In this lively, historically accurate account, David E. Brown chronicles the demise of the grizzly bear in the Southwest. He presents the personal narratives of those who knew grizzlies, accounts of hunters and administrators in wildlife management agencies, and the popular legends and lore of the grizzly that one would hear around the campfire. Scientists, Southwest historians, and those interested in America's wildlife will appreciate this readable study of the bear's life history and of the unique spirit of adventure associated with the grizzly bear-a spirit that passed from southwest game ranges with the expirpation of the species in the first half of this century. This edition includes a new foreword by Charles Jonkel and a new preface, in which the author discusses the latest developments in the debate over the grizzly's place in the Southwest.

The Strategic Studies Institute (SSI) has maintained close and positive professional ties with our colleagues at the Africa Center for Strategic Studies (ACSS) in Washington, DC, since ACSS's founding in 1999. The Africa Center is the preeminent U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) institution for strategic security studies, research, and outreach in Africa. I am pleased that SSI and ACSS are once more able to collaborate in the publication of this monograph, entitled Hidden Dragon, Crouching Lion: How China's Advance in Africa is Underestimated and Africa's Potential Underappreciated. Its author, David E. Brown, is currently the Senior Diplomatic Advisor at ACSS. He brings unique perspectives to the important foreign policy issue of China's rapid commercial and political advance in Africa, having served eight times in China and Africa as a Foreign Service Officer at U.S. Embassies, U.S. Consulates, and the American Institute in Taiwan.

The explosive growth of China's economic interests in Africa-bilateral trade rocketed from $1 billion in 1990 to $150 billion in 2011-may be the most important trend in the continent's foreign relations since the end of the Cold War. In 2010, China surpassed the United States as Africa's top trading partner; its quest to build a strategic partnership with Africa on own its terms through tied aid, trade, and development finance is also part of Beijing's broader aspirations to surpass the United States as the world's preeminent superpower. Africa and other emerging economies have become attractive partners for China not only for natural resources, but as growing markets. Africa's rapid growth since 2000 has not just occurred because of higher commodity prices, but more importantly due to other factors including improved governance, economic reforms, and an expanding labor force. China's rapid and successful expansion in Africa is due to multiple factors, including economic diplomacy that is clearly superior to that of the United States. China's "no strings attached" approach to development, however, risks undoing decades of Western efforts to promote good governance. Consequently, this monograph examines China's oil diplomacy, equity investments in strategic minerals, and food policy toward Africa. The official U.S. rhetoric is that China's rise in Africa should not be seen as a zero-sum game, but areas where real U.S.-China cooperation can help Africa remain elusive, mainly because of Beijing's hyper-mistrust of Washington. The United States could help itself, and Africa, by improving its own economic diplomacy and adequately funding its own soft-power efforts.

Nearly two feet long with striking black, white, and red plumage, the Ivory-billed and Imperial Woodpeckers were two of the most impressive woodpeckers in the world. Both species were known to be in serious decline by the end of the nineteenth century and are likely extinct today, though occasional reports of sightings persist. While the Ivory-billed was one of the first endangered birds to receive intensive conservation attention, the efforts were too often misdirected, and too little, too late. Concern for the fate of the Imperial Woodpecker came even later and resulted in a similar fate.
The probable extinction of two of North America's largest and most charismatic birds has much to teach us regarding conservation efforts, especially as many other species face similar problems. In closely examining the history of the decline and causes of extinction of the Ivory-billed and Imperial Woodpeckers, the authors offer explanations for the birds' demise and strategies for future conservation and research efforts that focus mainly on the deadly, though largely understated, role of human depredations.