Recommendations based on "Wildlife Photographer of the Year: Portfolio 30"

In twenty short books, Penguin Classics brings you the ideas that have changed the way we think and talk about the living Earth.Over the past 75 years, a new canon has emerged. As life on Earth has become irrevocably altered by humans, visionary thinkers around the world have raised their voices to defend the planet, and affirm our place at the heart of its restoration. Their words have endured through the decades, becoming the classics of a movement. Together, these books show the richness of environmental thought, and point the way to a fairer, saner, greener world.In The Democracy of Species Robin Wall Kimmerer guides us towards a more reciprocal, grateful and joyful relationship with our animate earth, from the wild leeks in the field to the deer in the woods.

A dazzlingly original, lyrical and epic encounter with the Earth as it used to beThis is the past as we've never seen it before.Otherlands is an epic, exhilarating journey into deep time, showing us the Earth as it used to exist, and the worlds that were here before ours. Travelling back in time to the dawn of complex life, and across all seven continents, award-winning young palaeobiologist Thomas Halliday gives us a mesmerizing up close encounter with eras that are normally unimaginably distant.Halliday immerses us in a series of ancient landscapes, from the mammoth steppe in Ice Age Alaska to the lush rainforests of Eocene Antarctica, with its colonies of giant penguins, to Ediacaran Australia, where the moon is far brighter than ours today. We visit the birthplace of humanity; we hear the crashing of the highest waterfall the Earth has ever known; and we watch as life emerges again after the asteroid hits, and the age of the mammal dawns. These lost worlds seem fantastical and yet every description - whether the colour of a beetle's shell, the rhythm of pterosaurs in flight or the lingering smell of sulphur in the air - is grounded in the fossil record.Otherlands is a staggering imaginative feat: an emotional narrative that underscores the tenacity of life - yet also the fragility of seemingly permanent ecosystems, including our own. To read it is to see the last 500 million years not as an endless expanse of unfathomable time, but as a series of worlds, simultaneously fabulous and familiar.

Join zoologist Mark Carwardine and Britain’s best-loved wit and raconteur, Stephen Fry, as they follow in their great friend Douglas Adams’ footsteps, in search of some of the rarest and most threatened animals on Earth.

A beautiful guide to Earth's wildlife and natural history, including its rocks, minerals, animals, plants, fungi, microorganisms and more!Introducing The Natural History Book - a complete guide to the nature and wildlife of our world and written by a worldwide team of natural history experts. In the 11 years since the book was originally released, thousands of new species have been identified, and new revelations have redrawn the tree of life.Already featuring galleries of more than 5,000 species, The Natural History Book has since been updated to include dynamic discoveries such as the olinguito (the "kitty bear" of the Andean cloud forest), and a new species of deep-sea Bolosoma glass sponge photographed by the NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer, alongside a reorganization of the groups of living things to reflect the latest scientific understanding.Explore each and every page of this stunning nature book to discover:- A full-colour gallery of over 5,000 species- Over 500 rocks, minerals and fossils featured throughout- Includes glossary of important natural history terms- Specially-commissioned photographs showcase wildlife in close-up detailThis treasure-trove of natural history is accompanied with easy-to-read, accessible information and beautifully-striking imagery, making it a riveting reference guide to pass down for generations to come. The only book to offer a complete visual survey of all kingdoms of life, this nature book for adults is the perfect addition to every family bookshelf, as well as an ideal gift for the nature, animal and plant lover in your life! Gardeners, hikers, and visitors to wildlife park and natural history museums alike would also love this niche nature book, which also doubles up as the perfect coffee table book.Split into 6 core chapters, covering Living Earth, Minerals, Rocks and Fossils, Microscopic Life, Plants, Fungi, and Animals - there truly is something for everyone to explore, love and learn. From granites to grape vines, from microbes to mammals, The Natural History Book is the ultimate celebration of the diversity of the natural world.

An engrossing and revealing study of why we deem certain animals “pests” and others not—from cats to rats, elephants to pigeons—and what this tells us about our own perceptions, beliefs, and actions, as well as our place in the natural worldA squirrel in the garden. A rat in the wall. A pigeon on the street. Humans have spent so much of our history drawing a hard line between human spaces and wild places. When animals pop up where we don’t expect or want them, we respond with fear, rage, or simple annoyance. It’s no longer an animal. It’s a pest.At the intersection of science, history, and narrative journalism, Pests is not a simple call to look closer at our urban ecosystem. It’s not a natural history of the animals we hate. Instead, this book is about us. It’s about what calling an animal a pest says about people, how we live, and what we want. It’s a story about human nature, and how we categorize the animals in our midst, including bears and coyotes, sparrows and snakes. Pet or pest? In many cases, it’s entirely a question of perspective.Bethany Brookshire’s deeply researched and entirely entertaining book will show readers what there is to venerate in vermin, and help them appreciate how these animals have clawed their way to success as we did everything we could to ensure their failure. In the process, we will learn how the pests that annoy us tell us far more about humanity than they do about the animals themselves.

This volume takes readers on a journey through the earth's habitats and ecosystems. It explains how plants and animals are designed to survive, how they rely on the natural resources around them, and shows how they all, ultimately, depend on one another. The book is divided into three broad sections. In Life-styles, we look at animals and plants--grazers and hunters, predators, migrating animals, parasites, and creatures who live in very cold or very hot climates. In Life on Earth, various regions of the world are explored--mountains and valleys, prairies and grasslands, the hot desert, and life in and under the sea. And in Threats to Life, we focus on "the ark under threat." But author Michael Scott shows how we can learn from extinction and pollution and change our ways to leave the planet fit for the future. An index and glossary make The Young Oxford Book of Ecology an excellent reference tool, and the color photographs and drawings throughout are superb.

A leading figure in the emerging field of extinction studies, Thom van Dooren puts philosophy into conversation with the natural sciences and his ethnographic encounters to vivify the cultural and ethical significance of modern-day extinctions. Unlike other meditations on the subject, Flight Ways incorporates the particularities of real animals and their worlds, drawing philosophers, natural scientists, and general readers into the experience of living among and losing biodiversity.Each chapter of Flight Ways focuses on a different species or group of birds: North Pacific albatrosses, Indian vultures, an endangered colony of penguins in Australia, Hawaiian crows, and the iconic whooping cranes of North America. Written in eloquent and moving prose, the book takes stock of what is lost when a life form disappears from the world--the wide-ranging ramifications that ripple out to implicate a number of human and more-than-human others. Van Dooren intimately explores what life is like for those who must live on the edge of extinction, balanced between life and oblivion, taking care of their young and grieving their dead. He bolsters his studies with real-life accounts from scientists and local communities at the forefront of these developments. No longer abstract entities with Latin names, these species become fully realized characters enmeshed in complex and precarious ways of life, sparking our sense of curiosity, concern, and accountability toward others in a rapidly changing world.

A comprehensive natural history of one of Britain’s favourite animals The badger has for many years occupied a unique place in the British consciousness. Despite the fact that most people have never seen one, the badger has become one of Britain's best-loved animals. The number of organisations that use the badger as a logo, the number of websites featuring information about badgers, and the number of voluntary badger protection societies that exist are testament to this popularity. In fact, the attitude of most ordinary people towards badgers is complex and contradictory, involving a combination of familiarity and ignorance, concern and indifference. For an increasing number of people, badgers constitute an important source of interest and pleasure, be it through watching them in their gardens or in the wild, sharing badger-related knowledge and experiences with others via the internet, or defending badgers against threats to their welfare. For others, on the other hand, badgers are a problem species that requires active management. In this highly anticipated new study, Prof Tim Roper explores every aspects of the biology and behaviour of these fascinating animals. In doing so, he reveals the complexities of a lifestyle that allows badgers to build communities in an astonishing variety of habitats, ranging from pristine forests to city centres. He also reveals the facts behind the controversy surrounding the badgers' role in transmitting tuberculosis to cattle, shedding new light on an issue that has resulted in one of the most extensive wildlife research programmes ever carried out.

An engrossing and revealing study of why we deem certain animals “pests” and others not—from cats to rats, elephants to pigeons—and what this tells us about our own perceptions, beliefs, and actions, as well as our place in the natural world A squirrel in the garden. A rat in the wall. A pigeon on the street. Humans have spent so much of our history drawing a hard line between human spaces and wild places. When animals pop up where we don’t expect or want them, we respond with fear, rage, or simple annoyance. It’s no longer an animal. It’s a pest. At the intersection of science, history, and narrative journalism, Pests is not a simple call to look closer at our urban ecosystem. It’s not a natural history of the animals we hate. Instead, this compelling book about animal behavior is about us. It’s about what calling an animal a pest says about people, how we live, and what we want. It’s a story about human nature, and how we categorize the animals in our midst, including bears and coyotes, sparrows and snakes. Pet or pest? In many cases, it’s entirely a question of perspective. Bethany Brookshire’s deeply researched and entirely entertaining book will show readers what there is to venerate in vermin, and help them appreciate how these animals have clawed their way to success in an exploration of human-wildlife conflict. In the process, we will learn how the pests that annoy us tell us far more about humanity than they do about the animals themselves.  This work of narrative journalism explores the fascinating intersection of science, history, and culture to reveal: Human-Wildlife Conflict: From the author’s personal war against a tomato-stealing squirrel named Kevin to farmers battling elephants, discover why these conflicts say more about us than the animals. The Science of Disgust: Uncover the psychological and biological roots of our revulsion toward animals like rats and snakes, and how these feelings have shaped human history. Shifting Cultural Perceptions: Learn how once-venerated animals like pigeons became “rats with wings,” and why thousands of rats are worshipped in an Indian temple. Urban Ecosystems: Journey from the sewers of New York to the backyards of suburbia to understand how animals like coyotes and bears have adapted to thrive in human-dominated landscapes.

Sir David Attenborough looks at the wildlife that has captured his imagination and enthusiasm over his distinguished career. The book offers the complete texts of the first five months of his 'Life Stories' radio talks along with his selection of pictures old and new and his commentary on each.