"A witty, scientifically accurate, and often intensely creepy exploration of sanguivorous creatures."
--"San Francisco Chronicle"
For centuries, blood feeders have inhabited our nightmares and horror stories, as well as the shadowy realms of scientific knowledge. In "Dark Banquet," zoologist Bill Schutt takes us on a fascinating voyage into the world of some of nature's strangest creatures-the sanguivores. Using a sharp eye and mordant wit, Schutt makes a remarkably persuasive case that blood feeders, from bats to bedbugs, are as deserving of our curiosity as warmer and fuzzier species are-and that many of them are even worthy of conservation.
Enlightening and alarming, "Dark Banquet" peers into a part of the natural world to which we are, through our blood, inextricably linked.
""Dark Banquet" is an amazing account of all those creatures that most of us consider really creepy! But author Bill Schutt doesn't, and actually embraces these critters and their bloodthirsty lifestyles. It's great to see such wonderful animal research in a reader-friendly form. After finishing the book, you'll have a lot to discuss at your next dinner party!"
--Jack Hanna, director emeritus, Columbus Zoo, and host of television's Emmy Award--winning series "Into the Wild"
"[A] passionate defense of bloodsuckers from the leech to the candiru."
--"Discover
"

The Stones of Britain is about how rocks make places. The connection between geology and landscape, between the stones beneath the surface and the history that has played out above it. About the varied character of the British landscape, and the rich variety of places that result. The shattered granite landscape of Dartmoor is different from the soft red sandstone hills of east Devon; the rolling chalk downs distinct from the gritty moors of Yorkshire. Each of these landscapes has a different historical story to tell; that story is rooted in the characteristics of the rocks beneath the surface. The Stones of Britain interprets these stories. It explains the nature of place on the island of Britain, revealing the landscape as the joint product of geology and man: a history rooted in stone.

William Balfour Baikie was a surgeon, naturalist, linguist, writer, explorer and government consul who played a key role in opening Africa to the Europeans. As an explorer he mapped and charted large sections of the Niger River system as well as the overland routes from Lagos and Lokoja to the major trading centres of Kano, Timbuctu and Sokoto. As a naturalist, major beneficiaries of his work included Kew Gardens and the British Museum for the rare and undiscovered plant and animal species and yet today he remains largely unknown. On 10th December, 1864 Baikie was on his way back to London and was living in his temporary quarters in Sierra Leone. There he worked to regain his health and to complete the various reports and publications expected by the Colonial and Foreign Offices. He had been away from England for seven years and living conditions in West Africa had caused his health to suffer. While his wife and children waited for his return 600 miles away in Lokoja, the city in Nige-ria he had founded, his father waited for his return to Kirkwall, Orkney. Baikie would never return to his wife, nor ever see his father again. In two days, he would be dead and buried at Sierra Leone before his fortieth birthday. In his short life Baikie became such a hero among the Nigerian people 150 years ago that white visitors to the region today are still greeted warmly as 'Baikie'. After studying at University of Edinburgh he was assigned to the Royal Hospital Haslar where he worked with the noted explorers Sir John Richardson and Sir Edward Perry. Baikie's reputation as a naturalist, and the sphere of influence provided by Richardson and Perry, allowed him to enter the elite British scientific community where he also worked alongside the most famous naturalist of the time, Charles Darwin. During his time at Haslar, Baikie made two voyages exploring the Niger and Benue Rivers to establish trading centres for the Liverpool merchant Macgregor Laird. The first was a resounding success. He conducted the first clinical trial using quinine as a preventative for malaria. For the first time in history, his initial exploration of these rivers was conducted without the loss of a single life to fever. Returning to London to a hero's welcome, he was nominated for one of the Royal Geographic Society's prestigious awards. His second voyage was a pure disaster. His ship was wrecked; members of the expedition died and he was stranded for over a year in the vast remote territory known as the Sokoto Caliphate. Following his rescue, he elected to remain alone in Africa for what would be his final years in order to complete his personal mission. Although he was born 4,000 miles away in Orkney, Baikie was designated the King of Lokoja by the ruler of the Sokoto Caliphate. This book defines the man and his accomplishments and reveals how he is so fondly remembered by the Nigerians and yet apparently so totally forgotten by the rest of the world.

From the beloved author of the bestselling "To Bless the Space Between Us" and "Anam Cara "comes a new work that shares his insights on nature and the ancient wisdom of this earth.
John O'Donohue won hundreds of thousands of admirers with his now classic work on Celtic spirituality "Anam Cara." Unfortunately he died suddenly at age fifty-two just as his book of blessings, "To Bless the Space Between Us," was being published. The loss of his powerfully wise and lyrical voice has been profoundly missed, but his many readers are given a special opportunity to revisit John in a new book based on a series of papers he wrote on the elements of water, stone, air, and fire, now published here for the first time. O'Donohue's readers know him as both a spiritual guide and a poet, and in this work he exhibits both qualities, sharing his Celtic heritage and his love for his native landscape in the west of Ireland. As O'Donohue explores a range of themes relating to the way we live our lives today, he reveals how the energy and rhythm of the natural world--its innocence and creativity, its power and splendor--hold profound lessons for us all. With a foreword written by his beloved brother, Pat, this illuminating book is an inspired reflection on the ancient wisdom of the earth.

This text covers the geological history of Britain from over 2,000 million years ago to the present day. An introductory chapter covers basic geological principles, followed by chapters describing the rocks, minerals, and fossils of each period. The book is written for the lay person interested in the great variety of Britain's rocks and landscapes but also includes a wealth of information for students at all levels.

Originally published in 1957, The Uniqueness of the Individual is a collection of 9 essays published from the ten years preceding publication. The essays deal with some of the central problems of biology. These are among the questions put and answered from the standpoint of modern experimental biology. What is ageing and how is it measured? What theories have been held to account for it, and with what success? Did ageing evolve, and if so how? Is Lamarckism and adequate explanation of evolutionary process? Does evolution sometimes go wrong? Do human beings evolve in a way peculiar to themselves? Other essays touch upon the problems of scientific method and of growth and transformation. This book will be of interest to natural historians, evolutionists and anthropologists.

From Great Yarmouth to Aberystwyth, Westering is a coast-to-coast journey crossing the Fens, Leicester, the Black Country and central Wales. It connects landscape, place and memory to evoke a narrative unravelling the deep topography, and following a westerly route that runs against the grain of the land, its geology, culture and historical bedrock. With the industrial Midlands sandwiched between bucolic landscapes in East Anglia and Wales, here we explore places too often overlooked. Along the way we encounter deserted medieval villages, battlefield sites, the ghosts of Roman soldiers, valleys drowned for reservoirs, ancient forests, John Clare's beloved fields, and the urban edgelands. Notions of home and belonging, landscapes of loss and absence, birds and the resilience of nature, the psychology of walking, and the psychogeography of liminal places all frame the story.

From Maine's Acadia National Park to Kentucky's Natural Bridge State Park Nature Preserve, this volume provides a snapshot of the most spectacular and important natural places in the East and Northeast. America's Natural Places: East and Northeast examines over 50 of the most spectacular and important areas of this region, with each entry describing the importance of the area, the flora and fauna that it supports, threats to the survival of the region, and what is being done to protect it. Organized by state within the volume, this work informs readers about the wide variety of natural areas across the east and northeast and identifies places that may be near them that demonstrate the importance of preserving such regions.

Bringing together new writing by some of the field's most compelling voices from the United States and Europe, this is the first book to examine Italy-as a territory of both matter and imagination-through the lens of the environmental humanities. The contributors offer a wide spectrum of approaches-including ecocriticism, film studies, environmental history and sociology, eco-art, and animal and landscape studies-to move past cliche and reimagine Italy as a hybrid, plural, eloquent place. Among the topics investigated are post-seismic rubble and the stratifying geosocial layers of the Anthropocene, the landscape connections in the work of writers such as Calvino and Buzzati, the contaminated fields of the ecomafia's trafficking, Slow Food's gastronomy of liberation, poetic birds and historic forests, resident parasites, and nonhuman creatures. At a time when the tension between the local and the global requires that we reconsider our multiple roots and porous place-identities, Italy and the Environmental Humanities builds a creative critical discourse and offers a series of new voices that will enrich not just nationally oriented discussions, but the entire debate on environmental culture.

Hike the AT, and Get to Know Its Nature The Appalachian Trail's soaring elevations and precipitous terrain are complemented by lush vegetation, abundant wildlife, and some of the most beautiful views in the world. You can conquer part or all of the AT on foot. Along the way, immerse yourself in its nature. Leonard M. Adkins has thru-hiked the AT five times, and he has spent countless hours studying it. Now, he's sharing his expertise with you. Nature of the Appalachian Trail is an overview of more than 2,000 miles worth of information! There's no need to shoulder dozens of different books in your backpack. This comprehensive naturalist's guide includes a look at the mountains' history, a study of the land's geology, and detailed information about the trail's birds, mammals, trees, flowers, reptiles, amphibians, and more. Inside you'll find: Complete overview of the entire trail Detailed guide to its flora and fauna In-depth discussion of the region's history and geology Expert insights from a professional naturalist Nature of the Appalachian Trail is your visitor's companion to unbroken forest from Georgia to Maine. It is applicable to the states of Connecticut, Georgia, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, and West Virginia.

Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900's and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.

Human beings have always moved for what they need until recently. We know how a lack of movement impacts our bodies but how does culture-wide sedentarism impact the world? Movement Matters is a Foreword Indies GOLD-winning collection of essays, in which biomechanist Katy Bowman continues her groundbreaking presentation on the interconnectedness of nature, human movement, and the environment. Here Bowman widens the "there is more to movement than exercise" message she presented in Move Your DNA and invites us to consider this idea: human movement is a part of the ecosystem. Movement Matters explores how we make ourselves, our communities, and our planet healthier all at the same time by moving our bodies more as well as: how did we become so sedentary? Where did all the movement go? (Hint: convenience often saves us movement, not time.) the missing "movement nutrients" in our food how to include more nature in education why ecosystem models need to include human movement the human need for "Vitamin Community" and group movement. Unapologetically direct, often hilarious, and always compassionate, Movement Matters demonstrates that human movement is powerful and important, and that going beyond exercise and living a movement-filled life is perhaps the most joyful and efficient way to transform your body, community, and world. A must read for exercise teachers, environmentalists, and those wanting simple, accessible ways to take action for a better world.