut7. StarchesAmerican LotusArrowheadGroundnutNut SedgeOaksSoftstem BulrushSpring Beauty8. Grains and Plants Used Like GrainsCaneManna GrassRiver OatsYellow Pond Lily9. FlowersBlack LocustCattailsOrange Day LilyRedbud10. SweetsIndian StrawberryPawpaw11. CordialsBlueberries12. MushroomsOyster MushroomChicken of the WoodsPuffballsIndex of Recipes

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Book SynopsisThe people, policies, and forces transforming a national treasurethe Chesapeake Bay. When Captain John Smith arrived in Virginia in 1607, he discovered a paradise in the Chesapeake Bay. In the centuries that followed, the Bay changed vastlyand not for the better. European landowners and enslaved Africans slashed, burned, and cleared the surrounding forests to grow tobacco. Watermen overfished oysters, shad, and sturgeon, decimating these crucial species. Baltimore, Washington, and Richmond used its rivers as urban sewers. By the 1960s, the Chesapeake was dying. A crossroads of life and culture, the Chesapeake straddles the North and the South, mixes salt water with fresh, and is home to about 18 million people and 3,600 species of animals and plants. Although recent cleanup efforts have improved its overall health, they have not been enough to save this national treasure. In The Chesapeake in Focus, award-winning writer Tom Pelton examines which environmental policies have worked aTrade ReviewTom Pelton, one of the country's leading environmental journalists, offers us a wealth of knowledge about the Chesapeake Bay, collected from his more than two decades of reporting on this ecological, cultural, and historical treasure . . . The highlight, perhaps, comes toward the end, when Pelton proposes 10 realistic steps for bay restoration. We should listen to him.—Lauren Larocca, Baltimore MagazineA terrific book . . . Really puts in perspective the different issues swirling about the Bay.—Tom Hall, "Midday" on WYPR 88.1 FMReally good book about a really great ecosystem.—Society of Environmental JournalistsTable of ContentsAcknowledgmentsIntroduction1. The WatersSusquehanna RiverGunpowder RiverCorsica RiverPatuxent RiverPotomac RiverJames RiverSouthern Bay2. The PeopleHarry HughesParris GlendeningJohn GriffinBonnie BickMichael BeerCarole MorisonOoker Eskridge3. The WildlifeOystersDermo and MSXBlue CrabsStriped BassAmerican EelsSturgeon4. The PoliciesEnforcementPennsylvaniaAir Pollution versus Water PollutionAgricultureClimate ChangeAdvocacy and Pollution TradingAccountabilityConclusionNotesIndex

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Book SynopsisA beautifully illustrated guide to the diverse and numerous freshwater fish species in Virginia. In Field Guide to Freshwater Fishes of Virginia, the foremost experts on Commonwealth fishes bring their decades of field experience to readers, offering a complete reference to the fishes of the entire state of Virginia. Gathering information that until now could only be found scattered across numerous reference works and online databases, this book provides everything you need to know to identify fish families and species in the Virginia region. Covering how to collect, handle, observe, conserve, and protect these unique fishes, the book's key features include more than 175 vibrant, full-color illustrations, set side by side with descriptions of each fish helpful line drawings that depict the most reliable diagnostic characteristics for field identifications (e.g., snout shape, pigment patterns, mouth morphology) descriptions of Virginia's freshwater habitats examples of incredible fiTrade ReviewThe Field Guide to Freshwater Fishes of Virginia is one of the best fish field guides I've encountered. It covers all the fish in detail, but is small enough to easily fit in a pack or carry-on bag. The illustrations are beautiful and the text focuses on information most helpful for field identification.—Matthew L. Miller, The Nature Conservancy, Cool Green ScienceThe new Field Guide to Freshwater Fishes of Virginia takes on the daunting challenge of covering the 226 species of freshwater fishes found in the state in the abbreviated format of a true field guide. The authors succeed in this task, producing a book that is both informative and portable. The book's format makes it useful to a wide range of potential users, including fishers, professional biologists, and those interested in keeping native species in aquaria . . . I highly recommend the book.—Bruce W. Stallsmith, FisheriesTable of ContentsAcknowlegmentsIntroduction How to Use This Guide Virginia's Freshwater Fishes Fish Watching, Photographing, and Keeping Management and Conservation Fish Anatomy Key to FamiliesSpecies AccountsGlossarySelect BibliographyScientific Name IndexCommon Name IndexCreditsAbout the Authors

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Book SynopsisThe highly anticipated second volume of Freshwater Fishes of North America, a monumental, fully illustrated reference that provides comprehensive details on the freshwater fishes of the United States, Canada, and Mexico. When the first volume of Freshwater Fishes of North America was published, it was immediately hailed as the definitive reference in the field. Readers have been fervently awaiting the next volume in this encompassing three-book set ever since. Now complete, volume 2, covering families Characidae to Poeciliidae, is the result of decades of analysis by leading fish experts from universities and research laboratories across North America. Each volume in this authoritative synthesis covers the ecology, morphology, reproduction, distribution, behavior, taxonomy, conservation, and the fossil record of the included North American fish families. The encyclopedic reviews of each family are accompanied by color photographs (nearly 250 in this volume alone), range maps, and aTrade ReviewIt is enough to keep a fish nerd occupied for a very, very long time . . . I think of this as the encyclopedic complement to the field guide.—Matthew L. Miller, Nature - Cool Green ScienceTable of ContentsList of ContributorsPreface Melvin L. Warren, Jr., and Brooks M. BurrAcknowledgmentsChapter 14 Characidae: Characins Norman Mercado-Silva, Claudia P. Ornelas-García, Juan Jacobo Schmitter-Soto, Nicholas J. Gidmark, and Andrew M. SimonsChapter 15 Ictaluridae: North American Catfishes Brooks M. Burr, Melvin L. Warren, Jr., and Micah G. BennettChapter 16 Ariidae: Sea Catfishes Matthew R. Thomas and Ricardo Betancur-R.Chapter 17 Heptapteridae: Seven-finned Catfishes Matthew R. Thomas and Mark Henry SabajChapter 18 Osmeridae: Smelts Robert L. Hopkins II and Melvin L. Warren, Jr.Chapter 19 Esociformes: Esocidae, Pikes, and Umbridae (Mudminnows) Frank H. McCormick, Terry Grande, Cheryl Theile, Melvin L. Warren, Jr., J. Andrés López, Mark V. H. Wilson, Roger A. Tabor, Julian D. Olden, and Lauren M. KuehneChapter 20 Percopsidae: Trout-perches Brooks M. Burr and Melvin L. Warren, Jr.Chapter 21 Amblyopsidae: Cavefishes Ginny L. Adams, Brooks M. Burr, and Melvin L. Warren, Jr.Chapter 22 Aphredoderidae: Pirate Perches Brooks M. Burr and Melvin L. Warren, Jr.Chapter 23 Gadidae (Gadinae and Lotinae): Cods and Cuskfishes Peter B. BerendzenChapter 24 Mugilidae: Mullets Steven L. PowersChapter 25 Atherinopsidae: New World Silversides Kyle R. Piller and Clyde D. BarbourChapter 26 Beloniformes: Belonidae (Needlefishes) and Hemiramphidae (Halfbeaks) Bruce B. Collette and Stephen J. WalshChapter 27 Rivulidae: New World Rivulines Ann M. Uzee O'Connell, Martin T. O'Connell, and Anthony A. EchelleChapter 28 Profundulidae: Middle American Killifishes Mollie F. Cashner and Anthony A. EchelleChapter 29 Goodeidae: Goodeids Shane A. WebbChapter 30 Fundulidae: Topminnows Robert C. Cashner, Jacob Schaefer, Melvin L. Warren, Jr., Anthony A. Echelle, Fernando Galvez, and Michael J. GhedottiChapter 31 Cyprinodontidae: Pupfishes Anthony A. Echelle and Alice F. EchelleChapter 32 Poeciliidae: Livebearers Michael J. Ghedotti, Matthew P. Davis, and Anthony A. EchelleLiterature CitedIndex of Scientific NamesGeneral Index

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Book SynopsisHow popular music reflects the contradictions and dreams of communities searching for more sustainable ways to liveTrade Review"In this elegantly argued book, Pedelty...probes deeply the relationship between music, especially rock and folk, and the environment... [T]he great value of Pedelty's book is that... [t]rue to his field work roots, Pedelty himself straps on a guitar in order to make music and to participate in a local music scene... Pedelty urges us to get up off our chairs and dance, sing, clap, dig, vote, and record as we move from being passive recipients of music to being active creators of the soundscape of our lives." - The Journal of Ecocriticism, January 2013 "Mark Pedelty's engaging and readable Ecomusicology brings attention to an insufficiently explored subject... Pedelty's 'search for sustainable music'... centers not so much on lyrics, but on the environmental implications of musical production and performance - a standard by which most popular rock bands on world tours fail miserably... His personal experience gives insights on both songwriting strategies and the challenges of trying to save the world while also trying to get people to listen in a crowded bar... Pedelty points the way toward a harmonious reconciliation of music-making and ecocriticism." - ISLE: Interdisciplinary Studies in Literature and Environment, Winter 2013 "Ecomusicology is among the first large-scale works to merge the discourse of environmental justice and ecocriticism with an analysis of the social experience of music... [It] is a welcome addition to the literature that illustrates a plethora of potential approaches to musical ecocriticism. Pedelty's book opens up new interpretive possibilities for the ongoing study of the relationship between music and the environment." - Environmental Values "In his book Mark Pedelty asks the question of how music can be used to promote sustainability. He takes us through the political ecology of rock, using examples in a geographic exposition from global (Live Aid megaconcerts), national (political music in USA), regional (bioregions in North America) to local music. Taking an ethnographic approach, Pedelty interfaces these geographical components with an analysis of music as communication, advocacy and to a lesser degree as art." - Social AnthropologyTable of ContentsIntroduction; 1; Pop ecology on the global stage; 2; Whose land? Popular music and the American soundscape; 3; Music makes place: Regional geographies in popular song; 4; A tonic for the troops: Local music, community, and ecology; Conclusion; Bibliography; Discography; Filmography.

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Book SynopsisArgues that the eighteenth century’s explosion of new natural knowledge was deeply connected to the circulation of individuals, objects, and ideas through the networks of the British transatlantic slave trade.

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Book SynopsisThis resource guide is the only color-illustrated work devoted to polypores of eastern and central North American--the first of its kind to be published since Gilbertson & Ryvarden’s 1987 North American Polypores.Table of Contents Preface Acknowledgments Introduction Geographic Area Covered by This Book What Is a Polypore? Macrocharacteristics of Polypores Microcharacteristics of Polypores: Hyphal Systems Polypore Nomenclature and Taxonomy: A Brief History Historical and Contemporary Uses of Polypores Evolution of Polypores and Their Host Trees Forest Regions of the Eastern and Central United States and Canada Types of Fungal Decay Guidelines for Collecting and Preserving Polypores The Identification Process: How to Identify Polypores Using This Book Explanation and Use of the Keys Keys to Polypores and Similar Fungi Species Descriptions and Illustrations Appendixes A. Microscopic Examination of Polypores B. Chemical Reagents for Polypore Identification C. How to Make a Spore Deposit D. The Medicinal Uses of Polypores: A Brief History and Summaries of Current Research E. Polypores Organized by Order, Family, Genus, and Species Glossary Bibliography and Resources About the Authors Illustration and Photography Credits Index to Common Names Index to Scientific Names

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Book SynopsisIn Common Things explores the implacable agency of common substances in the life and literature of the Romantic period.Table of ContentsIntroduction: In Common Things 1. “The Bones of the World”: Mary Wollstonecraft’s Social Geology 2. “Broken Arbour”: The Ruined Cottage and Deforestation 3. “Strange Look’d it There!”: The Paradox of the Palm in the Poetry of Felicia Hemans 4. Preserver and Destroyer: Salt in The History of Mary Prince 5. “Lin’d with Moss”: John Clare’s Rhizomatic Poetics

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Book SynopsisThe Ecology of Italian Science Fiction investigates the representation of ecological issues in Italian science fiction and film from the 1950s to the present. Taking into account a previously understudied corpus, the book reveals how Italian science fiction has consistently been able to conceptualize and dramatize the impact of human activities on the health of planetary ecosystems and addresses the radical environmental changes that have occurred in the country since the Second World War.Moving from current debates on the environmental humanities and on the cultural status of speculative fiction, the book provides an in-depth analysis of the evolution of the genre in Italy in relationship to the country’s environmental history. The book highlights the ways in which Italian science fiction represents non-human agencies – animal, vegetal, mineral – and how the recent Solarpunk movement imagines new synergies with the environment. Drawing on notable works ranging from Lino Aldani to Gilda Musa, from Francesco Verso to Paolo Zardi, from Nicoletta Vallorani to Laura Pugno, The Ecology of Italian Science Fiction covers topics as diverse as the evolution of petroculture in Italy, environmental justice and migrations, encounters with animal and vegetal alterity, ecofeminist stances, and new dreams of sustainability.

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Book Synopsis2022 Oregon Book Award Finalist A vivid journey through California's vast rural interior, The Heart of California weaves the story of historian Frank Latta's forgotten 1938 boat trip from Bakersfield to San Francisco with Aaron Gilbreath's trip retracing Latta's route by car during the 2014 drought. Latta embarked on his journey to publicize the need for dams and levees to improve flood control. Gilbreath made his own trip to profile Latta and the productive agricultural world that damming has created in the San Joaquin Valley, to describe the region's nearly lost indigenous culture and ecosystems, and to bring this complex yet largely ignored landscape to life. The Valley is home to some of California's fastest growing cities and, by some estimates, produces 25 percent of America's food. The Valley feeds too many people, and is too unique, to be ignored. To understand California, you have to understand the Valley. Mixing travel writing, historical recreations, western history, natuTrade Review"In this captivating memoir, author Aaron Gilbreath takes us along on a journey through the vast interior of California, sandwiched between the mountains of the Sierra Nevada and the Pacific Coast Range. Inspired by the 1938 boat trip from Bakersfield to San Francisco of historian Frank Latta, Gilbreath retraces the trip by car during the drought of 2014, weaving in Latta’s fascinating narrative with his own. . . . A must-read in order to fully grasp the California experience."—Melanie Dragger, Literary West Review“Aaron Gilbreath uses his keen eye and environmental consciousness, historical records, and the occasional imaginative flight to give us an invaluable portrait of an overlooked place.”—Thomas Swick, author of A Way to See the World“The Heart of California is a quickly moving history with unexpected adventure. There’s a little Joan Didion, James D. Houston, Gerald Haslam, Kevin Starr, and Mark Arax in these pages. Aaron Gilbreath’s observations are an extension of these writers and, I could argue, their equal.”—Gary Soto, author of The Elements of San Joaquin“This is what the San Joaquin Valley looks and sounds like and how it feels.”—Don Thompson, native Valley poet and author of Back Roads“Without question, riding downriver through the San Joaquin Valley’s past and present with Aaron Gilbreath is one of the greatest and most unexpected journeys I’ve taken in a long, long time.”—Joe Donnelly, author of L.A. Man: Profiles from a Big City and a Small World“Add The Heart of California to your list of essential reading, for it expands and deepens the Golden State’s image to include gritty realities and small triumphs too often ignored. There’s no understanding the state without also understanding the sometimes remote, but essential realities Gilbreath explores. Organized around Frank F. Latta’s 1938 rowboat trip up the San Joaquin Valley to San Francisco Bay, this book recounts an adventure writ small but with large implications. Welcome to a new regional classic.”—Gerald W. Haslam, editor of Many Californias: Literature from the Golden State Table of ContentsList of Illustrations Acknowledgments Introduction 1. Down the Kern River 2. On Tulare Lake 3. Hanford, the Other California Dream 4. Uncle Jeff's Cabin 5. Through the Swampy Center 6. Nocturnal Life 7. The End of the Road, San Francisco Further Reading Bibliography

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Book SynopsisAmerican Scientist Recommended Read Historical narratives often concentrate on wars and politics while omitting the central role and influence of the physical stage on which history is carried out. In Losing Eden award-winning historian Sara Dant debunks the myth of the American West as “Eden” and instead embraces a more realistic and complex understanding of a region that has been inhabited and altered by people for tens of thousands of years. In this lively narrative Dant discusses the key events and topics in the environmental history of the American West, from the Beringia migration, Columbian Exchange, and federal territorial acquisition to post–World War II expansion, resource exploitation, and current climate change issues. Losing Eden is structured around three important themes: balancing economic success and ecological destruction, creating and protecting public lands, and achieving sustainability. This reviseTrade Review"This updated and revised edition of the book brings more multicultural history, incorporates current events, and has a new chapter on climate change, along with new maps and illustrations."—Jaime Herndon, American Scientist"This is a penetrating take on the complicated ways that humans impact their environs."—Publishers Weekly"Compelling and accessible to a broad audience. . . . [Demonstrates] why understanding the environmental history of the US West is as pressing now as ever."—Jacey Anderson, H-Environment"An updated version of the original 2017 publication, Losing Eden is a classic in the environmental history of the American West."—Harlan Hague, Roundup Magazine"In writing such an accessible book for general readers and scholars alike, Dant successfully manages to create a space for everyone to feel a sense of responsibility for the future of the West."—Georgianna Karahalis, Annals of Wyoming"[Dant] is especially skilled at presenting complex, sometimes controversial topics in an engaging and fun-to-learn manner."—Ed Roberson, mountainandprairie.com"A clarion call for sustainability."—Kim Jackson, Nevada Historical Quarterly“Everyone should take a look at Sara Dant’s book Losing Eden. It’s a history of something bigger than us and an essential read for anyone who cares about the past and future American West.”—Ken Burns, filmmaker“Sara Dant has created something seemingly unattainable: a one-volume book—full of incisive analysis, wrapped in unforgettable storytelling—that covers the deep environmental history of the American West from twenty-five thousand years ago to today. She delivers an important cautionary tale about the relationship between people and nature, always asking a simple question: ‘At what cost?’ I learned something on every page.”—Dayton Duncan, author of The National Parks: America’s Best Idea“Sara Dant’s Losing Eden is an environmental masterpiece about the American region she holds near and dear to her heart. Whether Dant tackles the problems of aridity, massive wildfires, or climate change, she hits all the right notes. . . . This is a brilliant book, learned to its core, that will stand the test of time. Environmental history at its absolute finest. Highly recommended!”—Douglas Brinkley, Katherine Tsanoff Brown Chair in Humanities and professor of history at Rice University

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Book SynopsisThis photo-based field guide to the more common or distinctive bryophytes of northeastern North America gives beginners the tools they need to identify most specimens without using a compound microscope.Trade ReviewA remarkable book that bridges the gap between dense technical manuals and superficial field guides and covers these interesting plants in remarkable depth and detail for such a compact volume.... More than being just a simple identification guide, this book is a thoughtful interpretation of the flora with a much greater wealth of biological, ecological, and bibliographic information that is found in most field guides. Its rigor and friendly tone should inspire botanists to enter the miniature world of mosses, liverworts, and hornworts. * Castanea *The inclusion of some of the more commonly used technical terms makes the book a good educational tool that can help people transition from amateur bryology to more advanced study.... Pope’s inclusion of similar species in his species accounts and species lists eliminates some of the uncertainty that the user may be experiencing and maximizes the guide’s use for both amateurs and those seeking to delve a little deeper into bryology. * Rhodora *

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Book SynopsisIn August 1858, William James Stillman, a painter and founding editor of the acclaimed but short-lived art journal The Crayon, organized a camping expedition for some of America''s preeminent intellectuals to Follensby Pond in the Adirondacks. Dubbed the Philosophers' Camp, the trip included the Swiss American scientist and Harvard College professor Jean Louis Rodolphe Agassiz, the Republican lawyer and future U.S. attorney general Ebenezer Rockwood Hoar, the Cambridge poet James Russell Lowell, and the transcendental philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson, who would later pen a poem about the experience. News that these cultured men were living like Sacs and Sioux in the wilderness appeared in newspapers across the nation and helped fuel a widespread interest in exploring the Adirondacks.In this book, James Schlett recounts the story of the Philosophers' Camp, from the lives and careers ofand friendships and frictions amongthe participants to the extensive preparations for the expedition Trade ReviewOther scholars have paid glancing notice at this event but have confused its details or missed its importance. The most thorough scholarly account remains Paul Jamieson's "Emerson in the Adirondacks," published in New York History over a half-century ago and largely overlooked ever since.Until now.... Focusing primarily on the Follensby Pond expedition, Schlett uses it to develop a series of linked themes. The response of Stillman, Emerson, and others to the untouched wilderness of the central Adirondacks invites an assessment of how American culture was coping with the dramatic and often traumatic move away from its rural past and into an urban, industrial future. This is both an American and an Adirondack story (neither urban nor industrial, the Adirondacks is nonetheless what it is today because the rest of New York was becoming both), and Schlett employs it well. -- Philip Terrie * Adirondack Explorer *In his meticulous new history of the Philosophers' Camp,... the first book to focus exclusively on the event, Schlett tackles the subject with serious diligence, lending it a new kind of weight.... As readers will likely learn with some regret, Follensby Pond remains inaccessible to the public. In 2008, the Nature Conservancy purchased the 14,600-acre tract that includes the lake for $16 million from a private landowner. But after several unsuccessful attempts, Follensby has still not entered the state forest preserve, at which time the public will be permitted to visit. Neither is it a high priority. Nevertheless, it could be that Schlett's book redoubles those efforts. That is not something he intended with the book, yet he certainly wouldn't mind it either. -- James H. Miller * The Lake George Mirror *Many of us have heard the story of the Adirondacks' Philosophers' Camp near Follensby Pond that legendary getaway attended by such 19th-century dignitaries as Ralph Waldo Emerson and James Russell Lowell. But it’s always remained just that: the stuff of lore and legend rather than real tangible history. Until now. Award-winning reporter James Schlett... has shined a journalist’s spotlight on this excursion. -- Susan Arbetter * Capital Pressroom *This book offers considerable depth on an important event. Devotees of Adirondack history will find it well worth their effort. -- Richard Frost * Adirondack Daily Enterprise *Schlett makes a convincing argument for its significance. His archival detective work illuminates how widespread the interest in the event was at the time and beyond and contributes to an understanding of its importance in the biographies of the participants, as well as telling a history of the Adirondacks. * New York History *Modern visitors who find retreat and rejuvenation in the Adirondacks will likely enjoy knowing a bit about the people who blazed the trail. But I think that the book will be even more valuable for people living inside the Adirondacks. This is a region whose economic fate depends on outside people and their capital—either visitors or, tragically, prisoners. And to move forward as a region, it is important for locals to learn the cultural history and vocabulary of "the philosophers," even if the favor is not always returned. * Environmental history *Table of ContentsIntroduction: Amid the RuinsPart I. Nature and Society 1. Path to the Adirondacks 2. Turning Points 3. The Crayon 4. "Adieu to the World" 5. The Artist Reborn 6. Trial Run 7. The Procession to the PinesPart II. The Camp and Club 8. Acclimating to the Wild 9. The Worthy Crew Chaucer Never Had 10. Ampersand [Color Plates] 11. The Inaugural MeetingPart III. Campfire Lore 12. War 13. Peace 14. The Ravages of Modern Improvement 15. The Old America and the NewConclusion: The Story RebornPostscriptNotes Select Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisIn The Eye of the Sandpiper, Brandon Keim pairs cutting-edge science with a deep love of nature, conveying his insights in prose that is both accessible and beautiful. In an elegant, thoughtful tour of nature in the twenty-first century, Keim continues in the tradition of Lewis Thomas, Stephen Jay Gould, and David Quammen, reporting from the frontiers of science while celebrating the natural world's wonders and posing new questions about our relationship to the rest of life on Earth. The stories in The Eye of the Sandpiper are arranged in four thematic sections. Each addresses nature through a different lens. The first is evolutionary and ecological dynamics, from how patterns form on butterfly wings to the ecological importance of oft-reviled lampreys. The second section explores the inner lives of animals, which science has only recently embraced: empathy in rats, emotions in honeybees, spirituality in chimpanzees. The third section contains stories of people Trade ReviewProvides accessible and beautifully written food for thought for ecologists. * The Quarterly Review of Biology *Table of ContentsIntroduction: Trees of LifePart I. DynamicsOrganized Chaos Makes the Beauty of a ButterflyChickadees, Mutations, and the Thermodynamics of LifeThe Photosynthetic SalamanderHuman Evolution Enters an Exciting New Phase"Parallel Universe" of Life Described Far beneath the Bottom of the SeaAt the Edge of Invasion, Possible New Rules for EvolutionA Mud-Loving, Iron-Lunged, Jelly-Eating Ecosystem SaviorRedeeming the LampreyDecoding Nature's SoundtrackPart II. Inner LivesBeing a SandpiperMonogamy Helps Geese Reduce StressWhat Pigeons Teach Us about LoveChimps and the Zen of Falling WaterHow City Living Is Reshaping the Brains and Behavior of Urban AnimalsReconsider the Rat: The New Science of a Reviled RodentMonkeys See Selves in Mirror, Open a Barrel of QuestionsThe New AnthropomorphismHoneybees Might Have EmotionsPart III. IntersectionsA Day in the Life of NYC’s Hospital for Wild BirdsNew Yorkers in Uproar over Planned Mass Killing of SwansAn Eel Swims in the BronxOn Waldman’s PondThe Return of the RiverA Chimp’s Day in Court: Inside the Historic Demand for Nonhuman RightsChimpanzee Rights Get a Day in CourtMedical Experimentation on Chimps Is Nearing an End. But What about Monkeys?I, CockroachPart IV. EthicsThe Improbable BeeThe Ethics of Urban BeekeepingThe Wild, Secret Life of New York CityEarth Is Not a GardenAdd a Few Species. Pull Down the Fences. Step Back.Feral Cats vs. Conservation: A TruceShould Animals Have a Right to Privacy?When Climate Change Blinds UsTo Bring Back Extinct Species, We’ll Need to Change Our OwnSeptember 11, Fall Migration, and Occupy Wall StreetMaking Sense of 7 Billion People

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Book SynopsisThe Comstocks of Cornell is the autobiography written by the naturalist educator Anna Botsford Comstock about her life and that of her husband, the entomologist John Henry Comstockboth prominent figures in the scientific community and in Cornell University history. A first edition was published in 1953, but it omitted key Cornellians, historical anecdotes, and personal insights. In this twenty-first-century edition, Karen Penders St. Clair restores the author''s voice by reconstructing the entire manuscript as Anna Comstock wrote itand thereby preserves Comstock''s memories of the personal and professional lives of the couple as she originally intended. The book includes an epilogue documenting the Comstocks'' last years and fills in gaps from the 1953 edition. Described as serious legacy work, this book is an essential part of the history of both Cornell University and its press.Trade ReviewCurrently an independent scholar based in Rochester, New York, St. Clair hopes the upcoming volume will give readers a better sense of what Anna was truly like, beyond the familiar tropes of her status as Cornell's first female professor, a leading scientific illustrator, and an early advocate of nature education. * Cornell Alumni Magazine *Table of Contents1. The Boyhood of John Henry Comstock, 1849-1865 2. A Sailor and a Scholar 3. Undergraduate Days at Cornell, 1870-1874 4. Anna Botsford-Childhood and Girlhood 5. A University Professorship and Marriage, 1876-1879 6. Entomologist to U.S. Department of Agriculture (Life in Washington as United States Entomologist, 1879-1881) 7. Return to Cornell 8. The Year 1888-1889; With a Winter in Germany 9. California and Stanford University 10. The Nature Study Movement at Cornell University; A Journey South to Study Spiders 11. "How to Know Butterflies" and the "Confessions to a Heathen Idol" 12. A Sabbatical Year Abroad-Egypt and Greece 13. Italy, Switzerland, and Home 14. Chapter 15: 1908-1912, Cornell's New Quarters for Entomology and Nature Study 15. The Two hundred and Fiftieth-anniversary Celebration of the Royal Society and The International Entomological Congress 16. The 65th Milestone and Retirement 17. Florida and Retirement 18. The Toronto Meeting of the A.A.A.S. 1922. A surprising election and voyage westward. 19. Honolulu and Happiness, A Voyage to Europe 20. Mentone Editor's Epilogue

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Book SynopsisCosta Rica is much more than a verdant paradise. It''s a land of diverse landscapes and cultures. This collection of regional guides reveals unknown facets of Costa Rica and helps travelers understand what makes this country so unique.This volume introduces the Caribbean coast, which offers an embarrassment of riches. Pristine rainforests, waterways, and turtle nesting sites attract tourists to Tortuguero in the north, while tropical waters, charming hotels, and Afro-Caribbean culture draw visitors to the south.Includes a colorful fold-out map of key tourist destinations.Table of ContentsBetween Two Waters The Land of Sibö The Railroad Index Credits

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Book SynopsisBird Talk delves into new scientific developments to reveal the complexities of how birds make, learn, and use sound in a bewildering array of songs and calls. The beauty of birdsong is one of the joys of nature, and this book reveals how songs are learnt and performed, why the quality of a male''s repertoire can affect his mating success, and how birds use song-matching and countersinging in territorial disputes. Bird Talk illustrates how birds communicate through visual signals too, from the dazzling feathers of a Peacock to the jumping displays a Jackson''s Widowbird performs to show off his long tail. Plumage features such as the red bill shield of a Pukeko can indicate dominance, and how aggressive wing-waving is used to ward off impostors.Bird Talk will help you understand how birds communicate in a range of situations, whether in harmony or in conflict, providing essential new insight into avian intelligence.Trade ReviewI highly recommend this book for anyone who is passionate about ornithology and birding, and interested in expanding their knowledge about the different ways that birds communicate, as well as the impacts of human activity on birdsong and other behavior. * San Francisco Book Review *Bird Talk: An Exploration of Avian Communication is a very good and surprisingly relatively inexpensive way to expand one's knowledge of birds and what we know about how they communicate by song, movement, physical appearance, and smell. [The book makes] scientific information easily available, effortless to read and process, primarily through the use of stunning visual material to engage our eyes and spike our interest. * 10,000 Birds *

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Book SynopsisThis fully updated second edition of the best-selling Weeds of the Northeast provides lavish illustrations for ready identification of more than 500 common and economically important weeds in the Northeast and in the Upper Midwest and Mid-Atlantic states. This new edition covers the region south to North Carolina, north to Maine and southern Canada, and west to Wisconsin. This practical guide includes descriptions and photos of floral and vegetative characteristics, giving anyone who works with plants the ability to identify weeds before they flower. A broadened range and prevalence of important weeds in the Northeast, as well as the Upper Midwest and Mid-Atlantic United States Standardized species descriptions with a wealth of information in a condensed and comprehensive formatmore than 200 new species accounts Easy identification through a dichotomous key, detailed descriptions, and images Comparison tables make it easy to diffTrade ReviewA detailed and user-friendly guide. * The American Gardener *Highly recommend. * Horticulture *Lavishly illustrated and exceptionally well-done. * Taxon 47 *This distinctive book will be welcomed in a library, school, garden club, as a gift for friends, and definitely as a copy for yourself. * News of the Federated Garden Clubs of New York State *

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Book SynopsisTable of ContentsIntroduction Setting Out Part I: Stone, Water, Fire Granite Obsidian Roof Pendants Brokenness Clouds Snow Glacier River Forest Fire Part II: Range of Life Bighorn Aspen Paintbrush Whitebark Pine and Clark's Nutcracker Pileated Woodpecker Belding's Ground Squirrel Mountain Chickadee Mountain Yellow-Legged Frog Western Tanager Sierra Nevada Parnassian Wolf Lichen Epilogue

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Book SynopsisThe definitive work on Minnesota’s natural history and ecology—updated, expanded, and copiously illustrated to account for profound changes to the state’s natural landscape over the past twenty-five years The story of Minnesota’s natural landscape, reaching back to the time of the glaciers, covers at least 12,000 years. Yet even against that vast expanse, recent decades have significantly transformed the natural world that is Minnesota’s greatest resource. In the twenty-five years since the first publication of Minnesota’s Natural Heritage, the definitive volume on the state’s natural history and ecology, human activity and climate change have profoundly altered the major ecosystems that give our state its rich and varied character. The second edition of Minnesota’s Natural Heritage introduces readers to these ecosystems—the lakes and rivers, forests and prairies, farmlands and wetlands—and explains how they have come to be, how they function, and how they have changed so rapidly and dramatically in recent years. Full-color illustrations document the state’s striking natural beauty in all its vigor and fragility, while maps, drawings, diagrams, and graphs amplify points of historical, ecological, and geological interest. The most complete treatment of Minnesota’s natural environment, compiled and accessibly written by scientists whose collective knowledge spans the book’s expansive content, Minnesota’s Natural Heritage is the one indispensable companion for both visitors and inhabitants, as enlightening to page through as it is valuable to study.Trade Review"Anyone with a deep affection for Minnesota’s natural resources, highly seasonal and variable climate, diverse ecosystems, and beautiful landscapes should read the second edition of Minnesota’s Natural Heritage. This book chronicles the evolution of our state’s natural systems and the challenges of sustainably managing them in the context of climate change. It should be part of every home reference library."—Mark Seeley, author of Minnesota Weather Almanac"This second edition of Minnesota's Natural Heritage is just as engaging as the first and is supported with beautiful photos, illustrations, and graphs. But now readers learn of new and serious threats facing Minnesota’s prairies, forests, and waters. Will we restore and protect this natural legacy for future generations? For anyone who cares about nature, this book is a must read."—Peggy Ladner, former director, The Nature Conservancy in Minnesota"Dr. Tester was my favorite professor at the University of Minnesota. I bought his book’s first edition immediately when it came out, and I have waited with anticipation for the update. It does not disappoint. His immense knowledge of ecology and of Minnesota are in full display and in a voice that everyone can understand. Outstanding!"—Tom Landwehr, executive director, Campaign to Save the Boundary Waters"John R. Tester and colleagues’ new edition inspires Minnesotans—and others who appreciate this great state—with information about our precious natural resources, including ways to protect and restore them from long-standing environmental problems and new challenges such as climate change. The book explores each of the biomes in Minnesota, listing the species and ecology one can find there and the ways we can work to restore its glory."—Jessica Hellmann, director, Institute on the Environment, University of Minnesota"Well organized and infused with amazing photographs of the landscape and wildlife that makes this area so special."—Rochester Post-Bulletin "With lovely photos, illustrations, and tables of information, this is a great book for the cabin owner or traveling summer cabin user to enjoy whether checking a specific topic or settling down with a long read."—Ely Echo"The book takes definitive looks at our landscape, climate and weather, forests, prairie, wet-lands, lakes, streams and rivers. It concludes with important comment on the future of this marvelous state, and how we should care for it."—Star Tribune Table of ContentsContentsPreface to the Second EditionPreface to the First EditionAcknowledgments1. The LandscapeGeologic HistoryChanging Landscapes Since GlaciationThe Present Landscape2. Climate and WeatherSolar RadiationTemperaturePrecipitationCloudsWindObserved Climate Change3. Principles of EcologyEnvironmentEcosystem Structure and FunctionPopulations and Communities4. Deciduous ForestDeciduous Forest EcologyAnimals and Community InteractionsForest Management and Conservation in Minnesota5. Northern Coniferous ForestNorthern Coniferous Forest EcologyAnimals and Community InteractionsPresent Status of the Northern Coniferous Forest6. Tallgrass PrairiePrairie Forest BorderTallgrass Prairie EcologyAnimals and Community InteractionsPresent Status of the Tallgrass Prairie7. WetlandsPrairie WetlandsAnimals and Community Interactions in Prairie WetlandsPeatlandsAnimals and Community Interactions in PeatlandsOther Wetlands Occurring in MinnesotaPresent Status of Wetlands8. LakesFormation and DistributionPhysical and Chemical CharacteristicsLake CommunitiesEcosystem FunctionAnimals and Community InteractionsMinnesota’s LakesPresent Status of Minnesota’s Lakes9. Streams and RiversOrigins of Streams and RiversPhysical and Chemical CharacteristicsStream CommunitiesEcosystem FunctionRiver Continuum ConceptAnimals and Community InteractionsMinnesota’s Streams and RiversPresent Status of Minnesota’s Streams and Rivers10. The FutureStemming Habitat LossFeeding a Growing Human Population SustainablyAdapting to a Changing ClimateReversing the Spread of Invasive SpeciesReducing Damaging Chemicals in the EnvironmentRecovering Threatened Species PopulationsPlanning Statewide Conservation ActionRestoring EcosystemsA Perspective to Live WithAppendixesA. Counties and Major Rivers in MinnesotaB. Trees and Shrubs Found in MinnesotaC. Common Herbs Found in MinnesotaD. Mammals Found in MinnesotaE. Birds Breeding in MinnesotaF. Amphibians and Reptiles Found in MinnesotaG. Fishes Found in MinnesotaH. Metric Equivalents of English Weights and MeasuresLiterature CitedPermissionsIndex

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Book SynopsisA soul-satisfying journey through the wilderness that uncovers hope, healing, and the abiding grace of wild things A Wild Path is author Douglas Wood’s highly anticipated followup to the critically acclaimed memoir Deep Woods, Wild Waters. He again leads readers along a meditative path through a wilderness of many dimensions—from the lakes and islands of his beloved Canoe Country to rugged ocean coasts to a mountain chasm, from camping on the Canadian Shield to listening to the soft strains of Beethoven in the pines, and from the pain of childhood wounds to appreciation for a life rich with nature. As on every good journey, there is plenty of laughter, warmth, and humor on the trail. With the generosity and compassion of a good wilderness guide, Douglas Wood welcomes readers to accompany him as he navigates his life-path from struggling student and “worst reader in the class” to prolific writer and best-selling author. He offers courage and hope to those who feel different or left behind, and he shares how he found, through the counsel of rocks, trees, and waters, his own way toward joy and wonder and an unshakable sense of belonging. Exploring the meanings of myriad outdoor experiences, Wood seeks to understand the importance and existence of beauty, the emotional poignancy of a wilderness sunset, and the realization of dreams, while also honoring his outdoor and literary mentors, including Sigurd Olson and Aldo Leopold. Traveling across continents, over oceans, and through the landscape of time, A Wild Path ranges from solitary shorelines of introspection to peaks of triumph, finding rest and tranquility in a simple cup of jasmine tea, sipped by a campfire under the stars. Trade Review "There’s a world between these covers—a world of truth, grace, and beauty where gravity keeps your feet on the ground and levity lifts your spirit high. It’s a world of many dimensions: the challenge of the North Woods and the comfort of Beethoven in the pines, the glories of the night sky and the trustworthy wisdom of elders, the savvy to canoe the wilderness for weeks and the compassion to lift the spirits of children who weep because they are ‘different,’ all laced with the humor that is the spice of life. This world exists because Douglas Wood has the experience and the gifts required to bring it to life, giving his readers a chance to dwell in it for a while and return refreshed, even healed, to their own lives. That’s why I’ve been reading him for twenty years. Doug’s gifts are many, reaching beyond writing and illustrating to speaking, making music, and guiding wilderness expeditions. But what I value most about him is his artistry at being human, fully and simply human. I've returned to this book time and again to refresh my own humanity. I'd bet good money that you'll find yourself doing the same."—Parker J. Palmer, author of On the Brink of Everything, Let Your Life Speak, The Courage to Teach, and Healing the Heart of Democracy "The magic and awe of the natural world, childhood challenges and love of family, and the redemption of the wilderness are all shared by Douglas Wood in his new collection, A Wild Path. Doug writes with bravery and honesty about childhood traumas, learning difficulties, bouts with depression, and how the ‘therapy of wilderness’ brought peace, perspective, and feelings of self-worth. You’ll find yourself laughing, crying, and breathing in the forest air while reading Doug’s stories. You might even discover yourself in these essays, through the gentle, understanding, and insightful words of Douglas Wood."—Patsy Mogush, president, Listening Point Foundation "In his compelling collection of essays, A Wild Path, Douglas Wood provides an intimate and revealing portrait of his relationship with nature, and the family and friends who are part of his life’s journey. In a lifetime spent close to the natural world, he found the therapy of wilderness—what he calls the ‘psychology of green things’ and the ‘counseling of rocks.’ He was rescued through the process of loving—and learning to share his love of—wild places and wild things. Wood’s love of wild nature is expressed in every page and essay."—Chris Knopf, executive director, Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness "Douglas Wood’s A Wild Path reaches deep into the heart—his, mine, and surely yours as well. His stories reflect the lives of our generation drawn to the woods and lakes of the North and toward a simpler life. They are stories of a life well-lived, told in such vivid detail they will give you pause to reflect on the stories and meanings of your own life."—Steve Piragis, co-owner, Piragis Northwoods Company "In A Wild Path, Douglas Wood captures the magic, wonder, and awe of experiencing the wilderness. This collection of essays is honest, authentic, and laugh-out-loud funny. A real treat."—Rebecca Otto, executive director, Ernest C. Oberholtzer Foundation "Ever the expert naturalist, guide, and storyteller, Douglas Wood alternates between captivating prose and lyrical poetry in A Wild Path. One moment Doug takes us on a strenuous paddle across big water and in the next, a gentle stroll under towering pines. Every essay connects, or reconnects, us with family and friends, flora and fauna, and all the beauties of this vast and vibrant world."—Buddy Huffaker, executive director, Aldo Leopold Foundation "Douglas Wood has always been able to express the magic in this world like no one else I know. He sees relationships between the grand and all-encompassing and the simplest of things. Every essay in this book, from raucous hilarity to serious contemplation—the ironies, the wisdom, the guffaws, and the tears from those beautiful places in Doug’s heart—seems a personal gift to me. I suspect that will be the case for all who read it."—Denny Olson, writer, teacher, actor, and naturalist "This is a great book. Through its stories Douglas Wood helps us perceive the worlds within and beyond the surfaces of Earth—and there, ‘in the company of trees,’ as he puts it, to discover health and hope."—Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods and Our Wild Calling "As a writer, Douglas Wood is like John Burroughs in his vivid descriptions of the natural world. But in his delightful storytelling style and mastery of his craft, he is akin to Mark Twain."—Marlene Warren Ehresman, founder and executive director, Iowa Wildlife Center "This is a book filled with fun and fascinating tales, but it also contains lessons that, once learned, are as valuable outside the wilderness as within it. A Wild Path is far more than just a journey into wild places. It is a journey into living a full life, written with skill and insight."—Michael Furtman, outdoor writer and photographer "A Wild Path is as good as it gets for capturing the essence of the wilderness experience and inspiring us all to explore our own pathways into the wild."—Stuart Osthoff, publisher, Boundary Waters Journal

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Book SynopsisA richly illustrated tour of Minnesota’s premier natural history museum after 150 years From its humble start in 1872 as a one-room cabinet of curiosities, the University of Minnesota’s Bell Museum of natural history has grown to be one of the state’s most important cultural institutions. Within its walls are displayed the natural wonders of Minnesota and the world beyond, a standing invitation to explore, understand, and appreciate our natural environment—and, for visitors of all ages, both seasoned observers and curious onlookers, to experience the delight of discovery. A Natural Curiosity is a tale well told, a lively ride across 150 years of important scientific advancement. Drawing on a wealth of materials unearthed during the museum’s recent move to its new building, this gorgeously illustrated book chronicles the remarkable discoveries, moments, and personalities that have made the Bell Museum what it is today. Among the stories of ornithologists, botanists, tycoons, and conservationists, readers will encounter the magnificent dioramas created by renowned artist Francis Lee Jaques, the adventures behind some of the Bell’s more curious specimens (like the bones of Philippine orangutans and moonrats, a high-flying moose, and a simple fungi sample that saved a man’s life), and the dramatic accounts of the critical advances made by the museum in wildlife telemetry, conservation biology, and scientific learning—all in defense of our planet’s threatened biodiversity. In a photographic finale, readers will be treated to a tour of the new, reimagined museum, complete with the planetarium that inspired one Minnesota boy to become a NASA astronaut.From its conception as part of a state-mandated geological and natural history survey, to its most recent ventures into technology, environmental science, and DNA sequencing, the Bell Museum has informed, explained, and expanded our relationship to the natural world. Its story, engagingly told in A Natural Curiosity, reveals and explores the profound changes undergone by society, science, and the natural landscape over the museum’s lifetime.Trade Review"The book is beautiful, with full-color pages packed with illustrations and photos."—Racket"Drawing on a wealth of materials unearthed during the museum’s recent move to its new building, this gorgeously illustrated book chronicles the remarkable discoveries, moments, and personalities that have made the Bell Museum what it is today."—The Timberjay"The story of this natural history museum is well told in the lavishly illustrated volume."—Minnesota Alumni"This volume documenting the 150-year history of the University of Minnesota's Bell Museum is a must for your coffee table so you can easily dip into the stories behind our state's only natural history museum."—MSP Home & Design"A Natural Curiosity serves as a well-written and abundantly illustrated introduction to the history of the Bell Museum."—H-Net ReviewsTable of ContentsContentsForewordFord W. BellIntroductionBell Museum Timeline1. A Museum is Born, 1872–1940Documenting Minnesota: The Geological and Natural History SurveyThe Menage Expedition: How Orangutan Bones Landed in the Bell Museum CollectionsJosephine Tilden: Paving the Way for Women in ScienceT. S. Roberts: Naturalist, Doctor, DirectorMaking a Museum for the Public: The Early Dioramas2. Growing an Institution, 1920s–1950sThe Many Talents of Walter BreckenridgeEarly Public Education: Reaching “the whole people . . .”James Ford Bell: The Man Behind the NameHeyday of the Dioramas: Windows into NatureTaking Flight: The Artistic Journey of Francis Lee Jaques3. Wildlife Explorations, 1940s–1980sAt the Poles: Arctic and Antarctic ResearchThe Bride Wore . . . Boots?Migrations: The Life and Times of Dwain WarnerTracking Nature: The Rise of Wildlife TelemetryMystery of the Missing Toads4. The Museum in the Environmental Era, 1960s–1990sTouch and See: Pioneering Hands-On LearningPublic Programs: From Education to EngagementInterpreting Nature: The Student Guide ProgramFrom Student Guide to College ProfessorMaking Movies: Reaching a Bigger AudienceHoneybees on the Roof: Sweetening Science EducationWidening the Inquiry: Bringing together Ecology, Evolution, and BehaviorNature vs Nurture: Frank McKinney and the Evolution of Animal BehaviorMinnesota’s Rarest: Naming the State’s Endangered Flora and FaunaFlight of the Peregrine: Bud Tordoff and the Return of an Endangered SpeciesArt and Natural History: The Evolution of a LegacyScience through the Lens of Art: Resident Artists at the BellChange Comes to the “Eternal” Museum: Temporary and Traveling Exhibits5. Rediscovering the Collections, 1980s–2022Collections offer Clues to Environmental ChallengesA Botanical Treasure: The University of Minnesota HerbariumThe DNA Revolution Comes to the Bell MuseumRe-thinking the Tree of LifeBell Museum Scientists on the Global StageBiodiversity Research: Understanding Life’s Threatened Diversity100 Years Later: Minnesota Updates its Natural History SurveyCollections Go Online6. A Museum for the Twenty-first Century, 1990s–2022Saving an Endangered Museum: Surviving and Thriving in a University SettingFrom the Earth to the Cosmos: The Journey of Minnesota’s PlanetariumThe Ride of His LifeThe Road to a Re-Imagined MuseumDesigning with Nature: The Bell Museum’s New HomeMoving Minnesota: Dioramas in a New HabitatThe Experience: A Journey through TimeAfterwordDenise YoungAcknowledgmentsAppendixesThe Bell DioramasSelect Exhibitions at the Bell MuseumPublications of the Bell MuseumSelect ReferencesContributorsIndex

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Book SynopsisAmid the historical decimation of species around the globe, a new way into the language of loss An endling is the last known individual of a species; when that individual dies, the species becomes extinct. These “last individuals” are poignant characters in the stories that humans tell themselves about today’s Anthropocene. In this evocative work, Lydia Pyne explores how discussion about endlings—how we tell their histories—draws on deep traditions of storytelling across a variety of narrative types that go well beyond the science of these species’ biology or their evolutionary history.Endlings provides a useful and thoughtful discussion of species concepts: how species start and how (and why) they end, what it means to be a “charismatic” species, the effects of rewilding, and what makes species extinction different in this era. From Benjamin the thylacine to Celia the ibex to Lonesome George the Galápagos tortoise, endlings, Pyne shows, have the power to shape how we think about grief, mourning, and loss amid the world’s sixth mass extinction.

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Book SynopsisA personal journey through the ever-changing natural and cultural history of Lake Superior’s South Shore Lake Superior’s South Shore is as malleable as it is enduring, its red sandstone cliffs, clay bluffs, and golden sand beaches reshaped by winds and water from season to season—and sometimes from one hour to the next. Generations of people have inhabited the South Shore, harvesting the forests and fish, mining copper, altering the land for pleasure and profit, for better or worse. In Impermanence, author Sue Leaf explores the natural and human histories that make the South Shore what it is, from the gritty port city of Superior, Wisconsin, to the shipping locks at Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. For Leaf, what began as a bicycling adventure on the coast of Lake Superior in 1977 turned into a lifelong connection with the area, and her experience, not least as owner of a rustic cabin on a rapidly eroding lakeside cliff, imbues these essays with a passionate sense of place and an abiding curiosity about its past and precarious future. As waves slowly consume the shoreline where her family has spent countless summers, Leaf is forced to confront the complexity of loving a place that all too quickly is being reclaimed by the great lake. Impermanence is a journey through the South Shore’s story, from the early days of the Anishinaabe and fur traders through the heyday of commercial fishing, lumber camps, and copper mining on the Keweenaw Peninsula to the awakening of the Northland to the perils and consequences of plundering its natural splendor. Noting the geological, ecological, and cultural features of each stop on her tour along the South Shore, Leaf writes about the restoration of the heavily touristed Apostle Islands National Lakeshore to its pristine conditions, even as Lake Superior maintains its allure for ice fishers, kayakers, and long-distance swimmers. She describes efforts to protect the endangered piping plover and to preserve the diverse sand dunes on the Michigan coast, and she observes the slough that supports rare intact wild rice beds central to Anishinaabe culture. Part memoir, part travelogue, part natural and cultural history, Leaf’s love letter to Lake Superior’s South Shore is an invitation to see this liminal world in all its seasons and guises, to appreciate its ageless, ever-changing wonders and intimate charms. Trade Review "Sue Leaf's Impermanence is a fascinating combination of personal memoir, natural history, and cultural history. She writes beautifully about Lake Superior's South Shore and its forests, wetlands, and peoples. Her reflections on her family cabin on Lake Superior, and her grief about its potential loss from bluff erosion due to climate change, are particularly evocative. Anyone who loves Lake Superior will find this book rewarding."—Nancy Langston, author of Sustaining Lake Superior and Climate Ghosts "Sue Leaf has given us a gift: a vivid and meticulously researched portrait of one of the most remarkable freshwater coasts in the world. I thought I knew the place well, but I learned something new and fascinating on nearly every page."—Jerry Dennis, author of The Living Great Lakes: Searching for the Heart of the Inland Seas and The Windward Shore: A Winter on the Great Lakes

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Book SynopsisStories from survivors of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness’s epochal weather disaster On July 4, 1999, in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW), a bizarre confluence of meteorological events resulted in the most damaging blowdown in the region’s history. Originating over the Dakotas, the midsummer windstorm developed amid unusually high heat and water-saturated forests and moved steadily east, bearing down on Fargo, North Dakota, and damaging land as it crossed the Minnesota border. Gunflint Falling tells the story of this devastating storm from the perspectives of those who were on the ground before, during, and after the catastrophic event—from first-time visitors to the north woods to returning paddlers to Forest Service Rangers. The pre-dawn forecasts from the National Weather Service in Duluth for that Sunday of the holiday weekend predicted the day would be “warm and humid. Partly sunny with a thirty percent chance of thunderstorms.” But as the afternoon and evening settled over the Boundary Waters, the first eyewitness accounts began to tell a dramatic and terrifying story. Five friends camping on Lake Polly watched in wonder as the sky turned green and the winds began to whip. They scrambled to pull canoes on shore and secure tarps when a tree snapped and struck one of them in the head, rendering her unconscious. Three women enjoying their last day of a camping trip near the end of the Gunflint Trail took shelter in their tent as winds increased. Water drenched the nylon walls as trees crashed around them, one flattening the tent and pinning a woman beneath its weight. A family vacationing at their cabin dodged falling trees and strained against straight-line winds as they sprinted from the cabin to the safest place they knew: a crawl space underneath it. They watched in awe as trees snapped and toppled, their twisted root balls torn out of the water-logged earth—as they prayed their cabin would hold. By the time the storm began to subside, falling trees had injured approximately sixty people, and most needed to be medevacked to safety. Amazingly, no one died. The historic storm laid down timber that would later blaze in the Ham Lake fire of 2007, ultimately reshaping the region’s forests in ways we have yet to fully understand. Trade Review "Cary J. Griffith makes full use of his impressive talents for interviewing people to obtain truly interesting and previously unknown perspectives and details on the 1999 blowdown. He skillfully weaves these interviews into a complex and captivating story that conveys how incredible this event was and why it deserves a prominent place in Minnesota’s history."—Lee E. Frelich, director, Center for Forest Ecology, University of Minnesota "In the tradition of The Perfect Storm, Cary J. Griffith brings readers into the Boundary Waters moment by moment as an epic gale sweeps through. Ample maps and in-depth interviews with witnesses both immerse us in one terrifying day and offer a glimpse of the past and future of Minnesota’s boreal forest."—Kim Todd, author of Sensational: The Hidden History of America’s “Girl Stunt Reporters” "In Gunflint Falling, Cary J. Griffith provides an accurate, comprehensive narrative of those impacted by one of the region’s most devastating storms. The damage and pain brought by the derecho storm was more severe than anything previously experienced in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. The reader is taken into the personal experiences of the injured and those searching for them for fourteen days in the million-acre wilderness, and Griffith’s narrative of these experiences demonstrates how, when faced with an emergency, we come together to help one another."—Jim Sanders, retired forest supervisor, Superior National Forest (1996-2011), USDA Forest Service

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Book SynopsisThis title features the career-spanning tales of a coastal crimefighter, ranging from the dangerous to the hilarious.Moise served with distinction as a South Carolina game warden for nearly a quarter century, patrolling the coastal woods and waters of the Palmetto State. In this colorful memoir, the cigar-chomping, ticket-writing scourge of lowcountry fish and game law violators chronicles grueling stakeouts, complex trials, hair-raising adventures, and daily interactions with a host of outrageous personalities. Along the way he paints a vivid and fluid portrait of evolving attitudes and changing regulations governing coastal conservation.In briskly paced accounts of episodes ranging from dangerous to humorous, he introduces a lively cast of watermen, lawyers, country judges, hunters, and poachers who animate the coastal environs and whose quirky personalities and foibles are the game warden's daily stock in trade. Moise's narrative highlights the working lives of commercial crabbers and shrimpers, the antics of overly enthusiastic fishermen, and the great lengths to which hunters will go in their quests for doves, ducks, and marsh hens. Moise also describes encounters with displaced ""urban wildlife,"" the coastal marijuana smuggling business, and his fellow game wardens.The memoir also features a foreword by Lloyd Newberry, celebrated hunter and senior editor of ""Sporting Classics Magazine"".

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Book SynopsisSince Roy Bedichek's influential ""Adventures with a Texas Naturalist"", no book has attempted to explore the uniqueness of Texas nature, or reflected the changes in the human landscape that have accelerated since Bedichek's time. ""Pride of Place"" updates Bedichek's discussion by acknowledging the increased urbanization and the loss of wildspace in today's state. It joins other recent collections of regional nature writing while demonstrating what makes Texas uniquely diverse. These fourteen essays are held together by the story of Texas pride - the sense that from West Texas to the Coastal Plains, the people and the landscape are bold and unique. This book addresses all the major regions of Texas. Beginning with Roy Bedichek's essay ""Still Water,"" it includes Carol Cullar and Barbara ""Barney"" Nelson on the Rio Grande region of West Texas, John Graves's evocative ""Kindred Spirits"" on Central Texas, Joe Nick Patoski's celebration of Hill Country springs, Pete Gunter on the Piney Woods, David Taylor on North Texas, Gary Clark and Gerald Thurmond on the Coastal Plains, Ray Gonzales and Marian Haddad on El Paso, Stephen Harrigan and Wyman Meinzer on West Texas, and Naomi Shihab Nye on urban San Antonio. This anthology will appeal not only to those interested in regional history, natural history, and the environmental issues Texans face, but also to all who say gladly, ""I'm from Texas.

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Book SynopsisAlthough spare, sweeping landscapes may appear "empty," plains and prairies afford a rich, unique aesthetic experience—one of quiet sunrises and dramatic storms, hidden treasures and abundant wildlife, infinite horizons and omnipresent wind, all worthy of contemplation and celebration. In this series of narratives, photographs, and hand-drawn maps, Tyra Olstad blends scholarly research with first-hand observation to explore topics such as wildness and wilderness, travel and tourism, preservation and conservation, expectations and acceptance, and even dreams and reality in the context of parks, prairies, and wild, open places. In so doing, she invites readers to reconsider the meaning of "emptiness" and ask larger, deeper questions such as: how do people experience the world? How do we shape places and how do places shape us? Above all, what does it mean to experience that exhilarating effect known as Zen of the plains?

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Book SynopsisExpanded and updated hiking guide to the Monadnock region featuring all new maps for each hike!

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Book SynopsisIn the United States, two-thirds of lands are private, and 85 percent of all wildlife is found on these private lands. Who is responsible for wildlife found on private lands - the government, who has the authority to manage wildlife on behalf of all citizens, or the landowners? How can governments carry out their management mission without encroaching on the property rights of landowners? How can landowners be encouraged to manage and preserve wildlife? The authors attempt to answer these questions, examining ways that public and private sectors can work together considering ways governments and landowners can be good stewards of the public's wildlife using recreation, tax advantages, and cost shares as incentives.Trade Review... a thought-provoking book about a topic that is increasingly important. It will be very useful for conservationists, landowners, hunters, wildlife watchers, biologists, land managers, and policy-makers who must face the thorny issues of individual versus collective rights. - The Quarterly Review of Biology

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Book SynopsisThe San Marcos springs have flowed for around ten million years. In this ode to the river they form, Jim Kimmel brings us a picture of a watercourse brimming with life, past and present. Native, non-native, prehistoric, and modern-day plants, animals, and people have inhabited the river and its banks. Kimmel touches on them all with the affectionate and knowledgeable voice of one whose own life has been closely linked to the San Marcos. As readers journey with Kimmel from the river's headwater springs to its junction with the Guadalupe River, ""The San Marcos: A River's Story"" will capture the imagination and provide valuable information about the river and its crucial role in the ecological health of Texas. Original photographs by Jerry Touchstone Kimmel add a sense of the beauty and complexity of the river.

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Book SynopsisIn ""The Emerald Horizon"", Cornelia Mutel combines lyrical writing with meticulous scientific research to portray the environmental past, present, and future of Iowa. In doing so, she ties all of Iowa's natural features into one comprehensive whole.Since so much of the tallgrass state has been transformed into an agricultural landscape, Mutel focuses on understanding today's natural environment by understanding yesterday's changes. After summarizing the geological, archaeological, and ecological features that shaped Iowa's modern landscape, she recreates the once-wild native communities that existed prior to Euroamerican settlement. Next she examines the dramatic changes that overtook native plant and animal communities as Iowa's prairies, woodlands, and wetlands were transformed. Finally she presents realistic techniques for restoring native species and ecological processes as well as a broad variety of ways in which Iowans can reconnect with the natural world. Throughout, in addition to the many illustrations commissioned for this book, she offers careful scientific exposition, a strong sense of respect for the land, and encouragement to protect the future by learning from the past.The ""emerald prairie"" that ""gleamed and shone to the horizon's edge,"" as botanist Thomas Macbride described it in 1895, has vanished. Cornelia Mutel's passionate dedication to restoring this damaged landscape - and by extension the transformed landscape of the entire Corn Belt - invigorates her blend of natural history and human history. Believing that citizens who are knowledgeable about native species, communities, and ecological processes will better care for them, she gives us hope - and sound suggestions - for the future.

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Book SynopsisThe Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument covers 1.7 million acres in southern Utah, offering the hiker an experience of deep solitude surrounded by a wealth of geological, biological, and archaeological treasures. Hiking the Escalante opens the door to exploration of this highly scenic area of meandering canyons with relatively few marked trails.It lists fifty hikes by degree of difficulty and includes directions to trailheads, instructions for how to follow particular routes, choices of side canyons along the way, suggestions for loop hikes, and occasional alternative destinations. Along with hike descriptions, the book provides information on the geology, natural history, and human history of the area. This new edition contains seven new hikes, new photographs, and updated information about hike terrain.

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Book SynopsisThirty-five years and many acres after planting his first patch of prairie flowers, Carl Kurtz is considered one of the deans of the great tallgrass prairie revival. The Prairie Enthusiast called the 2001 edition of his book a “readable and understandable introduction to prairie and the general steps in carrying out a reconstruction.” Now this second edition reflects his increased experience with reconstructing and restoring prairie grasslands.Kurtz has completely revised every chapter of the first edition, from site selection and harvest to soil preparation, seeding, postplanting mowing, burning, and growth and development. He has written new chapters on establishing prairie in old pastureland and on the judicious use of herbicides, including a table that shows particular problem species, the types of herbicides that are most effective at controlling them, and the timing and method of treatment. New photographs illustrate species and steps, and Kurtz has expanded the question-and-answer section and updated the references and the section on midwestern seed sources and services.Tallgrass prairie is critical wildlife habitat and an important element in flood control and stream water treatment. The process of reconstructing and restoring prairie grasslands has made great strides in recent decades. Carl Kurtz’s indispensable, step-by-step guide to creating a diverse and well-established prairie community provides both directions and encouragement for individual landowners as well as land managers working with government agencies and nonprofit organizations that have taken up the task of reconstructing and restoring native grasslands.

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Book SynopsisA journey through the natural world of New England, with an expert guide, and reflections on the relationship between nature and humankind

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Book SynopsisWhat do fishing with an otter, sitting atop a mountain at dawn with eighty Taiwanese backpackers, and driving home from Aldo Leopold's Shack have to say about the evolution of a personal environmental philosophy? Essays to My Daughter on Our Relationship With the Natural World provides a series of reflections by an environmental educator about lessons learned from time spent in nature. Originally conceived as personal letters to the author's daughter, this collection presents ethical questions outdoor enthusiasts regularly face as they work and play in the natural world. The essays in this book explore environmentalism in a modern-day context, with topics including sustainability education, the current relevance of environmental writers from the past, and the uncertainty of what is meant by words like "naturalist," "solitude," and "wilderness." There is no attempt to direct readers to any particular environmental philosophy. Instead, Simpson encourages readers to articulate their own perspective based on personal experiences in nature. Though Essays to My Daughter is written by a father to his daughter, the insights within the volume-and the questions they provoke-are valuable to all members of the next generation as they grapple with their own relationship to the natural world.Table of Contents Preface Introduction: Personal Philosophy and Individual Experiences Part I: The Pond and the Shack 1 The Good Oak Redux 2 Drowning Out All Our Muskrats 3 Wild Apples 4 Still Fishing 5 A Person's Leisure Time 6 Book Purge Part II: Sketches Here and There 7 Wisconsin East: A Small Square of Red 8 California With a Touch of Maine: Tide Pools East and West 9 Minnesota: Night of the Quintze 10 Iowa: The Birds of Iowa 11 Taiwan: Ascent of Jade Mountain 12 A Return to Taiwan: Old and American 13 Ontario: Goodbye, Deadbroke Island 14 Wisconsin West: Mark Twain on the Mekong 15 Wisconsin West: What About the Other Kids? 16 Three Outsdoorsmen and a Philosopher Part III: Continuums 17 The Preservationist and the Conservationist 18 The Wanderer and the Adventurer 19 The Homecomer and the Sojourner 20 The Romantic and the Scientist 21 The Restorer Epilogue Acknowledgments Notes About the Author

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Book SynopsisRoads, Peoples, Birds, Mountaintops, and Billabongs recounts the unparalleled 3-year adventure around the world of a passionate ornithologist and an aspiring entrepreneur in an overweight Jeep camping van, 1959–1962. In this expedition around the world, Dean Fisher, with only one companion and a vehicle that broke down endlessly, speaks not only of the birds and natural history, but also the people and cultures encountered, not to mention the many challenges that had to be solved. This was all done long before international travel had become commonplace or bird guides were available for most of the places he visits. For many years, those of fascinated by his accounts urged him to write down these tales of adventure so they wouldn’t be lost. Finally, he has done so, and now we can all share in his incredible journey, from a time that seems quite distant and more innocent.

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