'The most magical book about the African bush since Born Free' - Daily Mail

'A beautiful love story between humans and the majestic elephants' Jo Malone, Daily Express

Françoise Malby-Anthony never expected to find herself responsible for a herd of elephants with a troubled past. A chic Parisienne, her life changed forever when she fell in love with South African conservationist Lawrence Anthony. Together they founded a game reserve but after Lawrence’s death, Françoise faced the daunting responsibility of running Thula Thula without him. Poachers attacked their rhinos, their security team wouldn’t take orders from a woman and the authorities were threatening to cull their beloved elephant family. On top of that, the herd’s feisty new matriarch Frankie didn’t like her.

In this heart-warming and moving book, Françoise describes how she fought to protect the herd and to make her dream of building a wildlife rescue centre a reality. She found herself caring for a lost baby elephant who turned up at her house, and offering refuge to traumatized orphaned rhinos, and a hippo called Charlie who was scared of water. As she learned to trust herself, she discovered she’d had Frankie wrong all along . . .

Filled with extraordinary animals and the humans who dedicate their lives to saving them, An Elephant in My Kitchen by Françoise Malby-Anthony is a captivating and gripping read.

This book is the story of six years that the authors devoted to the study of an iconic large cat, the cheetah. Their study area was the large, remote, and pristine Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park on the border of Botswana and South Africa.

Their aim here is to relate what they consider to be a fascinating story about the lives of these cats in a different habitat from the one most people associate the cheetah with – a sandy desert rather than a grassy plain. They hope to entertain and inform the reader with what they learnt about the daunting challenges cheetahs face, and the wonderful adaptations cheetahs have evolved to survive in the competitive world of natural selection.

The book is divided into five parts: Part One gives the background to this adventure; the why, when, where, who and how aspects. Part Two discusses the fundamental question of what cheetahs eat and how they go about obtaining their food; the fascinating evolutionary arms race between predator and prey, some of the behavioural, physiological, and ecological ramifications, as well as the relationships of cheetahs with the other carnivores. Part Three turns to social affairs; the way cheetahs distribute themselves in the landscape, the way they find and choose mates, and the trials and tribulations of raising a family. In Part Four, the authors switch to more personal and human matters; the challenges of living and working in an isolated and infrastructurally limited environment, and two chapters written by Margie: one on their experiences with the Bushmen, the other relating a selection of memorable incidents, not specifically related to the cheetah study. The final part addresses two practical topics; the first comparing how cheetahs have adapted to two different environments: the lush Serengeti plains and the arid Kalahari, the other giving the authors' perspective on cheetah conservation.

This is the story of the dinosaurs, uniquely retold through 50 of the most significant findings from the fossil record. Each entry is illustrated with special photography of original specimens that illustrate both the history of dinosaur discovery and key evolutionary events. Palaeontologist Paul M. Barrett explains the importance of each fossil and how it marks a crucial inflection point in an evolutionary dynasty that ruled the Earth for more than 150 million years. The book is divided into themed sections, beginning with dinosaur ancestors before introducing all the major dinosaur groups and moving on to the distinctive aspects of their biology such as feeding, distribution, locomotion and behaviour. The final section focuses on the first fossil birds including the legendary Archaeopteryx, the feathered dinosaur that is widely considered to be the first bird species.

The first species to be domesticated, dogs have been selectively bred over thousands of years. Today they’re man’s best friend – but while many are pets, many, too, are working animals: for the police, for the blind, as guard dogs, as sheepdogs, pulling sleds and as therapy animals. Arranged in chapters covering physical characteristics, senses, lifecycle, communication, behaviour and working dogs, Dogs is a hugely informative visual celebration. From huskies to German shepherds, from collies to Chihuahuas, Shih Tzu to Jack Russell Terriers, Labradors to Bullmastiffs to Dachshunds, the book includes a huge range of breeds. With fascinating captions on every page, even dog lovers will learn something new. Dogs is a brilliant examination in 150 outstanding colour photographs.

How does a mudskipper fish manage to “walk� on land? Why is the Hoatzin also known as ‘The Stinkbird’? And once the female Pipa toad has laid her eggs, where does she put them? The answers? The mudskipper can “walk� using its pectoral fins, the Hoatzin has a unique digestive system which gives the bird a manure-like odour, and the female Pipa Toad embeds its eggs on its back where they develop to adult stage. Illustrated throughout with outstanding colour photographs, Strange Animals presents the most unusual aspects of 100 of the most unusual species. The selection spans a broad spectrum of wildlife, from the tallest land living mammal, the giraffe, to the light, laughing chorus of Australian kookaburra birds, from the intelligence of the Bottlenose dolphin to octopuses that change colour when they dream to the slow pace of the three-toed sloth. Arranged geographically, the photographs are accompanied by fascinating captions, which explain the quirky characteristics of each entry. Including egg-laying mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, cannibalistic insects and other invertebrates, Strange Animals is a compelling introduction to some of nature’s most curious beasts.

The fossil-bearing rocks of the British Isles represent life from the last 2,900 million years and the UK is seen by many as the cradle of modern geology. Using the geological map of Britain, expert palaeontologist Peter Doyle offers a comprehensive guide to fossils in the UK, plotting the main fossil groups around the country, and relating them to the different ages of the rock in which they are found. With photographs of the fossils that can be discovered, and tips on how to find them yourself, "British Fossils" is the perfect companion for the novice fossil hunter or enthusiast.

Why do cats purr? How much can you learn about a cat’s mood from the direction it flicks its tail? How do cats show trust with their eyes? Why do cats rub against their owners’ legs? Arranged in chapters covering physical characteristics, senses, lifecycle and behaviour, Cats features a huge range of breeds from all around the world. From Siamese to Russian Blue, Manx to American Bobtail, Burmese to Bombay, the book expertly explores and celebrates this most beloved pet. With fascinating captions on every page, even cat lovers will learn something new. Cats is a brilliant examination in 150 outstanding colour photographs.

Learn to forage in the hedgerows like the herbalists of the past As many of us look for ways to live a more planet-friendly lifestyle, the sustainable and ethical art of foraging offers us a way to connect with the world around us. It is a practice rich in tradition and steeped in history, and one that links us to our past and our future. This foraging companion is designed to be taken with you on your adventures into the hedgerows, forests and woodland all year round. Helpfully arranged by season, this book includes clear photographs to aid plant identification, ideas on how best to prepare and preserve your finds, fascinating foraging and plant folklore, and handy pages to make your own notes and drawings. Additional features: Paperback and lightweight (approx. 330g) design, to allow you to take the book with you while foraging A month-by-month foraging calendar Advice on foraging etiquette and tips for creating a forager's toolkit This is the essential guide to enjoying the bountiful delights of the hedgerows.

The karst landforms of China are renowned around the world for the beauty of their landscapes, but it is less well appreciated that they also contain extensive cave systems with very significant underwater habitats. China also has an extremely high level of biodiversity, including over 1,500 freshwater fish species. Unsurprisingly, some of these species inhabit the karst cave systems and have flourished and diversified under unique environmental conditions. As a result, cave fishes in China are particularly abundant and diverse when compared to those of other countries of the world. These remarkable fishes have received considerable research attention from Chinese ichthyologists and, for the first time, this book makes their resulting findings directly accessible to the English-speaking world through a remarkable endeavour of Sino-British collaboration.

A new, fully updated edition of David Attenborough's groundbreaking Life on Earth. David Attenborough's unforgettable meeting with gorillas became an iconic moment for millions of television viewers. Life on Earth, the series and accompanying book, fundamentally changed the way we view and interact with the natural world setting a new benchmark of quality, influencing a generation of nature lovers. Told through an examination of animal and plant life, this is an astonishing celebration of the evolution of life on earth, with a cast of characters drawn from the whole range of organisms that have ever lived on this planet. Attenborough's perceptive, dynamic approach to the evolution of millions of species of living organisms takes the reader on an unforgettable journey of discovery from the very first spark of life to the blue and green wonder we know today. To celebrate the 40th anniversary of the book's first publication, David Attenborough revisited Life on Earth, completely updating and adding to the original text, taking account of modern scientific discoveries from around the globe. This paperback edition also includes more than 60 full colour photographs, chosen by the author to help illustrate the book in a much greater way than was possible forty years ago. This updated edition provides a fitting tribute to an enduring wildlife classic, destined to enthral the generation who saw it when first published and bring it alive for a whole new generation.

A book of evocative and atmospheric photographs taken by Dick Hawkes to create a representative record of this precious and ecologically unique habitat - before much of it is lost to the many threats it faces. Chalk streams have been described as England's "rainforest". Around 85% of the world's chalk streams are in England. They are beautiful, biologically distinct and amazingly rich in wildlife, but are under threat from man-made issues of abstraction, pollution from chemicals and effluent, development for housing, and climate change. Included in the book are images of typical habitats and species of wildlife found in chalk streams and water meadows, highlighting those that are rare or most under threat.

Why do cats purr? How much can you learn about a cat's mood from the direction it flicks its tail? How do cats show trust with their eyes? Why do cats rub against their owners' legs? Arranged in chapters covering physical characteristics, senses, lifecycle and behaviour, Cats features a huge range of breeds from all around the world. From Siamese to Russian Blue, Manx to American Bobtail, Burmese to Bombay, the book expertly explores and celebrates this most beloved pet. With fascinating captions on every page, even cat lovers will learn something new. Cats is a brilliant examination in 150 outstanding colour photographs.

Follow the story of a dog named Skye, who really was found in a skip and after many adventures, her return home after six years. This heart warming true tale is a tribute to the power hope, and of the microchip!

Everybody knows Albert is clumsy, but can he go to Magic School without anything going wronga |.? Albert and his brothers and sisters were born in July 2015. Buster was rescued in February 2018. A percentage of the sales will be going to an Animal charity.

'Roger Phillips has written the best mushroom book I know.' - Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, author of River Cottage Veg Every Day! The culmination of over thirty years' work, Roger Phillips's authoritative and superbly illustrated reference work is packed with information and original photographs. The essential illustrated mycological encyclopedia, this book is also clear, user friendly and will appeal to a wide range of readers. Unsurpassed in both illustrative and descriptive detail, Mushrooms contains over 1,250 photographs, often showing the specimens in various stages of growth, and includes all the latest botanical and common names as well as current ecological information on endangered species. Having sold more than 750,000 copies in Europe of his previous title on mushrooms, Roger Phillips's Mushrooms once again sets the benchmark. Quite simply, nobody with an interest in the subject can afford to be without this book.