Download or read book RSPB Spotlight Kingfishers written by David Chandler and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2017-03-23 with total page 130 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Usually observed as a flash of blue and orange from a riverbank, most people are aware of Kingfishers, but few of us are familiar with the intricacies of their day-to-day lives. With their long, dagger-like bills, bright blue plumage and characteristic fast, low flight over water, Common Kingfishers are instantly recognisable. The 90 or so species that belong to this colourful family have a cosmopolitan distribution and, in Spotlight Kingfishers, David Chandler celebrates their remarkable existence, studying their unique adaptations and their courtship, breeding and feeding habits. He also investigates historical threats to Kingfishers, considers their future, and offers practical advice on how to find and see these glorious birds.
Download or read book RSPB Spotlight Kingfishers written by David Chandler and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2017-05-23 with total page 130 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: RSPB Spotlight Kingfishers is packed with eye-catching, informative color photos and features succinct, detailed text written by a knowledgeable naturalist.
Download or read book The Pocket Book of Bird Anatomy written by Marianne Taylor and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2020-05-28 with total page 396 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What is a bird? To answer that, we must understand how birds are different from all other living things and how they fit into the diversity of life on Earth. This excellent RSPB guide to bird anatomy looks at the avian body, system by system, how it evolved, and how it functions. Chapters explore traits that are unique to birds, including their remarkable one-way breathing cycle, their trimmed-down skeleton, how feathers permit flight, provide weather-proofing and add beauty, and the avian bill – a lightweight replacement for both teeth and food-handling forelimbs. Each chapter tackles a particular body system and includes detailed anatomical illustrations, from cells and organs to skeletons and muscles, to show how birds' anatomical adaptations enable all their physical feats and fascinating behaviour. Feature spreads offer more in-depth analysis on topics like birdsong, temperature control, ornamentation, unusual diets, social behaviour, nocturnal adaptations, mutation and natural selection. Featuring more than 300 diagrams and colour photos, this fascinating new book also looks at the human impact on the avian world and reveals how behaviour and anatomy work together to produce these vibrant living beings that delight and inspire us so much.
Download or read book RSPB Spotlight Robins written by Marianne Taylor and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2015-06-18 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Robins is packed with eye-catching, informative colour photos and succinct, detailed text written by a knowledgeable expert. Our most iconic bird, the Robin, is one of the most characterful and familiar of all our garden visitors. Their melodious voices, bright red breasts and cheeky attitudes always endear them to us, but how much do we really know about them? Despite their cute appearance, Robins are aggressively territorial and hold their territories all year. Their year-round presence has helped them become a beloved and instantly recognisable species. In this delightful book, Marianne Taylor provides a revealing account of their life cycle, behaviour and breeding, what they eat and how they hold their territories, and she looks into the many cultural representations of these much-loved little birds. The Spotlight series introduces readers to the lives and behaviour of our favourite animals.
Download or read book RSPB Spotlight Ducks and Geese written by Marianne Taylor and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2020-05-28 with total page 215 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: RSPB Spotlight: Ducks and Geese is packed with eye-catching, informative colour photos, and features succinct, detailed text written by a knowledgeable naturalist. This is a detailed 'biography' of ducks and geese that breed in or regularly visit the UK – covering 30 species in all. It will include chapters on the evolution of ducks and geese, their place in the natural world, their anatomy and physiology, various feeding methods, spectacular courtship displays and diverse breeding behaviour. Marianne Taylor reveals their often epic migrations and examine their social interactions with their own and other species, including their unusual readiness to hybridise. She also details their relationships with humankind over the centuries, including their presence in folklore and literature and their role in our lives as both prey and pets. She explores their presence as feral and sometimes invasive species outside their natural ranges, and their current status within their native wild ranges as the group includes several species recently recognised as being of global conservation concern.
Download or read book RSPB Spotlight Ospreys written by Tim Mackrill and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2019-05-16 with total page 219 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: RSPB Spotlight: Ospreys is packed with eye-catching, informative colour photos, and features succinct, detailed text written by a knowledgeable naturalist. A hunting Osprey is one of the great sights of the natural world, and its fishing prowess is admired and revered around the globe. However, its penchant for taking fish from trout ponds resulted in a drastic decline in the UK with the species wiped out by human persecution and habitat loss. Thanks to concerted conservation efforts, it has made an encouraging comeback in recent decades, giving people across the country the chance to see this majestic hunter in action once again. This easy-to-read text explores all aspects of the Osprey's biology and ecology, including a detailed overview of the adaptations that make it such a skilled and proficient hunter. There is also a chapter dedicated to Osprey migration with a summary of the findings of groundbreaking satellite tracking research. Tim Mackrill also explores the relationship between humans and Ospreys, from the days of Shakespeare to the recent rise of Osprey tourism. The Spotlight series introduces readers to the lives and behaviour of our favourite animals with eye-catching colour photographs and informative expert text.
Download or read book RSPB Handbook of British Birds written by Peter Holden and published by Bloomsbury Wildlife. This book was released on 2021-03-23 with total page 321 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The bestselling RSPB Handbook of British Birds is the most comprehensive reference for birdwatchers of all levels of interest and experience. Now in its fifth edition, it remains the most accessible field guide to more than 300 bird species likely to be encountered in Britain and Ireland. Alongside artworks depicting all common plumages, the detailed text describes each bird's behaviour, habitat, voice, breeding biology, longevity and seasonal movements, as well as other useful information. The guide also includes UK population trends and up-to-date distribution maps. Completely revised and updated, this fifth edition also features new artwork and comparison spreads, additional rarities, the most recent taxonomic order, as well as each species' conservation status, a summary of the threats UK species are currently facing and details of what conservationists are doing to help.
Download or read book Hyena written by Mikita Brottman and published by Reaktion Books. This book was released on 2013-02-15 with total page 170 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Hyenas are almost universally regarded as nasty, scheming charlatans that skulk in the back alleyways of the animal kingdom. They have been scorned for centuries as little more than scavenging carrion-eaters, vandals, and thieves. Here to restore the Hyena’s reputation is Mikita Brottman, who offers an alternate view of these mistreated and misunderstood creatures and proves that they are complex, intelligent, and highly sociable animals. Investigating representations of the hyena throughout history, Brottman divulges that the hyena, though shrouded in taboo, has been the source of talismanic objects since the ancient Greek and Roman empires. She discovers that many cultures use parts of the hyena—from excrement and blood to genitalia and hair—to make charms that both avert evil and promote fertility. Brottman also considers representations of hyenas in today’s popular fiction, including The Lion King and The Life of Pi,where they are often depicted as villains, cowardly henchmen, or clowns, while ignoring their more noble qualities. Rightly returning hyenas to their proper place in the animal pantheon, this richly illustrated book will be enjoyed by any animal lover with an interest in the unusual and offbeat.
Download or read book Reed and Bush Warblers written by Peter Kennerley and published by A&C Black. This book was released on 2010-09-15 with total page 713 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Bradypterus, Locustella, Hippolais, Cettia.
Download or read book RSPB Spotlight Snakes written by Jules Howard and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2020-05-28 with total page 130 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: RSPB Spotlight: Snakes is packed with eye-catching, informative colour photos, and features succinct, detailed text written by a knowledgeable naturalist. Snakes are superbly secretive reptiles, celebrated by many for their highly tuned senses and their complex and mysterious seasonal behaviours. Though some people may be fearful of them, these important reptiles play a crucial role in many habitats. And an encounter with any one of our native snake species is an experience worth cherishing. In Spotlight Snakes, Jules Howard takes readers on a journey through the ecology and lifestyle of Britain's three native snake species: the Barred Grass Snake, the Smooth Snake and our only venomous snake species, the Adder. As well as uncovering their unique hunting styles and courtship rituals, he delves into the myths and legends at the heart of humankind's widespread and sometimes troublesome fascination with these animals. He also charts the conservation challenges our native snakes face in the modern age and explores the solutions conservationists are employing to help these extraordinary predators remain a vital part of British ecosystems for generations to come. The Spotlight series introduces readers to the lives and behaviour of our favourite animals with eye-catching colour photographs and informative expert text.
Download or read book Hummingbirds written by Michael Fogden and published by Harper Collins. This book was released on 2014-05-28 with total page 703 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Hummingbirds have always held popular appeal, with their visual brilliance, extraordinary flight dexterity, jewel-like color, and remarkably small size. This is the first book to profile all 338 known species, from the Saw-billed Hermit to the Scintillant Hummingbird. Every bird is shown life-size in glorious full-color photographs. Every species profile includes a flight map and key statistics, as well as information about behavior, plumage, and habitat. This authoritative guide has been annotated by the world's leading experts on hummingbirds and features a foreword by renowned birding author Pete Dunne.
Download or read book Birds of Italy written by Marianne Taylor and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2018-05-03 with total page 283 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An authoritative pocket guide to the birds of Italy. This compact, easy-to-use bird identification guide is suitable for any birdwatcher visiting Italy. The book features concise descriptions, detailing essential information on identification, songs and calls, behaviour, distribution and habitat. There are full colour photos of more than 250 species regularly seen in the region, carefully selected to aid accurate identification. This is the ideal pocket-sized guide – perfect for nature-loving travellers and birdwatchers visiting Italy.
Download or read book The Wryneck written by Gerard Gorman and published by Pelagic Publishing Ltd. This book was released on 2022-02-01 with total page 323 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book considers the natural history and cultural symbolism of a most unusual woodpecker – a species that neither excavates nest holes in trees, nor bores into wood to find insect prey. The Wryneck is best renowned for performing a twisting, writhing head and neck display when threatened, but this ground-breaking work reveals many more secrets of its behaviour and evolution. Detailed information is presented on the species' origins, taxonomy, anatomy, appearance, moult, calls, distribution, conservation status, habitats, movements, breeding, diet and relationships, along with a chapter on its closest relative, the Red-throated Wryneck. The text is richly illustrated throughout with high quality photographs as well as sound spectrograms. The author augments his many hours watching Wrynecks with comprehensive literature research, creating what is surely the definitive volume on the species. This all-encompassing and engaging account has been written for a wide audience, whether professional ornithologist, citizen scientist, amateur birder, woodpecker aficionado or simply someone who wishes to learn more about this curious and remarkable bird.
Download or read book Crows and Jays written by Steve Madge and published by A&C Black. This book was released on 2010-08-30 with total page 215 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Crows and Jays is a combination of scientifically accurate information and an identification guide, planned to give anyone, whether a birdwatcher or biologist, a greater understanding of the lives of these beautiful, yet very complex, group of birds. 120 species of crows, jays and their allies exist in the world today. Many are exceedingly beautiful in colour, grace and form, whereas others are black and somewhat sinister in appearance. In no other group of perching birds has evolution produced such a degree of variation, from the tiny Hume's Ground-Jay of the steppe-highlands of Tibet to the huge Thick-billed Raven of the mountains of Ethiopia. Some have had a long association with people and appear in tales of mythology and superstition, while others have been regarded as agricultural pests. The great majority, however, remain largely unknown, their only contact with humanity being the destruction of their specialised habitats. As a consequence, more than 20 species are now regarded as internationally endangered, some of which are very poorly known. The 30 superb colour plates by Hilary Burn in this book depict them all; each plate is accompanied by an informative caption page summarising the criteria required to identify the species, alongside colour world distribution maps. Some of these birds, bearing such evocative names as the Banggai Crow, Mesopotamian Crow and Flores Crow, have never been illustrated before. The authoritative text by Steve Madge treats each species in depth, summarising identification techniques and concisely reviewing all aspects of corvid behaviour, distribution, population and taxonomy. The author has had first-hand experience of most of the species during his travels throughout the world, travels in which he gradually became fascinated by this very special, but somewhat ignored, group of birds. This will surely be a standard work of reference for many years to come.
Download or read book The Complete Book of Hummingbirds written by Tony Tilford and published by Thunder Bay Press. This book was released on 2015-03-01 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A fascinating reference guide to nature's "jewels in flight." Often called "jewels in flight" due to their brilliant plumage, the tiny hummingbird is a welcome friend in gardens and on patios everywhere. These fascinating little avians have long captured our imagination with their spectacular beauty and magical ability to hover in midair. Discover these remarkable little birds in the Complete Book of Hummingbirds by Tony Tilford. This is the ultimate reference guide to hummingbirds, featuring a comprehensive overview of the birds' biology, evolution, behavior, breeding, and migration patterns. You'll be awestruck by the amazing updated collection of full-color photographs depicting hummingbirds in flight and at rest in the Gallery of Hummingbirds. Learn how to attract hungry hummingbirds to your garden! Discover the kinds of plants and flowers that they love to visit, and how to create artificial feeding stations by making your own hummingbird food. From Woodnymphs and Mountain-Gems to Plovercrests and Hillstars, this thorough book describes all the hummingbirds of the world, and includes a helpful reference section, complete with a glossary and recommended websites for further reading.
Download or read book Badger written by Daniel Heath Justice and published by Reaktion Books. This book was released on 2014-10-15 with total page 226 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Fierce, menacing, and mysterious, badgers have fascinated humans as living animals, abstract symbols, or commercial resources for thousands of years—often to their detriment. With their reputation for determined self-defense, they have been brutalized by hunters and sportsmen, while their association with the mythic underworld has made them idealized symbols of earth-based wisdom and their burrowing habits have resulted in their widespread persecution as pests. In this highly illustrated book, Daniel Heath Justice provides the first global cultural history of the badger in over thirty years. From the iconic European badger and its North American kin to the African honey badger and Southeast Asian hog badger, Justice considers the badger’s evolution and widespread distribution alongside its current, often-imperiled status throughout the world. He travels from natural history and life in the wild to the folklore, legends, and spiritual beliefs that badgers continue to inspire, while also exploring their representation and exploitation in industry, religion, and the arts. Tracing the complex and contradictory ways in which this fascinating animal endures, Badger will appeal to anyone interested in a deeper understanding of these much-maligned creatures.
Download or read book The Ravenmaster written by Christopher Skaife and published by HarperCollins. This book was released on 2018-10-02 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For centuries, the Tower of London has been home to a group of famous avian residents: the ravens. Each year they are seen by millions of visitors, and they have become as integral a part of the Tower as its ancient stones. But their role is even more important than that—legend has it that if the ravens should ever leave, the Tower will crumble into dust and great harm will befall the kingdom. The responsibility for ensuring that such a disaster never comes to pass falls to one man: the Ravenmaster. The current holder of the position is Yeoman Warder Christopher Skaife, and in this fascinating, entertaining and touching book he memorably describes the ravens’ formidable intelligence, their idiosyncrasies and their occasionally wicked sense of humour. The Ravenmaster is a compelling, inspiring and irreverent story that will delight and surprise anyone with an interest in British history or animal behaviour.
