More than four hundred full-color photographs and detailed sketches highlight a look at the key stages in life of 288 plants and animals, taking an incredible journey through the year, one month at a time. 10,000 first printing.
Britain is a place of remarkable beauty and extraordinary extremes, boasting immense natural diversity in a comparatively small area. Here, life is run by the seasons: each month brings enormous transformations to our island and its inhabitants, from the largest native mammal to the smallest migrant bird. In this lavish companion to the unforgettable BBC One series, acclaimed nature writer Stephen Moss reveals a breathtaking view of the wildlife on our very own doorstep, complete with stunning photography, innovative maps and unique behind-the-scenes materialfrom the award-winning BBC Natural History Unit. Britain's wildlife is at once iconic and surprising, and this book celebrates it all in the light of our ever-changing seasons. From the clash of majestic stags to the emergence of delicate damselflies; and from the sharks and whales that swim our waters to the elegant and imposing birds in our skies, The Great British Year reveals the unmissable drama and beauty of our islands.
Already the author of a dozen books, renowned ornithologist and naturalist Dr Tim Sharrock has been observing and writing about wildlife for over 60 years. From his adopted county of Bedfordshire, his travels have taken him all over the World, west to Mexico, east to Thailand and south to New Zealand. This book follows, season by season, Tim's observations, discoveries, excitements and speculations. From gardens in England to gorillas in Rwanda and whales in the Sea of Cortez, his enthusiasm for the natural world shines forth. This is the ideal bedside book, ready to be consumed in fifty bite-sized chapters. There are also 52 wildlife-themed puzzles and quizzes - one for every week of the year. TV presenter and wildlife expert Bill Oddie says: "Watching wildlife is of course about looking and listening, but it is mainly about being aware. It helps to have a guide or a companion, an expert and a storyteller. Tim Sharrock is perfect for the job. Read this book, and then go and see for yourself."
2015 National Outdoor Book Award Winner: Design & Artistic Merit A collection of unparalleled photographs—spanning forty years and seven continents—by one of the world’s foremost wildlife photographers. Capturing the splendor of wild places and intimate moments with animals, this luxurious volume chronicles legendary nature photographer Thomas D. Mangelsen’s photographic adventures in the field. Driven by a passion for sharing and preserving the Earth’s last great wild places, Mangelsen is as much a conservationist as a natural history photographer and artist. From majestic elephants and giraffes on the plains of Kilimanjaro to polar bears in the Arctic, and from mountains and prairies to primordial jungles, Mangelsen invites us to witness fleeting wildness. A quiet call to action, an inventory of our planet as it battles climate change, and a celebration of wildness and its intrinsic value, The Last Great Wild Places is a record of the Earth’s last great locales, one that will inspire present and future generations with the message that what we have can, and must, be saved.
You won't find a better collection of nature photographs - the best from 20 years of the prestigious international Wildlife Photographer of the Year Competition - representing most of the world's top photographersThere are more than 170 photographs in this lavish, large-format book, covering all natural subjects, with an emphasis on beauty - colour and form as well as unforgettable scenes of both animal behaviour and landscape - grouped in the following chapters-Illuminations, Portraits, Moments, Formations, Reflections and Connections.Each picture is accompanied by amemorable and informative caption, and each chapter has an introduction by a famous photographer or personality, from Yann Arthus-Bertrand to Frans Lanting and Chris Packham. An index of photographic details will be also be provided.
Featuring many of the greatest nature photographs of all time, this book charts the development of nature photography, from the first hand-held cameras and the color film revolution of the 1960s, to the increasingly sophisticated photographs of wild animals and unexplored places that are taken today. The prize-winning images include ground-breaking portraits, breathtaking aerial shots, underwater photography, close-up imagery, and much more. The images are accompanied by captions that put the photographs in context, explaining their importance, and revealing the vision, talent, passion, and technique of the world's leading wildlife photographers. All those who are passionate about photography and who have followed this compelling competition since its inception 55 years ago will treasure this magnificent volume.
"This commemorative portfolio displays the full gallery of all 100 pictures awarded in the 2021 Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition. It also tells the stories of how they were created and what they reveal about the subjects depicted. Representing the work of photographers from 30 countries, they illustrate both the beauty and the drama of the natural world and our so-often conflicted relationship with it."--Back cover.
This collection presents the most memorable and beautiful pictures from 50 years of Wildlife Photographer of the Year, the world's most prestigious wildlife photography competition. It is a landmark collection that captures the diversity of the natural world and presents the many different ways of seeing and interpreting life on earth.
Offers projects for each month of the year to create a garden that attracts wildlife, and includes a guide to more than one hundred of the best plants for wildlife.
Take an enchanting journey through the shifting seasons in a wildlife sanctuary home to wetland, forest, and grassland and supporting an incredible diversity of plants and animals. Flocks of waterfowl exploding into steely skies above frozen marshland, salamanders creeping across the forest floor to vernal pools, chorusing frogs peeping their ecstasy while warblers crowd budding trees, turtles sunning on floating logs, the ecological engineering of beavers—these are but a few of the sights and sounds marking a year at Jug Bay Wetlands Sanctuary and its neighboring landscapes in Southern Maryland. In an absorbing account of a year in the life of this sanctuary, naturalist Colin Rees invites us to join him as he explores the secrets and wonders of the changing natural world. Alongside the author, we witness spring's avian migrations, quickening of aquatic vegetation, burgeoning of myriad invertebrates, and the assaults of extreme weather conditions. We revel in summertime's proliferation of fish, fowl, and mammals. We become attuned to the shifting climate's impacts on autumnal transitions, and we marvel at amazing feats of biological inventiveness in preparation for winter conditions. Through these visions of the fleeting—and yet enduring—cycles of nature, Rees shares deep insights into the ecological and behavioral dynamics of the natural environment. Enhanced by more than two dozen color plates, the book touches on a wide range of issues, from microbial diversity, bird banding, and butterfly phenology to genetic diversity and habitat fragmentation. It also examines the challenges of conserving these and other natural features in the face of climate change and development pressures. Thoughtful and lyrical, Nature's Calendar speaks to all readers, scientific and lay alike. Fascinating profiles of flora and fauna celebrate the richness and complexity of a unique ecosystem, exploring the entire ecology of this dynamic and delicate area.