After the French and Indian War, in which France and England had fought over the control of North America, the French government decided to send an expedition to the Falkland Islands, or Isles Malouines, with a view to founding a colony where the Acadians expelled from Canada could settle. Under the command of Louis-Antoine de Bougainville (1729-1811), the 1763-4 expedition claimed these islands for France and established a base at Port Saint Louis. This work, translated from French and first published in English in 1771, is an illustrated account of this endeavour by Antoine-Joseph Pernety (1716-96), a naturalist and writer who took part in the expedition. Notably, it contains the first description of the geological phenomena of the stone runs on East Falkland. The latter part of the work is a compilation of letters and notes pertaining to subsequent voyages to Patagonia and the Straits of Magellan.

A Benedictine scholar and naturalist, Antoine-Joseph Pernety (1716 96) produced this early and invaluable description of the natural history of the Falkland Islands (or isles Malouines). He had arrived there as part of the 1763 4 expedition led by Louis-Antoine de Bougainville, claiming the islands for France. A small colony was established, allowing Pernety to provide an account of an ecosystem as yet unaffected by a human population. He spent some months studying the landscape, flora, fauna and climate, and his observations and drawings were published in these two volumes in 1770 (a one-volume English translation of 1771 is also reissued in this series). Additional material from other voyages, to Patagonia and the Straits of Magellan, provides information on contact with indigenous peoples in South America. Volume 1 discusses the inspiration behind the 1763 4 expedition, detailing the journey itself before continuing to an in-depth study of the natural history of the Falklands."

A Benedictine scholar and naturalist, Antoine-Joseph Pernety (1716 96) produced this early and invaluable description of the natural history of the Falkland Islands (or isles Malouines). He had arrived there as part of the 1763 4 expedition led by Louis-Antoine de Bougainville, claiming the islands for France. A small colony was established, allowing Pernety to provide an account of an ecosystem as yet unaffected by a human population. He spent some months studying the landscape, flora, fauna and climate, and his observations and drawings were published in these two volumes in 1770 (a one-volume English translation of 1771 is also reissued in this series). Additional material from other voyages, to Patagonia and the Straits of Magellan, provides information on contact with indigenous peoples in South America. Volume 2 includes this material from other authors. A series of detailed maps and drawings conclude the volume."