This book provides an in-depth introduction to the rapidly evolving field of wildlife forensics – that is, the application of forensic science to the conservation and protection of non-domesticated animals, both in the wild and in captivity. It chronicles aspects of the history of management, conservation and environmental protection, with an emphasis on their global […]
Category: Books
Animal Earth: exploring the hidden biodiversity of our planet
Most of the species on Earth we never see. In fact, we have no idea what they look like, much less how spectacular they are. In general, people can identify relatively few of their backyard species, much less those of other continents. This disconnect likely leads to an inability in the general public to relate […]
Review: Bird Sense: What it’s Like to be a Bird, by Tim Birkhead
Who’d be a bird anyway? Chickens have bi-focal vision: one eye for the close-up work of pecking seed; one for the fox on the horizon or the hawk in the sky. Peregrine falcons don’t swoop directly on prey – as the crow flies, to coin a phrase – but in a wide arc, using the […]
Review: The Bird Atlas tracks changes of Britain and Ireland’s birds
A new atlas of 1,300 maps shows the patterns of distribution, abundance and change among 296 bird species in Britain and Ireland. The Bird Atlas 2007-11 is a partnership between British Trust for Ornithology (BTO), Scottish Ornithologists’ Club and Birdwatch Ireland and involved the work of more than 40,000 volunteers over four years. BTO used […]
The Case of the Vanishing Honeybees | Book Review
Every year, somewhere between 30 and 50 percent of all worker honeybees disappear from their hives, never to be seen again, leaving their developing young to die and their queens untended. This disturbing phenomenon, known as Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), was first identified in the United States, but it is happening all around the world. […]
Egypt’s ‘spying’ stork and other incidents of animal espionage
A swan has been detained in Egypt on suspicion of being a spy. Except it looks – in pictures released by the Egyptian authorities, who kept referring to it as a “swan” – like a stork. Perhaps it was wearing a disguise. The bird, allegedly working for the French government, was captured in a heroic […]
Featured video: how tigers could save human civilization
In the video below, John Vaillant, author of the The Tiger: A True Story of Vengeance and Survival, tells an audience at TEDxYYC about the similarities between tigers and human beings. Given these similarities—big mammals, apex predator, highly adaptable, intelligent, and stunningly “superior”—John Vaillant asks an illuminating question: what can we learn from the tiger? […]
Mammals of China – book review
China is home to greater than 10% of the Earth’s mammals. In the Mammals of China, Andrew T. Smith, PhD and Yan Xie, PhD have produced a comprehensive easy-to-read pocket guide to this outstanding biodiversity. Mammals of China is the first time that the natural history of all the mammals of China are included in […]