New Title

1) Allen, Arthur. The Fantastic Laboratory of Dr. Weigl: How Two Brave Scientists Battled Typhus and Sabotaged the Nazis. 2014. W.W.Norton. Hardbound: 384 pages. Price: $26.95 U.S.
PUBLISHER'S SUMMARY: From a laboratory in wartime Poland comes a fascinating story of anti-Nazi resistance and scientific ingenuity.
     Few diseases are more gruesome than typhus. Transmitted by body lice, it afflicts the dispossessed—refugees, soldiers, and ghettoized peoples—causing hallucinations, terrible headaches, boiling fever, and often death. The disease plagued the German army on the Eastern Front and left the Reich desperate for a vaccine. For this they turned to the brilliant and eccentric Polish zoologist Rudolf Weigl.
     In the 1920s, Weigl had created the first typhus vaccine using a method as bold as it was dangerous for its use of living human subjects. The astonishing success of Weigl’s techniques attracted the attention and admiration of the world—giving him cover during the Nazi’s violent occupation of Lviv. His lab soon flourished as a hotbed of resistance. Weigl hired otherwise doomed mathematicians, writers, doctors, and other thinkers, protecting them from atrocity. The team engaged in a sabotage campaign by sending illegal doses of the vaccine into the Polish ghettos while shipping gallons of the weakened serum to the Wehrmacht.
     Among the scientists saved by Weigl, who was a Christian, was a gifted Jewish immunologist named Ludwik Fleck. Condemned to Buchenwald and pressured to re-create the typhus vaccine under the direction of a sadistic Nazi doctor, Erwin Ding-Schuler, Fleck had to make an awful choice between his scientific ideals or the truth of his conscience. In risking his life to carry out a dramatic subterfuge to vaccinate the camp’s most endangered prisoners, Fleck performed an act of great heroism.
     Drawing on extensive research and interviews with survivors, Arthur Allen tells the harrowing story of two brave scientists—a Christian and a Jew— who put their expertise to the best possible use, at the highest personal danger. 
RECOMMENDATION: For those with an interest in the history of science or World War II.

The Weekly Birdbooker Report

                                          Photo copyright: Joe Fuhrman


My WEEKLY Birdbooker Report can be found here: http://www.scilogs.com/maniraptora/birdbooker-report-330-1/

New Titles

 

1) Newman, Doug. 500 Common Bird Calls in Southern Africa. 2013. Struik Nature. Paperback (with CD): 176 pages. Price: $23.00 U.S.
PUBLISHER'S SUMMARY: The book gives a brief account for each species, including description of song, associated behavior, similar-sounding species, favored habitat, and a distribution map. The introduction discusses bird vocalizations, differences between true songbirds and non-songbirds and why calls often change with the seasons and time of day.
     The CD gives the song or distinctive call of each species. Have hours of fun delving into the endlessly fascinating language of birds with this concise guide. 

RECOMMENDATION: Birders to the region should find this book useful.
 

 

 

2) Newman, Doug and Gordon King. Southern African Mammals Made Simple. 2013. Struik Nature. Paperback: 104 pages. Price: $18.00 U.S.

PUBLISHER'S SUMMARY: Southern African Mammals Made Simple is an exciting new mammal identification guide that uses a novel 3-stage ID system to identify even the most obscure mammals.
     For each of the 115 species, there is a photograph and drawing highlighting the animal’s distinctive features, a description and a distribution map. An easy-to-use and foolproof ID guide, it is ideal for anyone with an interest in southern African mammals.
     Ingenious, easy-to-use and virtually foolproof, it offers step-by-step progress towards sure identification. Written in a concise, structured format, it is ideal for taking on trips to the game reserve, and for novices right through to more experienced naturalists.
     Excellent for use in game parks or just to demystify similar-looking mammal species. 
RECOMMENDATION: A well illustrated introduction to the mammals of Southern Africa.

New Title

1) Callahan, David (edited by Dominic Mitchell). A History of Birdwatching in 100 Objects. 2014. Bloomsbury. Hardbound: 222 pages. Price: $35.00 U.S.
PUBLISHER'S SUMMARY: This book looks at 100 items that have profoundly shaped how people watched, studied and engaged with the avian world. Each item contains around 500 words on a double-page spread and include an illustration of the object in question. The book includes the objects listed below as well as many more.The range of items is international and cross-cultural. Subjects include:
     An Egyptian 'field guide' [early tomb decorations of birds, identifiable as species]
Ornithologiae libri tres: the first British bird guide [a 1676 publication that attempted to itemise all British birds known at the time]
The Dodo specimen held at the Horniman museum
Systema Naturae by Carl Linnaeus [the first-ever system of scientific names in 1758, and still the international standard today]
The shotgun
The book, The Natural History and Antiquities of Selborne by Gilbert White [1789]
HMS Beagle [the ship on which Darwin made his ground-breaking discoveries]
Aluminium bird rings [used to record movement and longevity of individuals and species]
along with many more modern innovations including walkie talkies, pagers, radio tags and apps.  
RECOMMENDATION: Birders with an interest in the history of birding will want this book.

New Titles

1) Self, Andrew. The Birds of London. 2014. Helm/Bloomsbury. Hardbound: 432 pages. Price: $86.00 U.S.
PUBLISHER'S SUMMARY: The parks, reservoirs, rooftops and gardens of London – here defined as the area within 20 miles of St Paul’s Cathedral – have a surprisingly rich avifauna, including a healthy population of one of Britain’s rarest breeders, the Black Redstart. The region also has a remarkable list of rarities – in recent years Canary Wharf has proven to be a magnet for vagrants, while one of the very few British records of Tengmalm’s Owl hails from Plaistow – an unfortunate bird stoned to death by local urchins in 1877.

     Some species, like the Peregrine Falcon, Black-headed Gull and Ring-necked Parakeet, have seen their fortunes soar over recent decades; others, such as House Sparrow, have suffered a population collapse. While as recently as a century ago, the London area had breeding populations of birds such as Wryneck and Red-backed Shrike, which are now nationally extinct. The status, distribution and history of every species on the regional list is discussed in rich detail in this book, the first comprehensive avifauna for the London area ever published.
     The County Avifauna series provides detailed information on the range and status of bird species at county level. Areas covered in the series so far include Norfolk, Suffolk, Dorset, the Shetland Islands, Leicestershire and Rutland, Essex and Gwent. Each title covers all species on the county list, with a breakdown of rarity records, and there are introductory sections describing the area’s ecology, its ornithological history, as well as a review of the best sites to visit. 

RECOMMENDATION: A MUST have for those with a serious interest in the birds of London.

2)  Warren,  Melvin L. Jr., and Brooks M. Burr (editors). Freshwater Fishes of North America: Volume 1: Petromyzontidae to Catostomidae. 2014. Johns Hopkins University Press. Hardbound: 644 pages. Price: $100.00 U.S.  
PUBLISHER'S SUMMARY: Certain to stand among the reference books of choice for anyone interested in the continent’s aquatic ecosystems, Freshwater Fishes of North America covers the ecology, morphology, reproduction, distribution, behavior, taxonomy, conservation, and fossil record of each North American fish family.
     Volume 1 (of three) covers the following North American families of fishes:Petromyzontidae (Lampreys)Dasyatidae (Whiptail Stingrays)Acipenseridae (Sturgeons)Polyodontidae (Paddlefishes)Lepisosteidae (Gars)Amiidae (Bowfins)Hiodontidae (Mooneyes)Anguillidae (Freshwater Eels)Engraulidae (Anchovies)Cyprinidae (Carps and Minnows)Catostomidae (Suckers)
     The encyclopedic review of each fish family is accompanied by color photographs, maps, and original artwork created by noted fish illustrator Joseph R. Tomelleri. The result is a rich textual and visual experience. Widely anticipated, this monumental reference is the result of decades of analysis and synthesis by leading fish experts from a variety of universities, research laboratories, museums, and aquariums.
RECOMMENDATION: A must have for those with a technical interest in the freshwater fishes of North America.

New Title

1) Stallcup, Rich and Jules Evens. Field Guide to Birds of the Northern California Coast. 2014. University of California Press. Hardbound: 294 pages. Price: $24.95 U.S.
PUBLISHER'S SUMMARY: The Northern California coast--from Monterey County to the Oregon border--is home to some of the richest avian habitats on the North American continent. Field Guide to Birds of the Northern California Coast provides a comprehensive ecological overview of this extensive and diverse region. It features detailed discussions of the area's most common waterbirds, raptors, and landbirds and highlights the most productive birding sites in each Northern California coastal county.
     Accessibly written and user-friendly, this guide contains nearly 250 species accounts that focus on seasonal rhythms and behavioral characteristics of each species. More than 130 color photographs and hand-drawn sketches depict the birds in context, and maps and occurrence charts indicate when readers might spot each species.
RECOMMENDATION: This guide is a regional supplement to standard field guides.

New Title

 

1) Howell, Steve N.G.. The Amazing World of Flyingfish. 2014. Princeton University Press. Hardbound: 45 pages. Price: $12.95 U.S.
PUBLISHER'S SUMMARY: If you travel the open ocean anywhere in the tropics, you are very likely to see flyingfish. These beautifully colored “ocean butterflies” shoot out of the water and sail on majestic, winglike pectoral fins to escape from predators such as dolphins, swordfish, and tuna. Some can travel for more than six hundred feet per flight. Yet despite their prevalence in warm ocean waters and their vital role in the tropical food chain, surprisingly little is known about flyingfish—more than 60 species are said to exist, but nobody is sure of the number. This beautifully illustrated book presents flyingfish as you’ve never seen them before. It features more than 90 stunning color photos by renowned naturalist Steve Howell, as well as a concise and accessible text that explores the natural history of flyingfish, where they can be found, how and why they fly, what colors they are, what they eat and what eats them, and more.                         
     The ideal gift for fish lovers, seasoned travelers, and armchair naturalists alike, this first-of-its-kind book provides a rare and incomparable look at these spectacular marine creatures.

     This book features:

• Presents flyingfish like you’ve never seen them before
• Features more than 90 stunning color images
• Explores the natural history of flyingfish, where to see them, how they fly, and more
• The ideal gift book for fish lovers, ecotravelers, birders, and armchair naturalists

RECOMMENDATION: The photography is the highlight of this book.

New Titles

1-2) Spellenberg, Richard, Christopher J. Earle & Gil Nelson. Trees of Eastern/Western North America. 2014. Princeton University Press. Flexibound: 720 pages (Eastern), 560 pages (Western). Price: $29.95 U.S. each.
PUBLISHER'S SUMMARY: Covering 825 species, more than any comparable field guide, Trees of Eastern North America is the most comprehensive, best illustrated, and easiest-to-use book of its kind. Presenting all the native and naturalized trees of the eastern United States and Canada as far west as the Great Plains--including those species found only in tropical and subtropical Florida and northernmost Canada--the book features superior descriptions; thousands of meticulous color paintings by David More that illustrate important visual details; range maps that provide a thumbnail view of distribution for each native species; “Quick ID” summaries; a user-friendly layout; scientific and common names; the latest taxonomy; information on the most recently naturalized species; keys to leaves and twigs; and an introduction to tree identification, forest ecology, and plant classification and structure. The easy-to-read descriptions present details of size, shape, growth habit, bark, leaves, flowers, fruit, flowering and fruiting times, habitat, and range. Using a broad definition of a tree, the book covers many small, overlooked species normally thought of as shrubs. With its unmatched combination of breadth and depth, this is an essential guide for every tree lover.
This book features:

• The most comprehensive, best illustrated, and easiest-to-use field guide to the trees of eastern North America
• Covers 825 species, more than any comparable guide, including all the native and naturalized trees of the United States and Canada as far west as the Great Plains
• Features specially commissioned artwork, detailed descriptions, range maps for native species, up-to-date taxonomy and names, and much, much more
• An essential guide for every tree lover

Covering 630 species, more than any comparable field guide, Trees of Western North America is the most comprehensive, best illustrated, and easiest-to-use book of its kind. Presenting all the native and naturalized trees of the western United States and Canada as far east as the Great Plains, the book features superior descriptions; thousands of meticulous color paintings by David More that illustrate important visual details; range maps that provide a thumbnail view of distribution for each native species; “Quick ID” summaries; a user-friendly layout; scientific and common names; the latest taxonomy; information on the most recently naturalized species; a key to leaves; and an introduction to tree identification, forest ecology, and plant classification and structure. The easy-to-read descriptions present details of size, shape, growth habit, bark, leaves, flowers, fruit, flowering and fruiting times, habitat, and range. Using a broad definition of a tree, the book covers many small, overlooked species normally thought of as shrubs, as well as treelike forms of cacti and yuccas. With its unmatched combination of breadth and depth, this is an essential guide for every tree lover. This book features:

• The most comprehensive, best illustrated, and easiest-to-use field guide to the trees of western North America
• Covers 630 species, more than any comparable guide, including all the native and naturalized trees of the United States and Canada as far east as the Great Plains
• Features specially commissioned artwork, detailed descriptions, range maps for native species, up-to-date taxonomy and names, and much, much more
• An essential guide for every tree lover

RECOMMENDATION: These guides are well illustrated and will be very useful for those with an interest in trees.

The Weekly Birdbooker Report

                                            Photo copyright: Joe Fuhrman


My WEEKLY Birdbooker Report can be found here: http://www.scilogs.com/maniraptora/birdbooker-report-328-9/

New Title

1) Dunn, Euan. RSPB Spotlight: Puffins. 2014. Bloomsbury. Paperback: 128 pages. Price: $17.95 U.S.
PUBLISHER'S SUMMARY: Enduringly popular, Puffins are perhaps our most iconic species of bird, and are the most immediately identifiable of seabirds with their decorative bills and clown-like gait. Yet when they take to the air they wheel and turn with great agility and underwater these stocky little birds use short specially adapted wings to propel themselves through the water in pursuit of small fish. Surprisingly little was known about Puffin ecology until recently thanks to their preferred breeding habitat being underground on remote islands or hard-to-reach coastlines. Now Euan Dunn discloses all we have learnt about them as a result of technological advances, and provides a revealing account of their life cycle, behaviour and breeding, what they eat, how they interact in their busy colonies, and where they migrate to in winter. Euan also exposes the mounting threats Puffins face and offers advice on the best places to see them. Each Spotlight title is carefully designed to introduce readers to the lives and behaviour of our favourite birds and mammals. 
RECOMMENDATION: A well illustrated introduction to the species.

New Title

1) Levi-Setti, Riccardo. The Trilobite Book: A Visual Journey. 2014. The University of Chicago Press. Hardbound: 273 pages. Price: $45.00 U.S.
PUBLISHER'S SUMMARY: Distant relatives of modern lobsters, horseshoe crabs, and spiders, trilobites swam the planet’s prehistoric seas for 300 million years, from the Lower Cambrian to the end of the Permian eras—and they did so very capably. Trilobite fossils have been unearthed on every continent, with more than 20,000 species identified by science. One of the most arresting animals of our pre-dinosaur world, trilobites are also favorites among the fossil collectors of today, their crystalline eyes often the catalyst for a lifetime of paleontological devotion. And there is no collector more devoted—or more venerated—than Riccardo Levi-Setti. With The Trilobite Book, a much anticipated follow-up to his classic Trilobites, Levi-Setti brings us a glorious and revealing guide to these surreal arthropods of ancient Earth.
      Featuring specimens from Bohemia to Newfoundland, California to the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show, and Wales to the Anti-Atlas Mountains of Morocco, Levi-Setti’s magnificent book reanimates these “butterflies of the seas” in 235 astonishing full-color photographs. All original, Levi-Setti’s images serve as the jumping-off point for tales of his global quests in search of these highly sought-after fossils; for discussions of their mineralogical origins, as revealed by their color; and for unraveling the role of the now-extinct trilobites in our planetary history.
      Sure to enthrall paleontologists with its scientific insights and amateur enthusiasts with its beautiful and informative images, The Trilobite Book combines the best of science, technology, aesthetics, and personal adventure. It will inspire new collectors for eras to come. 
RECOMMENDATION: A well illustrated introduction to the trilobites.

New Titles

1) Horwitz, Joshua. War of the Whales: A True Story. 2014. Simon and Schuster. Hardbound: 426 pages. Price: $28.00 U.S.
PUBLISHER'S SUMMARY: War of the Whales is the gripping tale of a crusading attorney who stumbles on one of the US Navy’s best-kept secrets: a submarine detection system that floods entire ocean basins with high-intensity sound—and drives whales onto beaches. As Joel Reynolds launches a legal fight to expose and challenge the Navy program, marine biologist Ken Balcomb witnesses a mysterious mass stranding of whales near his research station in the Bahamas. Investigating this calamity, Balcomb is forced to choose between his conscience and an oath of secrecy he swore to the Navy in his youth.
     When Balcomb and Reynolds team up to expose the truth behind an epidemic of mass strandings, the stage is set for an epic battle that pits admirals against activists, rogue submarines against weaponized dolphins, and national security against the need to safeguard the ocean environment. Waged in secret military labs and the nation’s highest court, War of the Whales is a real-life thriller that combines the best of legal drama, natural history, and military intrigue. 
RECOMMENDATION: For those with an interest in the sonar vs. whales debate.

2) Smith, James P. Jr.. Field Guide to Grasses of California. 2014. University of California Press. Paperback: 437 pages. Price: $26.95 U.S.
PUBLISHER'S SUMMARY: Grasses and grasslands are of increasing interest to conservationists, biologists, and gardeners. There are more than 300 species of native California grasses and they are found in almost every climate—from cool, wet forests to hot, dry deserts. Native grasses are also important to land restoration as they improve soil quality, increase water infiltration, and recycle nutrients. Their deep roots can tap soil water, which allows them to stay green year-round and to act as fire buffers around residences. Native grasses also provide vital habitat for many species of insects, birds, reptiles, and mammals. Despite their importance, grasslands remain one of the most underprotected of California's vegetation types, and native grasslands have undergone the greatest percentage loss of any habitat type in the state. Grasses are also among the most difficult plants to identify. Organized alphabetically, Field Guide to Grasses of California covers common native and naturalized grasses and, to help identify them, also features over 180 color illustrations. 
RECOMMENDATION: A useful guide to the grasses of the region.