Return of the Crazy Bird

Return of the Crazy Bird

Author: Clara Pinto-Correia

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2006-04-18

Total Pages: 219

ISBN-13: 0387216839

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Using the history of the concept of extinction with the dodo as a case study, Pinto-Correia carefully weaves together story fragments to give a cohesive eye-opening view of 17th century exploration and the grave ramifications it had for the survival and extinction of many species. More importantly, she shows us the intellectual underpinnings of the old view that it was acceptable for some animals to die out. Within this narrative, we can see what the modern view of the dodo tells us about the history of our changing understanding and valuation of nature and our place in it. Strong writing, powered by lively historical anecdotes and sober insights into human behavior, makes this beautifully illustrated book a page-turner to the end.


In Kiltumper

In Kiltumper

Author: Niall Williams

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA

Published: 2021-08-31

Total Pages: 305

ISBN-13: 1635577195

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From the authors of This Is Happiness and Her Name Is Rose, a memoir of life in rural Ireland and a meditation on the power, beauty, and importance of the natural world. 35 years ago, when they were in their twenties, Niall Williams and Christine Breen made the impulsive decision to leave their lives in New York City and move to Christine's ancestral home in the town of Kiltumper in rural Ireland. In the decades that followed, the pair dedicated themselves to writing, gardening, and living a life that followed the rhythms of the earth. In 2019, with Christine in the final stages of recovery from cancer and the land itself threatened by the arrival of turbines just one farm over, Niall and Christine decided to document a year of living in their garden and in their small corner of a rapidly changing world. Proceeding month-by-month through the year, and with beautiful seasonal illustrations, this is the story of a garden in all its many splendors and a couple who have made their life observing its wonders.


Return of the Birds

Return of the Birds

Author: Joe Moore

Publisher: The North Pole Press

Published: 2015-02-24

Total Pages: 284

ISBN-13: 1732378231

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Return of the Birds - Terror from the sky! What if I told you all the beautiful birds that we love and feed suddenly changed and began to feed on us?It happened once in a sleepy resort town in Northern California called Bodega Bay. Now more than 55 years later, it begins again. But it is far worse this time. Species of birds including not just crows and sea gulls, but hawks, eagles and vultures have joined the invasion.What caused this? Why is it happening? Tory McKnight, a student of ornithology from UCSD becomes swept up in a nightmare from her beloved birds, and must try to solve the mystery before the whole town gets killed and a nationwide pandemic ensues. This Hitchcock-style suspense thriller was inspired by the movie “The Birds,” and the short story from Daphne du Maurier. Return of the Birds will have you searching the skies, and both scared to read more but unable to put it down. Hurry, enjoy this before they gather again. Look for the sequel Revenge of the Birds Interview with the author: Return of the Birds and Revenge of the Birds are very distinctive from your other books, why did you write them? I was always intrigued by the movie “The Birds” but felt too many questions were left unanswered. It niggled at me all my life, especially every time I watched the movie. I had to write the next chapters to the original story. Do you answer all the questions from the movie “The Birds?” Most of the questions get addressed, but in so doing more questions and concerns arise. There remains a good deal of suspense throughout the book and beyond. It resulted in me writing the sequel, Revenge of the Birds. Why do readers enjoy these books? If they love a classic cliffhanger or good thrillers they enjoy these books. They are longer than the short stories they were inspired by, but then both novels have extra twists and turns that add to the storyline and keep the suspense flowing.


Hidden Animals

Hidden Animals

Author: Michael Newton

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA

Published: 2009-09-10

Total Pages: 220

ISBN-13: 0313359075

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A global survey of unknown creatures reported by thousands of eyewitnesses—creatures that have either been verified, refuted, or are still being examined by scientific researchers. Hidden Animals: A Field Guide to Batsquatch, Chupacabra, and Other Elusive Creatures welcomes readers into the fascinating world of cryptozoology—the scientific pursuit of legendary creatures that sometimes reveals hoaxes and sometimes identifies real, previously unknown species. Compiled by Michael Newton, author of the acclaimed Encyclopedia of Cryptozoology, it is the first comprehensive guide covering the crossroads of zoology and folklore written for both the young and the young at heart. Organized by type of creature type, such as giant animals, missing links, and living fossils, Hidden Animals surveys various beings reported and pursued worldwide from ancient times to the present, in every corner of the globe. In the process, it relates classic myths and legends to identified flesh-and-blood animals. Readers will be captivated by both the scientific evidence supporting the existence of specific cryptids and the exposure of notorious frauds or cases of mistaken identity.


Animals are the Issue

Animals are the Issue

Author: Linda S Katz

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2013-10-31

Total Pages: 156

ISBN-13: 1317951638

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Supply your library with the best collection of resources on animal issues! Animals are the Issue: Library Resources on Animal Issues is a guide to books, journals, and Web sites on historic and modern animal treatment. Expert librarians and scholars provide helpful resources showing what ideals and practical solutions exist in animal rights and welfare debates. With this book, students, philosophers, and politicians can find the best of written and electronic resources about the protection and ethical use of animals by humankind. Animals are the Issue stands alone as a source for locating materials on animal protection and welfare. This valuable guide will help librarians save time and money in locating diverse areas of information regarding animal consumption and exploitation. The authors have noted what they consider to be the most essential resources for library collections. This book offers references that discuss the utilization of animals by humans: as companions in sports and entertainment in religion in science and education in industry in hunting Animals Are the Issue explores how animals are seen, viewed, and used by humans. With bibliographies, annotated lists, and short commentaries by the authors on nearly every item, you’ll be able to supply your patrons with a highly effective animal rights/welfare collection.


Nature's Ghosts

Nature's Ghosts

Author: Mark V. Barrow

Publisher: University of Chicago Press

Published: 2011-04-15

Total Pages: 511

ISBN-13: 0226038157

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The rapid growth of the American environmental movement in recent decades obscures the fact that long before the first Earth Day and the passage of the Endangered Species Act, naturalists and concerned citizens recognized—and worried about—the problem of human-caused extinction. As Mark V. Barrow reveals in Nature’s Ghosts, the threat of species loss has haunted Americans since the early days of the republic. From Thomas Jefferson’s day—when the fossil remains of such fantastic lost animals as the mastodon and the woolly mammoth were first reconstructed—through the pioneering conservation efforts of early naturalists like John James Audubon and John Muir, Barrow shows how Americans came to understand that it was not only possible for entire species to die out, but that humans themselves could be responsible for their extinction. With the destruction of the passenger pigeon and the precipitous decline of the bison, professional scientists and wildlife enthusiasts alike began to understand that even very common species were not safe from the juggernaut of modern, industrial society. That realization spawned public education and legislative campaigns that laid the foundation for the modern environmental movement and the preservation of such iconic creatures as the bald eagle, the California condor, and the whooping crane. A sweeping, beautifully illustrated historical narrative that unites the fascinating stories of endangered animals and the dedicated individuals who have studied and struggled to protect them, Nature’s Ghosts offers an unprecedented view of what we’ve lost—and a stark reminder of the hard work of preservation still ahead.


Reassembling the Strange

Reassembling the Strange

Author: Thomas Anderson

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Published: 2018-10-15

Total Pages: 251

ISBN-13: 1498576060

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This book examines how Westerners understood and processed Madagascar and its environment during the nineteenth century. Madagascar’s unique ecosystem crafted its reputation as a strange place full of unusual species. Westerners, however, often minimized Madagascar’s peculiar features to stress the commonality of its fauna and flora with the world. The attempt to understand the island through science led to a domestication of its environment that created the image of a tame and known world capable of being controlled and used by Western powers. At the heart of the exploration of Madagascar and its transformation in Western eyes from a strange world to a cash crop colony were missionaries and naturalists who relied upon global experiences to master the island by normalizing the peculiar qualities of Madagascar’s environment. This book reveals how the environment played a dominant role in understanding the island and its people, and how current environmental debates have evolved from earlier policies and discussions about the environment.


Crazy for Birds

Crazy for Birds

Author: Misha Maynerick Blaise

Publisher: Penguin

Published: 2020-04-07

Total Pages: 210

ISBN-13: 0143134396

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An exuberant and vibrant illustrated exploration of birds and our relationships with them From the Common Swift, which can stay in the air continuously without landing for up to ten months at a time, to the tiny Goldcrest, Europe's smallest bird, which can lay a clutch of a dozen eggs in two weeks totaling one-and-one-half times its body weight, the class of animals we call birds is filled with incredible feats of beauty, intellect, and wonder. With enthralling facts, humorous anecdotes, and gorgeous artwork, artist Misha Blaise pays loving homage to these amazing beings that populate our skies and share the planet with us. Using her own adoration of birds as a starting point to explore avian minutiae both strange and fascinating, Blaise winds through the interconnectedness between humans and our feathered friends, from the eccentric people who obsess about birds to the compelling ways people have integrated birds into culture throughout history, as well as our similar behaviors, kindred intelligence, and shared habitats. Thoughtful, philosophical, and delightful, Crazy for Birds pairs beautiful artwork with whimsical writing to explore the many wonders of birds, shedding light on our abiding connection with nature, the diversity of life, and the idiosyncrasy of the human psyche.


The Dodo and the Solitaire

The Dodo and the Solitaire

Author: Jolyon C. Parish

Publisher: Indiana University Press

Published: 2013

Total Pages: 449

ISBN-13: 0253000998

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The most comprehensive book to date about these two famously extinct birds.