Badgerlands
Badgerlands

Author: Patrick Barkham

Publisher: Granta Books

Published: 2013-10-03

Total Pages: 241

ISBN-13: 1847087000

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Britain is the home of the badger - there are more badgers per square kilometre in this country than in any other. And yet many of us have never seen one alive and in the wild. They are nocturnal creatures who vanish into their labyrinthine underground setts at the first hint of a human. Here, Patrick Barkham follows in the footsteps of his badger-loving grandmother, to meet the feeders, farmers and scientists who know their way around Badgerlands: the mysterious world in which these distinctively striped creatures snuffle, dig and live out their complex social lives. As the debate over the badger cull continues, Barkham weighs the evidence on both sides of the argument, and delves into the rich history of the badger - from their prehistoric arrival in Britain and their savage persecution over the centuries, to Kenneth Grahame's fictional creation in Wind in the Willows and the badger who became a White House pet. From the celebrated author of The Butterfly Isles, this is rich, vivid nature writing at its best.

Nature Wars
Nature Wars

Author: Jim Sterba

Publisher: Crown

Published: 2013-11-12

Total Pages: 370

ISBN-13: 0307341976

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For four hundred years, explorers, traders, and settlers plundered North American wildlife in an escalating rampage, but in the twentieth century an incredible turnaround took place. Conservationists created wildlife sanctuaries, restored habitats, and imposed regulations on hunters and trappers. Over decades, they nursed many wild populations back to health. Then, after World War II, something happened that conservationists hadn’t foreseen: sprawl. People moved into suburbs, and then kept moving outward. All the while, well-meaning efforts to protect animals allowed wild populations to burgeon out of control, causing damage costing billions, degrading ecosystems, and touching off disputes that polarized communities. The result is a mix of people and wildlife that should be an animal-lover’s dream, but often turns into a sprawl-dweller’s nightmare. Deeply researched, eloquently written, and perceptively humorous, Nature Wars expresses the need for organic reconnection with our natural ecosystem by offering a provocative look at how Americans created an inadvertent mess.

Bioinorganic Chemistry
Bioinorganic Chemistry

Author: D.P. Kessissoglou

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2012-12-06

Total Pages: 422

ISBN-13: 9401102554

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Bioinorganic chemistry is primarily concerned with the role of metal atoms in biology and is a very active research field. However, even though such important structures of metalloenzymes are known, as the MoFeCo of nitrogenase, Cu or Mn superoxide dismutase and plastocyanin, the synthetic routes to the modelling of such centers remains a matter of acute scientific interest. Other metalloenzymes, such as the Mn center of the oxygen evolving complex of PSII, are still the focus of in-depth examination, both spectroscopic and structural. Another area of concern is the interaction between drugs and metals and metal ion antagonism. Understanding the chemistry of metal ions in biological systems will bring benefits in terms of understanding such problems as biomineralization and the production of advanced materials by micro-organisms. The 29 contributions to Bioinorganic Chemistry: An Inorganic Perspective of Life give an excellent summary of the state of the art in this field, covering areas from the NMR of paramagnetic molecules to the use of lanthanide porphyrins in artificial batteries.

Problems in Management of Locally Abundant Wild Mammals
Problems in Management of Locally Abundant Wild Mammals

Author: P.A. Jewell

Publisher: Elsevier

Published: 2012-12-02

Total Pages: 376

ISBN-13: 0323138225

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Problems in Management of Locally Abundant Wild Mammals contains the proceedings of the Management of Locally Abundant Wild Mammals: A Workshop to Examine the Need for and Alternatives to the Culling of Wild Animals, held in Yarmouth Port, Massachusetts from September 29 to October 3, 1980. Contributors reexamine the scientific basis for possible management aimed at restraining local increase in numbers of locally abundant wild mammals, with emphasis on the issue of culling. This text is organized into six sections encompassing 19 chapters and begins with an overview of the dilemma of local overabundance or overpopulation of threatened mammals. In particular, it considers the extent to which past predictions have been fulfilled in practice, and whether understanding of the dynamics of living systems is adequate for useful prediction. This book also discusses the circumstances that allow a species to become so abundant and the adverse effects that arise. The chapters that follow present case studies that reflect experiences around the world concerning management of locally abundant mammals, including the white rhino in South Africa and deer in North America. This book also explores proposed solutions for problems involving the management of polar bear, the Northwest Atlantic humpback whale, and the British grey seal. This reference material is a valuable resource for zoologists, conservation biologists, and those with interest in the protection of wild mammals.

Management of Disease in Wild Mammals
Management of Disease in Wild Mammals

Author: Richard Delahay

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2008-12-11

Total Pages: 291

ISBN-13: 4431771344

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In recent years nobody could have failed to notice the frequent and often sensati- alist media headlines warning of the latest global disease threat to humankind. But behind all the hyperbole lie real challenges related to dealing with the increasing incidence of emerging zoonotic disease events, the majority of which are thought to originate in wildlife (Jones et al. 2008). There are also many important diseases of domestic livestock which also occur in wildlife (e. g. foot and mouth disease and classical swine fever in wild boar, bovine tuberculosis in deer, badgers or possums), some of which can have a devastating impact on the farming industry, the wider rural economy and ultimately the public purse. But we should also not forget that wildlife diseases may have serious implications for the conservation of biodiversity. For some of the rarest, most endangered species (such as the Ethiopian wolf) d- ease may pose the greatest threat to their survival. If we are to avoid or reduce these impacts then we must improve our ability to detect and manage the risks associated with disease in wildlife populations. This is a challenge that will require expertise from many different disciplines: veterinary, ecological, medical, economic, poli- cal and zoological. In such an interdisciplinary field it is difficult to stay up to date with contemporary ideas and with techniques that may be rapidly evolving.

Straight from the Horse's Heart
Straight from the Horse's Heart

Author: R. T. Fitch

Publisher: Ronald Fitch

Published: 2009-01-08

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781439214282

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Loosely autobiographical, thirty vignettes make up this collection that features a wide range of equine stories, each sharing a sense of love, loss, and survival.