Books to the ceiling,
Books to the sky,
My pile of books is a mile high.
How I love them! How I need them!
I'll have a long beard by the time I read them.
~ Arnold Lobel [1933-1987] author of many popular children's books.
Compiled by Ian "Birdbooker" Paulsen, the Birdbooker Report is a weekly report listing the wide variety of nature, natural history, ecology, animal behaviour, science and history books that have been newly released or republished in North America and in the UK. The books listed here were received by Ian during the previous week, courtesy of various publishing houses.
- Coulson, John C. The Kittiwake. 2011. T&AD Poyser. Hardbound: 304 pages. Price: £50.00 (about $79.05 U.S.). [Amazon UK; Amazon US].
SUMMARY: Returning to its breeding sites in the spring after a winter spent far out at sea, the Kittiwake is a familiar sight around the coasts of Britain and Europe. A pale, medium-sized gull with a 'gentle' expression and bright yellow bill, the Kittiwake has been the subject of behavioural research since the late 1950s -- one of the longest running studies in the world. In this Poyser Monograph, John Coulson summarises these decades of research, revealing amazing insights into the life of these gulls, with wider implications for the behavioural ecology of all colonial birds. There are sections on life at sea, nest-site selection, breeding biology, feeding ecology, colony dynamics, moult, survivorship and conservation.
This book is essential for academics working on colonial species, and is also of great interest to birders who want to learn more about these elegant cliff-dwelling birds.
IAN'S RECOMMENDATION: A must have for anyone interested in this species!
- Dutson, Guy. Birds of Melanesia: Bismarcks, Solomons, Vanuatu, and New Caledonia. 2011. Helm Field Guides. Paperback: 447 pages. Price: £40.00 (about $63.24 U.S.). [Amazon UK; Amazon US].
SUMMARY: This new Helm Field Guide covers the species-rich Melanesia region of the south-west Pacific, from New Caledonia and the Solomons through the Bismarcks to Vanuatu, an increasingly popular destination for tours and travellers and one that has never before had complete field-guide coverage. The cover star is the Kagu, the region's most iconic bird species and a highly sought-after endemic of New Caledonia.
Superb colour plates illustrate the 650 species that occur in the region, allied with concise identification text and a series of distribution colour bars.
For anyone travelling to this far-flung Pacific region, this book is indispensable.
IAN'S RECOMMENDATION: A must have for birders interested in the region!
New and Recent Titles:
- Galobart, Angel et al. (editors). Dinosaurs of Eastern Iberia. 2011. Indiana University Press. Hardbound: 322 pages. Price: $45.00 U.S. [Amazon UK; Amazon US].
SUMMARY: Written for the general reader, this book is both a colorful introduction to the history and study of dinosaurs and an eye-opening survey of dinosaur discoveries in Spain. At the time of the dinosaurs, Iberia was in the process of becoming a peninsula of Continental Europe and looked very different than it does today. Now an area only slightly larger than Vermont and New Hampshire, Eastern Iberia contains one of the richest fossil records of Mesozoic vertebrates in Europe. This record spans an 80-million-year period that includes key moments in Earth's history, such as the extinction events at the Jurassic-Cretaceous and the Cretaceous-Tertiary boundaries. Dinosaurs of Eastern Iberia tells the story of Iberia's tumultuous geological history and presents a detailed synthesis of the region's dinosaur discoveries, with fact sheets and reconstructions of each species found there. This volume also describes the flora and fauna that made up the ancient ecosystems and explores the paleobiogeography of this dynamic region.
IAN'S RECOMMENDATION: A must have for those interested in the dinosaurs and other Mesozoic life of the region!
- Sanderson, James G. and Patrick Watson. Small Wild Cats: The Animal Answer Guide. 2011. Johns Hopkins University Press. Paperback: 144 pages. Price: $24.95 U.S. [Amazon UK; Amazon US].
SUMMARY: Did you know that most wild cat species are small and that lions, tigers, and other large cats are the exception? That adult bobcats, clouded leopards, and other small wild cats are completely asocial? And that they fight only as a last resort? This entertaining and informative book reveals these and hundreds of other facts about the behavior, biology, and conservation of the more than 30 small wild cat species.
From bobcats to servals, small cats are spread across the globe. They range in size from the rusty-spotted cat and African black-footed cat, each of which weighs around 5 pounds when fully grown, to the Eurasian lynx, which can reach an adult weight of 60 pounds. These felids are elusive, some are nocturnal, others are arboreal, and all are rare and secretive, making them especially difficult to study. James G. Sanderson, the world's leading field expert on small wild cats, and naturalist and wildlife artist Patrick Watson provide informative and entertaining answers to common and unexpected questions about these animals. The authors explain why some small cats live on the ground while others inhabit trees, discuss the form and function of their coat types and colors, offer scientifically sound information on human -- small wild cat interactions, and even review the role that small wild cats have played in literature, religion, and mythology.
The world of cats is as fascinating as it is diverse. Small Wild Cats: The Animal Answer Guide shows just how important and interesting the littlest of the nondomesticated feline family are.
IAN'S RECOMMENDATION: A good general introduction on these wild cats.
- Day, Leslie. Field Guide to the Street Trees of New York City. 2011. Johns Hopkins University Press. Paperback: 289 pages. Price: $24.95 U.S. [Amazon UK; Amazon US].
SUMMARY: Field Guide to the Street Trees of New York City acquaints New Yorkers and visitors alike with fifty species of trees commonly found in the neighborhoods where people live, work, and travel. Beautiful, original drawings of leaves and stunning photographs of bark, fruit, flower, and twig accompany informative descriptions of each species. Detailed maps of the five boroughs identify all of the city's neighborhoods, and specific addresses pinpoint where to find a good example of each tree species.
Trees provide invaluable benefits to the Big Apple: they reduce the rate of respiratory disease, increase property values, cool homes and sidewalks in the summer, block the harsh winds of winter, clean the air, absorb storm water runoff, and provide habitat and food for the city's wildlife.
Bald cypress, swamp oak, silver linden, and all of New York's most common trees are just a page turn away. Your evening walk will never be the same once you come to know the quiet giants that line the city's streets.
IAN'S RECOMMENDATION: The artwork by Trudy Smoke highlights this book! This book will be useful for those with an interest in the trees of the region.
Ian "Birdbooker" Paulsen is an avid and well-known book collector, especially to the publishing world. Mr Paulsen collects newly-published books about science, nature, history, animals and birds, and he also collects children's books on these topics. Mr Paulsen writes brief synopses about these books on his website, The Birdbooker Report.
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