Search results for ""The Natural History Museum""

The Mesozoic era ranged from 240 million to 65 million years ago. In British Mesozoic Fossils 365 species from this period are classified and illustrated with accurate line drawings. This new edition has been fully revised and updated by Dr Andrew Smith, Merit Researcher in the Natural History Museum's Palaeontology Department, reflecting advances in our understanding of the fossil record over the past years. The book's 147-page identification section features those fossil animal and plant species that are most commonly found in Britain, from abundant gastropod and bivalve molluscs to those groups, including ammonites and brachiopods, which are now extinct or relatively rare. Each of the species is illustrated with at least one drawing, which is accompanied by details of where it can be found. There is also a brief introduction to the subject, stratigraphical tables that show British Mesozoic rock formations, and a colour map of the distribution of Mesozoic strata.

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These are some of the most breathtaking images from Weather Photographer of the Year, the annual competition held by The Royal Meteorological Society. They depict thrilling weather events of every kind and often reveal fascinating stories about their impact on human society. Each image has been selected by a panel of meteorologists, photographers and photo editors who look for a combination of skillful camera work and meteorological observation. Also included are six essays which address various aspects of climate change, not least its impact on extreme weather.

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Inspired and approved by the experts, The Bumper Dinosaur Activity Book is bursting with engaging activities for curious young minds. Packed with exciting games and bite-size facts which make learning fun, featuring T. Rex, Stegosaurus, Diplodocus and many more. The book is crammed with dinosaurs to colour and make and things to do, including dot-to-dot games and spot-the-difference puzzles, and brilliant stickers.

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Over the years experts at the Natural History Museum have seen, heard and answered it all. Can Jellyfish Live Forever? is a wonderfully weird collection of questions and answers which are altogether jaw-dropping, intriguing and enlightening. Packed with colourful images and illustrations throughout, this book reveals the many cool and quirky facts which prove nature is often stranger than fiction.

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There’s a new visitor at the Natural History Museum in London. Titanosaur has travelled across the Atlantic from its home in Patagonia, Argentina. Its incredible size feels almost unbelievable, its legs alone dwarfing the tallest of humans. David Mackintosh’s illustrations bring the mystery of this giant dinosaur to life in an imaginative and amusing hide-and-seek story. And with awe-inspiring facts about this colossal creature, Titanosaur gives young readers a new appreciation of the scale and wonder of the natural world.

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The incredible new dinosaur that dominates the Earth Hall of the Natural History Museum is the most intact Stegosaurus fossilskeleton ever found. Measuring nearly 6 metres long from head to tail, around 90% of the animal - nicknamed Sophie - is preserved, making it both incredibly rare and valuable.This is the story of Sophie's dramatic discovery in the hills of Wyoming, USA and her journey to the high-tech laboratories of theNatural History Museum, where her arrival led to the first detailed study of a Stegosaurus for almost 100 years. This book sheds new light on this iconic but often misunderstood dinosaur species.

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This unique box set contains 50 stunning colour postcards which showcase both the unique specimens and architectural gems of the Natural History Museum. Ranging from the amazing to the amusing, the images are evocative and brimming with detail. The postcards feature many rare and exceptional natural wonders, as well as glimpses of some of the architectural treasures within the magnificent Museum building itself. Together they give a real flavour of life at one of London’s oldest and best-loved visitor attractions. Stored in a chunky keepsake box with an internal ribbon, this collection represents the fascinating history of plants and flowers through exquisite botanical prints to keep, send or frame.

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Another fantastic adventure in the animal kingdom for readers aged 5 to 500. Join the Queen on one of her rare days-off, as she and her loveable pet corgi Mr Brown enjoy an action-packed adventure at the Natural History Museum in London. Find out what really happened to the dinosaurs all those years ago, what the Queen is doing on top of a Megalosaurus and who wins a famous victory. Beautifully illustrated and affectionately told, this is a delightful tale of two close friends and their eventful day with the dinosaurs.

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Voyages of Discovery is a mesmerising visual record of ten of the world’s most significant natural history expeditions. Among the many stories of adventure and great scientific endeavour are: Sir Hans Sloane’s journey to Jamaica; Maria Sibylla Merian’s personal sojourn in Surinam; James Cook’s perilous Pacific crossings; William Bartram’s fanciful yet detailed documentation of North American wildlife; Matthew Flinders’ mapping of Australia accompanied by perhaps the greatest of all the natural history artists Ferdinand Bauer, and Charles Darwin’s fateful Beagle voyage.Hand-picked from the vast Library of the Natural History Museum, London, the illustrations and artworks contained here form a rare collection, many of which have only been published in this stunning book.

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'Flora' contains 20 essays on the history of key plant families, including cacti, daffodils, iris, magnolia, poppies, roses, tulips and waterlilies. It explains how plants have adopted remarkable behaviours for survival in a variety of harsh habitats and also tells the remarkable stories of the adventurous botanist explorers who braved disease, slave traders, wars, jungles and other dangers to collect plants now commonly grown in our own gardens. 'Flora' is graced with hundreds of stunning colour illustrations selectedfrom the vast collection of original botanical paintings held at the Natural History Museum, London.

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The ever-popular week-to-view diary series has a spacious square format, as well as full colour images and informative captions throughout. The perfect gift for wildlife enthusiasts, each week has a specially selected photograph accompanied by a caption explaining where and how it was taken. There is a ribbon marker for easy reference and there are details of national and religious holidays. The Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition is owned by the Natural History Museum, London. To find out more about the competition and touring exhibition, visit the website at: www.wildlifephotographeroftheyear.com.

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Jonathan Elphick tells the remarkable story of the development of bird art through the centuries. The book features early, skilfully executed but often fanciful images of birds, scientific illustrations produced during the ages of exploration, and modern approaches capturing the essence of these freest of all creatures. This reduced size edition is chunky yet portable, and retains the lavish finish of the original gift book. The outstanding selection of images from the unrivalled collection at the Natural History Museum includes exquisitely crafted works from some of the most famous bird artists ever published including Audubon, Lear, MacGillivray and Gould.

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This lavishly illustrated book reveals the lives of the people who assembled the greatest botanical collection of the Early Modern period, with stories of adventure and discovery across every continent. Sir Hans Sloane's herbarium, housed at the Natural History Museum in London, is probably the most extensive herbarium collection of its kind. It exemplifies the rich history of exploration and discovery in the period preceding Cook's voyages, and it remains of considerable scientific and historical value today. Assembled between the 1680s and 1750s, it comprises an estimated 120,000 pressed plant specimens. More than 300 people contributed to its development across more than 70 countries.

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The Flora Collection contains 50 stunning colour postcards selected from the vast collection of original botanical artworks held at the the Library of the Natural History Museum, London. Stored in a chunky keepsake box with an internal ribbon, this collection represents the fascinating history of plants and flowers through exquisite botanical prints to keep, send or frame. Printed on high quality card, the set showcases many of the best-loved plant families including cacti, daffodils, iris, magnolia, poppies, roses, tulips and waterlilies. Featuring the work of some of the greatest botanical artists and explorers of all time, The Flora Collection is a delightful box set to share or savour.

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The Queen and her faithful corgi companion are back for another magical animal adventure. This time they come face to face with some infamous inhabitants of the London underworld - the rats! During one of their regular rendezvous at the Natural History Museum, the Queen and Mr Brown are transported from the streets of South Kensington to the strange and wonderful world of the rats. With a talking toucan and a streetwise polar bear as their guides, they are whisked through a tunnel under the Museum and launched into an extraordinary mystery tour which reveals some foul furniture, a funny smelling feast, and a spectacular rat cabaret. Beautifully illustrated and affectionately told, the book is great to read aloud and is also highly suited to encourage children to read on their own. Meet the Rats is a charming tale of two best friends with a taste for adventure who love to learn about the animal kingdom.

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An instant bestseller in 1859, few books have had such a revolutionary impact and left such a lasting impression as On the Origin of Species. Possibly the most important and challenging scientific book ever published, Darwin's language remains surprisingly modern and direct and is presented here in a faithful facsimile edition. The text is taken from the second edition (1860), which is the same as the first except for some minor corrections and so is the purest distillation of Darwin's original vision. It includes a new foreword by David Williams, Researcher at the Natural History Museum,and the introductory appendix, An Historical Sketch of the Recent Progress of Opinion on the Origin, which first appeared in the third edition (1861). As such it is an ideal scholarly resource as well an attractive and excellent value edition for the general reader.

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Hope is the new icon of the Natural History Museum, a stunning 9,000 pound, 82-foot-long blue whale skeleton. Suspended by steel wires and captured in a majestic swooping posture, her reconstruction is a work of art as well as a feat of engineering. Her story begins in 1891 when she was found beached off the coast of Ireland. A lucrative find for a local fisherman, her skeletal remains were sold to the Museum. The project to restore her took three years to complete, including 10 months of painstaking laboratory work to clean and repair each of her 221 bones. Combining the latest scientific research into the blue whale with behind-the-scenes imagery, this book sheds new light on the largest creature ever to have lived on Earth.

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Volcanoes & Earthquakes features the earth sciences at their most spectacular. It reveals the massive internal forces that create and change the Earth's surface, with dramatic and sometimes beautiful consequences. The authors explain what fuels the power of volcanoes and earthquakes and explore how the gradual shifting of tectonic plates has transformed the Earth over its four and a half thousand million year existence. Written in a jargon-free style and fully illustrated with photographs, diagrams and maps, this is a cutting-edge introduction to earthquakes, volcanoes and plate tectonics, incorporating all the latest research developments.Chiara Maria Petrone is a Research Leader in Petrology and Volcanology in the Earth Sciences Department of the Natural History Museum, London. Roberto Scandone is a Research Associate at the Vesuvius Observatory, National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology, Naples. Alex Whittaker is a Senior Lecturer in Tectonics in the Department of Earth Science and Engineering at Imperial College, London.

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Enter a hidden world of snail killers, silly names and crazy sex in The Secret Life of Flies. Entomolologist Erica McAlister dispels many common misconceptions and reveals how truly amazing, exotic and important these creatures really are. From hungry herbivores and precocious pollinators to robberflies, danceflies and the much maligned mosquito, McAlister describes the different types of fly, their unique and often unusual characteristics, and the unpredictable nature of their daily life. She travels from the drawers of wonder at the Natural History Museum, to piles of poo in Ethiopia, via underground caves, smelly latrines and the English country garden. She discovers flies without wings, rotating genitalia and the terrible hairy fly, while pausing along the way to consider today's key issues of conservation, taxonomy, forensic entomology and climate change. Combining her deep knowledge and love of flies with a wonderful knack for storytelling, Erica McAlister allows us to peer - amazed and captivated - into the secret life of flies.

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More than 999 of every 1,000 species that have ever lived on the planet have become extinct. As part of evolution, extinction of the old allows emergence of the new. It is integral to the Earth's continually changing range and richness of life-forms. Extinction: not the end of the world? is a highly readable introduction to the causes of extinction, the different types of extinction and how relevant it is to the world today. The book discusses today's key issues, from biodiversity and conservation to the threat of human extinction, as well as exploring the major extinction events of the past and explaining how scientists know all this. Throughout the book there are engaging extinction case studies from around the world showing, for example, how local extinctions such as the large blue butterfly can be reversed. Presenting the latest research in an accessible and engaging way, this is a complete introduction to an important and often complex subject. The book is published to accompany the major new exhibition of the same name which opens at the Natural History Museum, London, in February 2013.

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The opening of the Palaeozoic era, some 540 million years ago, coincides with a remarkable burst of evolutionary activity. In British Paleozoic Fossils 443 species from this time, and the following 300 million years, are described and classified and illustrated with accurate line drawings. From Silurian trilobites and Devonian fishes to Carboniferous brachiopods, the book features those animal and plant species that are most commonly found in Britain. Crucially, this new edition has been fully revised and updated by specialists from the world renowned Department of Palaeontology at the Natural History Museum, London, reflecting advances in our understanding of the fossil record. The book includes 69 plates of accurate black-and-white line drawings. Each of the species is illustrated with at least one drawing, which is accompanied by details of where it can be found. There are also stratigraphical tables showing the classification of British Palaeozoic rock formations and a comprehensive listing of the geological distribution of each species illustrated, which can be cross-referenced with the appropriate illustration. A brief explanation of the scientific names of fossils and a map of the distribution of Palaeozoic strata are also available.

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MEET DIPPY: Dippy is a Diplodocus (DIP-low-DOCK-us). Dippy was the first of its kind to go on display anywhere in the world when it arrived at the Museum more than a hundred years ago. Since then, Dippy has adventured across the length and breadth of the country. MEET WATERHOUSE: Waterhouse the Mouse lives in the Museum and thought he knew about everything within its famous walls. Until one day he meets a gigantic bony stranger and a big booming voice... When railroad workers unearthed the fossilised bones of a Diplodocus in Wyoming, USA in 1899, newspapers billed the discovery as the ‘most colossal animal ever on Earth’. Dippy, a replica of this famous skeleton, first arrived in London in 1905, and for many years served as an awe-inspiring welcome for visitors to the Natural History Museum. This book answers all your questions about the nation’s favourite dinosaur and will delight young readers with its imaginative illustrations.

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This is the story of plant life on Earth, uniquely retold through a remarkable record of spectacular fossils. Palaeobotanist Paul Kenrick explains the importance of each fossil and how it marks a crucial inflection point in plant evolution. Each discovery is illustrated with special photography featuring many original specimens from the Natural History Museum, London. Beginning with the origins of plant life in the sea, when photosynthesis first evolved in bacteria, Paul Kenrick traces the evolution of plants, through ancient forests and grasslands to familiar flowering plants. From petrified tree trunks to grains of pollen, the breadth of the geological record of plants is quite extraordinary and what emerges are forms that are at first puzzling yet frequently striking and beautiful. The story of each specimen is interwoven with impressions of the Earth's landscapes and environments at various periods of geological time, revealing the dynamic feedback between plants and animals as well as large-scale planetary processes.

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The 26-metre-long Diplodocus skeleton that dominates the Central Hall of the Natural History Museum in London is one of the world's most famous dinosaur models. Known affectionately as 'Dippy', it has fascinated and enthralled visitors since it was first revealed to an astonished public in 1905. Dippy's tale begins some 150 million years ago in the late part of the Jurassic period - the time from which the original fossil dates. Dippy is an exact plaster replica of the fossilized bones found in the badlands of Wyoming, USA. The story of how Dippy came to the Museum is one that involves danger and adventure in the harsh environment of the American Wild West, the generosity of an eccentric millionaire and the involvement of the British royal family. The book combines an engaging narrative with details of dinosaur discoveries and the latest research on Diplodocus anatomy and behaviour. It also reveals the emergence of Dippy's importance to scientists, as studies on Diplodocus kick-started a renaissance in the understanding of the biology of the group it belongs to, the sauropods.Featuring delightful artworks and photographs throughout, this is both an engaging tale of discovery and a guide to one of the longest land animals ever to walk the Earth.

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In 1898, a 19-year-old girl marched into the Natural History Museum and demanded a job. At the time, no women were employed there as scientists, but for the determined Dorothea Bate this was the first step in an extraordinary career as a pioneering explorer and fossil-hunter and the beginning of an association with the Museum that was to last for more than 50 years. As a young woman in the early 1900s she explored the islands of Cyprus, Crete and the little known Majorca and Menorca, braving parental opposition and considerable physical hardship and danger. In remote mountain caves and sea-battered cliffs, she discovered, against enormous odds, the fossil evidence of unique species of extinct fauna, previously unknown to science, including dwarf elephants and hippos, giant dormice and a strange small goat-like antelope. Thirty years later in Bethlehem, she excavated against a backdrop of violence and under the shadow of war. By the end of her life Dorothea had earned an international reputation as an expert in her field. 'Discovering Dorothea' captures the indomitable spirit of a woman who, against social pressure and in the face of physical hardship, devoted her life to discovery and deepened our knowledge of the natural world.

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The names of plants that are so familiar to us −magnolia, bougainvillea, sequioa − may just be names, but behind the names lie stories of espionage and heroism, rivalry and mystery and inspiration. In the Name of Plants relates the stories of these people and the plants that were named after them. Each chapter tells the story of the person for which each plant is named, many of whom were pioneering explorers, collectors and botanists – such as Alice Eastwood who has the yellow aster, Eastwoodia elegans, named after her. Eastwood explored previously uncharted territories in the 19th century and famously saved the California Academy of Science's priceless plant collection from the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. Subjects range from Charles Darwin (Darwinia) and legendary French botanist Pierre Magnol (Magnolia), to US founding fathers George Washington (Washingtonia) and Benjamin Franklin (Franklinia). Each entry is accompanied by superb artworks from the Library of the Natural History Museum, as well as photography of specimens and wild plants and the essential taxonomic details and geographic spread for each species.

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When did the first humans arrive in Britain? Where did they come from? And what did they look like? This is the amazing story of human life in Britain. It begins nearly one million years ago, during the earliest known human occupation, and reveals how humans have periodically lived there ever since. Britain: One Million Years of the Human Story takes readers on an incredible journey through ancient Britain. Drawing on a wealth of evidence from archaeological sites, it reveals which human species lived in Britain during multiple waves of occupation. It describes who they were, what their habitats were like, which animals shared their landscape, and what they did to survive, from the first use of fire to specialised hunting. It shows how Britain's human occupants changed, adapting and often succumbing to dramatically changing climate and landscapes. The story is told by Rob Dinnis and Chris Stringer, two scientists at the forefront of research into our ancient ancestors. Together they describe the discoveries, the key fossil specimens and the science behind these remarkable findings.Written in a lively and engaging style, and fully illustrated with maps, diagrams and photographs, Britain: One Million Years of the Human Story is an invaluable guide to our early human relatives. The book is based on the ground-breaking work of the Ancient Human Occupation of Britain project and is published to tie in with a major new exhibition opening at the Natural History Museum in February 2014.

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Each year the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition is seen by millions through a global tour and international media coverage. Portfolio 30 displays the full collection of 100 images awarded in the 2020 competition. Selected by an international jury for their artistic merit and originality from more than 40,000 entries, they represent the work of almost 100 nationalities. Displaying different styles, techniques, and ways of seeing, the collection is both a showcase for photographers who specialize in documenting the natural world and a celebration of nature.

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A fascinating history of life presented through the world's key fossils, with specimens from London's Natural History Museum and the Smithsonian in Washington DC.

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Lara loves dinosaurs. No. Lara is mad about dinosaurs. And she really really really wants one of her own. She goes looking for her very own dinosaur at the Museum, and while things don't work out quite how she expected, she discovers that she really didn't have to go so far from her own home after all. A charmingly illustrated and educational picture book for all young children who love dinosaurs.

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With flattened bodies, opposed feet, independently swivelling eyes, a prehensile tail, and the ability to change colour, chameleons are both fascinating and charismatic. Chameleons is the first popular guide to this extraordinary animal group. This stunningly illustrated book begins by exploring chameleon evolution and classification, describing how they fit into life's evolutionary tree and revealing their close relations. It discusses the variations in size, shape, colour and markings among the many different species and explains why chameleons look like they do. There are chapters on reproduction and development, food and feeding, and how chameleons defend themselves against predators. Chapter six examines the relationship between chameleons and humans, from their occurrence in mythology and superstition to worldwide conservation work and details of where to see chameleons in the wild. The final section provides an overview of the ten genera of chameleons, describing their distinguishing features, distribution and natural history. Drawing on their vast experience, the authors provide an illuminating insight into the lives of these unusual animals.

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Profiles of animals and plants which reveal an astonishing spectrum of sexual diversity and dimorphism

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Moths is an accessible introduction to the stunning diversity, life habits and evolution of moths. This insect group encompasses 128 of the 135 families of the scaly winged insects (Lepidoptera), with some 140,000 known species. Moths are among the most successful of the Earth's inhabitants, with an ancient history, some fossils being dated to 190 million years old. This book traces the structure and development of these winged insects and reveals some of their extraordinary adaptations, such as caterpillars that communicate with ants, as well as ruthless survival tactics - including blood-sucking, feeding on the tears of sleeping birds, and cannibalism of their own mothers. It also exposes their essential roles in ecosystems and manifold interactions with humans. Often considered denizens of the night, hopelessly allured by light and voracious destroyers of clothes, the book shines a spotlight on moths, illuminating the bright side of their astonishing diversity.

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In the Pre-Cambrian era there were no image-forming eyes, and organisms just had basic light receptors to tell the difference between light and dark. For colour to exist there needs to be light, an image-forming eye and a brain to process the data.Around 543 million years ago roughly six major groups of animals existed. Approximately 20 million years later, a blink of the eye in evolutionary history, there were 38 groups - similar to the number that exists today. This dramatic increase may be explained by the evolution of image-forming eyes. With the world suddenly in focus for many species, the benefit of being able to hide oneself, appear threatening or attractive and communicate with one's own species became much more acute.Drawing on spectacular specimens from the Museum's collections, Colour and Vision looks at the evolution of the eye, the uses of colour in nature, from a warning or disguise to an irresistible invitation, and explains how colour works.

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Anup Shah and Fiona Rogers have spent much of the last decade in the company of the world-famous chimpanzees of Tanzania's Gombe National Park, getting to know their characters and learning about the intricacies of their lives. Tales from Gombe provides an unparalled insight into their world. Through endearing stories and stunningly intimate photography, it tells the story of their lives, an epic saga full of convoluted plots, family alliances, intrigue, love, passion, suffering, ambition, politics, puzzles, surprises and controversies. The chimpanzees of Tanzania's Gombe National Park are probably the most famous group of wild animals in history, having been observed and chronicled for more than 50 years. Through studies initiated by the palaeontologist and anthropologist Louis Leakey and carried out by the primatologist Dr Jane Goodall, people worldwide know some of their names and stories. In Tales from Gombe Anup Shah and Fiona Rogers introduce us to all the different characters in this unique family, from the bold and mischievous Google and the powerful Titan to the enigmatic Freud.They tell the dramatic story of this unusual society, describing all that has happened since they started studying them, while beautifully capturing the daily interactions of the various characters. The combination of breathtaking photography and rich social history provides the reader with a thought-provoking experience and evokes a strong sense of empathy and respect for chimpanzees. Highly captivating and often deeply moving, Tales from Gombe will inspire all those who read it to learn more about our closest cousins.

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Bees are a symbol of nature conservation. People all over the world are studying their fate and the threats posed to them by human activity and biodiversity loss. This is a stunning photographic record captures for the first time the unique way of life of the, forest-dwelling honey bee. A lavish, picture-led book, this is a unique collaboration between Germany's leading bee expert, Prof. Dr Jurgen Tautz, and one of the world's top nature photographers Ingo Arndt, which documents a major research project into the mysterious, hidden world of the honey bee.

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Gardens, parks and woodlands are amazing places to explore and this handbook will inspire kids to investigate nature and lend a helping hand to the wildlife on their doorstep. Whatever the season, you’ll find it packed with ingenious outdoor experiences and clever ways to enjoy the green spaces in and around your home. Plant wildflowers and watch them grow, build a hedgehog house for spiky visitors and record the insects that roam your garden using a homemade pitfall trap. Press flowers in your nature diary and sketch the birds that visit your garden and feed on the apple bird-feeder you’ve learnt to make.

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The Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition is the international showcase for the very best photography featuring natural subjects. The Museum's 2021 pocket diary features stunning photographs of the natural world from past years of the competition. The perfect gift for wildlife enthusiasts, it offers a specially selected photograph each week, accompanied by a caption explaining where and how it was taken. There is a ribbon marker for easy reference, and there are details of national and religious holidays.

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The Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition is the most famous and prestigious event of its kind in the world. It provides both an inspiring annual catalogue of the wonders of nature and a thought‑provoking look at our complex relationship with the natural world. These are the unforgettable highlights from the latest Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition, drawn from more than 50,000 entries from across 27 countries. They include each of the category winners and incorporate all aspects of wildlife photography, from animal portraits to Earth’s environments. For each photograph there is a caption that reveals the memorable story behind the picture and, for some, members of the international jury share their insightful thoughts. Twenty-five striking photographs from the competition’s People’s Choice vote are also included. The foreword to the collection is by the new chair of the competition’s jury, Kathy Moran, the former Deputy Director of Photography at National Geographic Magazine. Displaying different styles, techniques and ways of seeing, this collection is a celebration of all aspects of nature.

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The Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition is the most famous and prestigious event of its kind in the world. It provides both an inspiring annual catalogue of the wonders of nature and a thought-provoking look at our complex relationship with the natural world. These are the unforgettable highlights from the 2022 Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition, drawn annually from around 45,000 entries from dozens of countries. They include each of the category winners and incorporate all aspects of wildlife photography, from animal portraits to Earth’s environments. For each photograph there is a caption that reveals the memorable story behind the picture and, for some, members of the international jury share their insightful thoughts. Twenty-five striking photographs from the competition’s People’s Choice vote are also included. The foreword to the collection is by the chair of the competition’s jury, Rosamund Kidman Cox, an editor and writer specialising in wildlife and environmental imagery.

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Shells are exoskeletons of living creatures and have fascinated humans for millennia. Interesting Shells presents portraits of beautiful specimens from the Natural History Museum's vast collections, each accompanied by a caption explaining their unique characteristics - whether biological, historical or geographical.

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The Inside Out of Flies is a look under the bonnet at the astonishing mechanics of fly anatomy. Erica McAlister reveals the engineering miracles embodied in different species of fly and some of the fascinating implications they hold for human technology. Discover the physics of the mysterious 'scuba diving fly', marvel at the venomous horsefly larvae which preys on frogs and glimpse the golden ratio in these creatures' spiral flight patterns. McAlister touches on the emerging field of biomimetics - the study of evolutionary adaptations to devise new technology - and anticipates everything from medical needles based on the mosquito's proboscis to hearing aids inspired by Ormia ochracea, a tiny fly with ears on its thorax. At every juncture she uncovers unique and surprising science lessons encapsulated in the form and function of the humble fly.

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