New Title

                                                                              
1) Prothero, Donald R.. Catastrophes! Earthquakes, Tsunamis, Tornadoes, and Other Earth-Shattering Disasters. 2011. Johns Hopkins University Press. Hardbound: 326 pages. Price: $30.00 U.S.

SUMMARY: Devastating natural disasters have profoundly shaped human history, leaving us with a respect for the mighty power of the earth—and a humbling view of our future. Paleontologist and geologist Donald R. Prothero tells the harrowing human stories behind these catastrophic events.
     Prothero describes in gripping detail some of the most important natural disasters in history:
• the New Madrid, Missouri, earthquakes of 1811–1812 that caused church bells to ring in Boston
• the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami that killed more than 230,000 people
• the massive volcanic eruptions of Krakatau, Mount Tambora, Mount Vesuvius, Mount St. Helens, and Nevado del Ruiz

     His clear and straightforward explanations of the forces that caused these disasters accompany gut-wrenching accounts of terrifying human experiences and a staggering loss of human life. Floods that wash out whole regions, earthquakes that level a single country, hurricanes that destroy everything in their path—all are here to remind us of how little control we have over the natural world. Dramatic photographs and eyewitness accounts recall the devastation wrought by these events, and the people—both heroes and fools—that are caught up in the earth's relentless forces.
     Eerie, fascinating, and often moving, these tales of geologic history and human fortitude and folly will stay with you long after you put the book down.
RECOMMENDATION: Unfortunately a VERY timely book! If you want to learn more about these disasters than just what's in the news headlines, this is the book for you.

The weekly Birdbooker Report

My WEEKLY Birdbooker Report can be found here:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/punctuated-equilibrium/2011/mar/27/2

Bird Book News

Here are two bird book news items that might be of interest:

1) Want an autographed copy of the new Crossley guide that helps support the ABA:
http://blog.aba.org/2011/03/want-an-autographed-copy-of-the-new-crossley-guide-that-helps-support-the-aba.html

2) An on-line version of Rafael Montes de Oca's Ensayo ornitologico de los troquilideos ó colibries de Mexico (Ornithological essay of the troquilideos birds or Hummingbirds of Mexico):

http://www.archive.org/stream/ensayoornitologi00mont#page/2/mode/2up

                                                                               

Recent Titles

                                                                              
1) Byersdorfer, Susan C. and Leslie J. Watson. Field Guide to Common Marine Fishes and Invertebrates of Alaska. 2010. Sea Grant Alaska. Paperback: 342 pages. Price: $35.00 U.S.

SUMMARY: This fully illustrated book is a comprehensive field guide to more than four hundred marine species found in Alaska waters. Its primary geographic range is the Bering Sea, central Aleutian Islands, and the western and central Gulf of Alaska, but it also includes waters north of Norton Sound and those of southeastern Alaska. Designed for use in the field—as its waterproof binding and paper attest—it will be indispensable for fishermen, teachers, and conservation officials.
RECOMMENDATION: A useful guide to the marine life of the region.

2) Jorgensen, Elaina M.. Field Guide to Squids and Octopods of the Eastern North Pacific and Bering Sea. 2009. Sea Grant Alaska. Spiralbound: 93 pages. Price: $25.00 U.S.

SUMMARY: This handy, fully illustrated guide is designed to help researchers and scientists identify squids and octopods found in the eastern North Pacific Ocean and the Bering Sea, regions that have been difficult to sample because of their rough seas—and thus have been poorly known until now. Printed on waterproof paper, the book describes and illustrates forty-four species, with full scientific details and aids to identification.
RECOMMENDATION: Another useful guide from Sea Grant Alaska. You can see their other titles here: http://seagrant.uaf.edu/bookstore/

New Title

                                                                               
1) Alley, Richard B.. Earth: The Operators' Manual. 2011. W.W. Norton. Hardbound: 479 pages. Price: $27.95 U.S.
SUMMARY: The book—companion to a PBS series—that proves humans are causing global warming and offers a path to the future.

     Since the discovery of fire, humans have been energy users and always will be. And this is a good thing-our mastery of energy is what separates us from the rest of the animal kingdom and has allowed us to be the dominant species on the planet. However, this mastery comes with a price: we are changing our environment in a profoundly negative way by heating it up.
     Using one engaging story after another, coupled with accessible scientific facts, world authority Richard B. Alley explores the fascinating history of energy use by humans over the centuries, gives a doubt-destroying proof that already-high levels of carbon dioxide are causing damaging global warming, and surveys the alternative energy options that are available to exploit right now. These new energy sources might well be the engines for economic growth in the twenty-first century.
RECOMMENDATION: The preview trailer for the series can be viewed here:
http://video.pbs.org/video/1840518901/
The series will premiere in April 2011. For anyone with an interest in global warming and future energy resources.

The weekly Birdbooker Report

My WEEKLY Birdbooker Report can be found here:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/punctuated-equilibrium/2011/mar/20/2

FEATURED TITLES

                                                                                    
1) Liguori, Jerry. Hawks At A Distance: Identification of Migrant Raptors. 2011. Princeton University Press. Paperback: 193 pages. Price: $19.95 U.S.
SUMMARY: The ultimate must-have guide for identifying migrant raptors, Hawks at a Distance is the first volume to focus on distant raptors as they are truly seen in the field. Jerry Liguori, a leading expert on North American raptors, factors in new information and approaches for identifying twenty-nine species of raptor in various lighting situations and settings. The field guide's nineteen full-color portraits, 558 color photos, and 896 black-and-white images portray shapes and plumages for each species from all angles. Useful flight identification criteria are provided and the accompanying text discusses all aspects of in-flight hawk identification, including flight style and behavior. Concentrating on features that are genuinely observable at a distance, this concise and practical field guide is ideal for any aspiring or experienced hawk enthusiast.

*The first guide to focus on distant raptors as they are viewed in the field
*New information and approaches for identifying distant raptors
*Illustrates twenty-nine species in various lighting situations and settings
*558 color photos and 896 black-and-white images depicting plumage and shape characteristics
*All aspects of in-flight hawk identification, including flight style and behavior

RECOMMENDATION: A must have for raptor people!

                                                                               
2) Menkhorst, Peter and Frank Knight. A Field Guide to the Mammals of Australia (3rd edition). 2011. Oxford University Press. Flexicover: 274 pages. Price: $39.95 U.S.
SUMMARY: This fully revised and updated edition of A Field Guide to the Mammals of Australia is the only comprehensive guide to identifying all 382 species of mammals known in Australia. This book provides concise and accurate details of the appearance, diagnostic features, distribution, habitat, and key behavioral characteristics of all mammals known to have occurred in Australia or its waters since the time of European settlement. Each double-page spread provides all the information needed to identify an animal, a full-color illustration of the entire animal, a smaller diagram of diagnostic features, a distribution map, and species description and measurements, including details of how to differentiate between similar species.
     Identification keys are provided for groups that are difficult to identify to species level, including keys to the genera of small marsupials, rodents, and bats, and all marine mammals likely to be washed on to an Australian beach: whales, dolphins, porpoises, seals, and the Dugong.

FEATURES:

*Fully updated and revised edition of a well-established and highly-regarded work
*Full-color illustrations of every species, including indigenous and introduced mammals, known to have occurred in Australia or its waters since the time of European settlement
*378 distribution maps
*Fully illustrated identification keys for difficult groups, such as rodents, bats and whales
*Detailed text summarizing the appearance, dimensions, distribution, habitat, and behavior of every species.

RECOMMENDATION: Frank Knight's artwork highlights this book! A must have for anyone interested in the mammals of Australia.