Showing 1–12 of 119 results
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Life in the Soil: A Guide for Naturalists and Gardeners
Artist/Author: Nardi, James B$57.00 Add to cartLeonardo da Vinci once mused that “we know more about the movement of celestial bodies than about the soil underfoot,” an observation that is as apt today as it was five hundred years ago. The biological world under our toes is often unexplored and unappreciated, yet it teems with life. In one square meter of earth, there lives trillions of bacteria, millions of nematodes, hundreds of thousands of mites, thousands of insects and worms, and hundreds of snails and slugs. But because of their location and size, many of these creatures are as unfamiliar and bizarre to us as anything found at the bottom of the ocean.
Lavishly illustrated with nearly three hundred colour illustrations and masterfully-rendered black and white drawings throughout, Life in the Soil invites naturalists and gardeners alike to dig in and discover the diverse community of creatures living in the dirt below us. Biologist and acclaimed natural history artist James B. Nardi begins with an introduction to soil ecosystems, revealing the unseen labors of underground organisms maintaining the rich fertility of the earth as they recycle nutrients between the living and mineral worlds. He then introduces readers to a dazzling array of creatures: wolf spiders with glowing red eyes, snails with 120 rows of teeth, and 10,000-year-old fungi, among others. Organized by taxon, Life in the Soil covers everything from slime moulds and roundworms to woodlice and dung beetles, as well as vertebrates from salamanders to shrews. The book ultimately explores the crucial role of soil ecosystems in conserving the worlds above and below ground.
A unique and illustrative introduction to the many unheralded creatures that inhabit our soils and shape our environment above ground, Life in the Soil will inform and enrich the naturalist in all of us.
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Borneo Spiders: A Photographic Field Guide
Artist/Author: Koh, Joseph K H, Nicky Bay (Authors), Mashor Mohd Jaini (Foreword By)$125.00 Add to cartAs a biodiversity hotspot in tropical Asia, Borneo is a must-visit destination of naturalists around the world. Borneo’s rainforests offer more than just hornbills, orang-utans, proboscis monkeys and pygmy elephants; they support a more spectacular myriad of insects, arachnids and other invertebrates. With rarely seen macro-photography images, we take readers on a journey of discovery of another dimension of Borneo’s appeal to all nature lovers: the rich diversity of Borneo’s spiders and the fascinating natural history of these enigmatic and charismatic creatures.
The increasing availability of macro-photography equipment and popularity of the social media in recent years have bred a new generation of spider enthusiasts in Southeast Asia. They are constantly documenting the morphological details and behavioural peculiarities of spiders. Although some of them have benefited from the recent series of guidebooks on Bornean and Southeast Asian spiders, there is still a strong demand for a new book, partly because the more popular books are already out of stock. More importantly, advances in macro-photography techniques and in taxonomic studies of Sarawak and Sabah spiders in recent years have necessitated a major revision.
Over 540 species of spiders in Borneo Spiders: A Photographic Field Guide, are illustrated, building upon the texts and some of the images in Spiders of Borneo: With Special Reference to Brunei. We hope that this vastly enhanced photographic guide will help to focus regional and international attention on the need to protect the rainforests in Southeast Asia, and add further impetus to advance the vision underlined in the “Heart of Borneo” initiative.
A number of errors were found after the printing of the book. This erratas sheet covers all the errors and new taxonomic updates that have come to attention since the printing of the book.
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Protecting Pollinators: How to Save the Creatures That Feed Our World
Artist/Author: Helmer, Jodi$51.00 Add to cartWe should thank a pollinator at every meal. These diminutive creatures fertilize a third of the crops we eat. Yet half of the 200,000 species of pollinators are threatened. Birds, bats, insects, and many other pollinators are disappearing, putting our entire food supply in jeopardy.
In North America and Europe, bee populations have already plummeted by more than a third and the population of butterflies has declined 31 percent. Protecting Pollinators explores why the statistics have become so dire and how they can be reversed. Jodi Helmer breaks down the latest science on environmental threats and takes readers inside the most promising conservation initiatives. Efforts include #famers reducing pesticides, cities creating butterfly highways, volunteers ripping up invasive plants, gardeners planting native flowers, and citizen scientists monitoring migration.
Along with inspiring stories of revival and lessons from failed projects, readers will find practical tips to get involved. They will also be reminded of the magic of pollinators – not only the iconic monarch and dainty hummingbird, but the drab hawk moth and homely bats that are just as essential. Without pollinators, the world would be a duller, blander place. Helmer shows how we can make sure they are always fluttering, soaring, and buzzing around us.
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Neritidae of the World, Volume 2
Artist/Author: Eichhorst, Thomas E$390.00 Add to cartNerites inhabit marine, brackish, freshwater, and arboreal environments worldwide in tropical to temperate climes. Neritidae of the World is a two-volume set of books that provides an in-depth examination of the almost 300 nerite species in the family Neritidae and a somewhat less exhaustive, but still extensive, look at species in six closely related families as well as a number of fossil species. Each recent nerite species is described in depth and illustrated with one (sometimes two or three) full page colour plates that show details of the shell and operculum as well as structural and colour/pattern variations.
Volume two covers covers the following genera of Neritidae: Neritina, Neritodryas, Neritona, Puperita, Septaria, Smaragdia, Theodoxus, Vitta, and Vittina. Also in volume two are the six related families, i.e.Helicinidae, Hydrocenidae, Neritiliidae, Neritopsidae, Phenacolepadidae, and Titiscaniidae. The volume also contains several appendices, including: valid Neritidae species, index of Neritidae species (for both volumes), glossary, bibliography, and errata. A number of new species are named and there are many species illustrated on colour plates for the first time. Nerites are routinely misidentified by both dealers and collectors. This volume can help correct that situation. New taxa: Neritina janetabbasae n. sp., Neritodryas javanica n. sp., Septaria tahitiana n. sp., Smaragdia patburkeae n. sp., Theodoxus octagonus n. sp., and Vitta consobrina n. sp.
Volume 1, see stock ID 20360
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Neritidae of the World, Volume 1
Artist/Author: Eichhorst, Thomas E$390.00 Add to cartNerites inhabit marine, brackish, freshwater, and arboreal environments worldwide in tropical to temperate climes. Neritidae of the World is a two-volume set of books that provides an in-depth examination of the almost 300 nerite species in the family Neritidae and a somewhat less exhaustive, but still extensive, look at species in six closely related families as well as a number of fossil species. Each recent nerite species is described in depth and illustrated with one (sometimes two or three) full page color plates that show details of the shell and operculum as well as structural and color/pattern variations.
Volume one presents a comprehensive analysis of nerite natural history, including: the fossil record, shell and animal physiology, taxonomy (historically and at present), habitat and feeding, shell development, etc. Seven genera are included in volume one: Clithon, Clypeolum, Fluvinerita, Mienerita, Nereina, Neripteron, and Nerita. Nerites are routinely misidentified by both dealers and collectors. Neritidae of the World, Volume 1 can help correct that situation. New taxa: Clithon cryptum n. sp., Clithon teres n. sp., Nereina cresswelli n. sp., Neripteron (Dostia) subviolaceum n. sp., Nerita grasi n. sp.
Volume 2, see Stock ID 20366
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A Sea of Glass: Searching for the Blaschkas’ Fragile Legacy in an Ocean at Risk
Artist/Author: Harvell, Drew$50.00 Add to cartIt started with a glass octopus. Dusty, broken, and all but forgotten, it caught Drew Harvell’s eye. Fashioned in intricate detail by the father-son glassmaking team of Leopold and Rudolph Blaschka, the octopus belonged to a menagerie of unusual marine creatures that had been packed away for decades in a Corning Museum of Glass storage unit. More than 150 years earlier, the Blaschkas had been captivated by marine invertebrates and spun their likenesses into glass, documenting the life of oceans untouched by climate change and human impacts. Inspired by the Blaschkas’ uncanny replicas, Harvell set out in search of their living counterparts. In A Sea of Glass, she recounts this journey of a lifetime, taking readers along as she dives beneath the ocean’s surface to a rarely seen world, revealing the surprising and unusual biology of some of the most ancient animals on the tree of life. On the way, we glimpse a century of change in our ocean ecosystems and learn which of the living matches for the Blaschkas’ creations are, indeed, as fragile as glass.
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Tarantulas of the World: Theraphosidae
Artist/Author: Teyssié, François (Author), Pierre Escoubas (Foreword By), Gilbert Hodebert (Illustrator)$230.00 Add to cartTarantulas of the World describes and illustrates almost 300 species of tarantulas of the Theraphosidae family by biogeographical zone. The descriptions enable non-specialists to identify each species, and provides additional information on lifestyle, habitat and distribution. Theraphosidae systematics are presented in the form of an identification key for subfamilies and a description of particularly note-worthy genera. An exhaustive list of currently known species is also presented by subfamily and by country. Tarantulas of the World also covers Theraphosidae biology: anatomy, primary biological functions, ecology, venomology and pharmacological research. This book also contains advice on breeding and rearing Theraphosidae.
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Freshwater Mollusks of the World: A Distribution Atlas
Artist/Author: Lydeard, Charles, (Editor), Kevin S Cummings (Editor)$236.00 Add to cartThere are more species of freshwater mollusks – well over 5,000 – than all the mammal species of the world. Mollusks are also arguably the most endangered freshwater fauna on the planet. Yet few references exist for researchers, shell enthusiasts, and general readers who are interested in learning more about these fascinating creatures. In Freshwater Mollusks of the World, Charles Lydeard and Kevin S. Cummings fill that void with contributions from dozens of renowned mollusk experts.
Touching on 34 families of freshwater gastropods (snails) and 9 families of freshwater bivalves (mussels and clams), each chapter provides a synthesis of the latest research on the diversity and evolutionary relationships of the family. Freshwater Mollusks of the World also includes
– a look at how evolving DNA sequencing data techniques help shed light on mollusk taxonomy
– distribution maps of each family’s biogeographic locales
– a representative photo and distribution map for each of the freshwater mollusk families
– the latest information on each family’s conservation status—and how to reverse the habitat destruction, modification, and pollution that threatens it
– a discussion of the ecological and economic damages caused by invasive mollusk species, as well as their role as disease vectorsMollusks provide us with amazing biogeographical insights: their ancient fossil record goes back over 500 million years, and their distribution patterns are a reflection of past continental and climate changes. The only comprehensive summary of systematic and biodiversity information on freshwater mollusk families throughout the world, Freshwater Mollusks of the World is a must for malacologists, limnologists, ichthyologists, stream ecologists, biogeographers, and conservation biologists.
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Crabs and Crustaceans
Artist/Author: Marsh, Nigel$20.00 Add to cartExplore the fascinating world of crustaceans from the shy box crab to the beautiful spiny lobster.
Crabs are one of those common critters we often encounter at the beach or local jetty. Most people don t pay any attention to them, especially as they are quick to scuttle away and hide if you get too close. But did you know that the world s largest crab has legs that are wider than a car and that the smallest crab is no bigger than a pea?
Crabs are just one member of a fascinating bunch of creatures called the crustaceans. These incredible animals come in an amazing variety of shapes and sizes, and live in the oceans, rivers, lakes and even on land.Designed for the young reader, Crabs and Crustaceans will entertain and delight as readers discover what crustaceans are, how they live, how they grow, how they breathe, what they eat and what feeds on them.
Filled with spectacular pictures, interesting facts and figures, delve deep into the fascinating world of crabs and crustaceans.
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Australian Land Snails, Volume 1: A Field Guide to Eastern Australian Species
Artist/Author: Stanisic, John, Michael Shea, Darryl Potter, Owen Griffiths$104.00 Add to cartLand snails are perhaps among the most misunderstood of Australia’s invertebrate fauna. To most people they have a largely unpleasant reputation earned through encounters with a relatively small number of introduced species that damage crops and backyard vegetables and introduce diseases. This field guide attempts to set the record straight by introducing the reader to the vast diversity of native species living in the forests of eastern Australia.
This volume covers 794 species and 3 subspecies (native and introduced) in 44 families, ranging from Cape York down to the New South Wales /Victoria border. It contains 2000 colour images, distribution maps, key localities and habitat and ecology notes.
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Australian Land Snails, Volume 2: A Field Guide to Southern, Central and Western Species
Artist/Author: Stanisic, John, Michael Shea, Darryl Potter, Owen Griffiths$104.00 Add to cartAustralian Land Snails Volume 2 covers 756 species in 39 families from an area that extends from western Queensland and New South Wales to Victoria and Tasmania, South Australia, Western Australia and the Northern Territory; several species from Christmas Island are also included. The field guide is dominated by the Camaenidae (480 species) which has radiated exuberantly in the semi-arid and arid areas of Australia. Contained in the guide are more than 2000 colour images plus descriptions, distribution maps, key localities and habitat and ecology notes. Most species are illustrated in colour for the first time. Thirty-five genera and five species are described as new. This guide is targeted at both professional and semi-professional malacologists as well as students, amateur natural historians and those involved in land management. But whether it is used as a manual for study or as an identification handbook, this field guide should be an inspiration for those with an interest in the natural world.
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Invertebrates (Third Edition)
Artist/Author: Brusca, Richard C., Wendy Moore, Stephen M. Shuster$193.00 Add to cartFor each of the 32 recognised phyla, this book presents detailed classifications, revised taxonomic synopses, updated information on general biology and anatomy, and current phylogenetic hypotheses.
In the 12 years between the publication of the second and third editions of this book, fundamental shifts occurred in our understanding of the origins and evolutionary relationships among protists and animals. These changes are largely due to the explosion of molecular phylogenetics and evo-devo research, emergence of the new field of animal genomics, major new fossil discoveries, and important new embryological and ultrastructural studies. As a result, new phyla have been described, and old phyla have been collapsed into others. Phyla once thought to be deuterostomes are now part of the protostome clade, and the Protostomia has been reorganised into two major clades known as Ecdysozoa and Spiralia. Invertebrates, Third Edition integrates these latest developments, organised with boxes and tables and illustrated with abundant line drawings and new colour photos. This benchmark volume on our modern views of invertebrate biology should be in every zoologist’s library.
