From the National Audubon Society, Birds in the Garden celebrates the backyard birds that are a joy to see and hear. It's like glancing out the window and spotting a jewel-like songbird flitting through the garden or alighting on a flower. Like a pair of Eurasian Nuthatches resting on mushroom caps, or a family of Black-naped Monarchs in their mossy nest. Plus a Broad-tailed Hummingbird in flight, an aptly named Painted Bunting, and a European Robin surrounded by snow. Each exquisite full-color photograph is enhanced by detailed text about the featured species' habits, habitat, voice, and distinctive characteristics--as well as tips for bird lovers on feeding, watching, and more. Printed on FSC-certified paper.

These easy-to-use guides are divided into three parts: introductory essays; color plates and species accounts; and appendices - all in a convenient size!

Filled with succinct descriptions and dazzling photographs, the National Audubon Society Pocket Guide to Familiar Butterflies in North America is designed to be compact enough for nature-lovers to easily bring along when observing butterflies. This streamlined volume contains: a simple field guide identifying 80 of the most widespread butterflies in North America and a complete overview of observing butterflies, covering basic identifying field marks and practical tips for observing and distinguishing different butterflies.

This pocket guide is packed with information; bright photographs capturing the butterflies perched with their wings spread and closed; specific descriptions of each species' important identifying characteristics, life cycle, habitat and range, line drawings depicting the basic butterfly anatomy, a description of major butterfly groups and a glossary of technical terms.

When observing these beautifully fragile creatures, the National Audubon Society Guide to Familiar Butterflies of North America is an excellent and handy reference guide to take along during any nature walk.

The first and only field guide to offer comprehensive coverage of the African continent, this guide sends the reader on a virtual safari. All the birds, mammals, reptiles, and insects are brought to life, and the parks and reserves for which the continent is famous are described in thorough detail. This guide is packed with 577 stunning color photographs of African habitats and animals, and provides a wealth of information on more than 850 species compiled by veteran safari leaders and experts in African wildlife.

Designed to help readers more fully understand how animals live and survive in the wilds, this guide is a must for every nature explorer. Detailed line drawings and text reveal clues found in an animal's tracks that help identify it.

The essential book for beach-combers and divers, this guide explores more than 705 seashells, living mollusks, abalone, periwinkles, conchs, limpets, oysters, clams, mussels, and cockles found on the Atlantic, Pacific, and Gulf coasts of North America and the West Indies. The photographs are arranged by shape and color, making identification quick and easy.

The National Audubon Society Guide to Marine Mammals of the World describes in fascinating detail all 120 species of the world's whales, dolphins, porpoises, seals and sea lions, manatees, Marine and Sea Otters, and the Polar Bear. Written by a team of experts and featuring more than 320 illustrations, 418 photographs, and 123 maps, this new guide offers more authoritative, up-to-date, and accessible information than any book previously published on the subject.

Organized by the four major groups of marine mammals—marine fissipeds, pinnipeds, cetaceans, and sirenians—the species descriptions include:

Full-color paintings, some depicting males and females, juveniles, subspecies, or special features. Color photographs showing appearance in the wild and illustrating typical behaviors. Life history data, including length and weight at various life stages, and life span. Range and habitat text and a full-color range map based on the most current information. Facts about social organization, surface behaviors, swimming, and diving. Information on mating behavior, breeding, and the rearing of young. Details about food items and foraging techniques. Estimates of population in the wild, plus current and historic threats.

A general introduction outlines the evolution and taxonomy of marine mammals, distribution, migration, watching guidelines, identification techniques, organizations and laws that protect marine mammals, and more.

Introductions to groups include comparative size illustrations, discussion of behaviors particular to the group, and other unique features.

A useful illustrated glossary of terms and an index of species names complete the guide.

Exquisitely detailed illustrations, stunning photographs, and clearly written text combine to make this an indispensible reference source for marine mammal watchers and anyone interested in the natural world.

With more than 700 mushrooms detailed with color photographs and descriptive text, this is the most comprehensive photographic field guide to the mushrooms of North America. The 762 full-color identification photographs show the mushrooms as they appear in natural habitats. Organized visually, the book groups all mushrooms by color and shape to make identification simple and accurate in the field, while the text account for each species includes a detailed physical description, information on edibility, season, habitat, range, look-alikes, alternative names, and facts on edible and poisonous species, uses, and folklore. A supplementary section on cooking and eating wild mushrooms, and illustrations identifying the parts of a mushroom, round out this essential guide.

The most comprehensive field guide available to the tropical fishes of the Caribbean Sea, the Gulf of Mexico, Florida, the Bahamas, and Bermuda. All 417 photographs are in full color, capturing the natural beauty of the fishes on coral reefs and other habitats of tropical marine waters. The species photographs are keyed to full text descriptions of more than 400 species, each with its own range map. The text also includes brief coverage of nearly 800 additional species. Detailed endpaper maps, precise black-and-white drawings, and an illustrated family key supplement this authoritative and visually stunning resource.

The National Audubon Society Field Guides group species according to taxonomy and shape. Helpful thumb-tab silhouette keys make identification quick and easy.

The perfect companion volume for Hale-Bopp watchers, this guide explores the fabulous mysteries above, from planets in our solar system to the constellations in both the Northern and Southern hemispheres, stars, galaxies (including the Milky Way), nebulae, astronomical bodies, objects, phenomena, and -- yes -- comets. Night Sky provides a concise guided tour of the heavens with 48 monthly sky charts of the northern sky and 88 constellation charts, each offering a detailed map of individual constellations. Essays on the universe, the solar system, and constellations introduce the reader to the wonders of the sky.

All 933 identification pictures are full-color photos of significant details of virtually all native trees and many cultivated species as you see them in their natural habitat.

Desert-sand Verbenas and Primroses burst into a kaleidoscope blanketing a patch of California desert. Bright yellow Brittlebrush pops against a spare rocky outcrop in Neveda's Valley of Fire State Park. And the close-ups: fuchsia blooms on a Pricklypear; the big, fleshy flowers of a towering Saguaro. From the National Audubon Society comes a year of stunning desert wildflowers, in photographs that capture, and celebrate, their moment of peak beauty­-transforming their arid, harsh landscapes with brilliant swaths of colour. Printed on responsibly sourced paper.

This guide decsribes and illustrates 80 of the most abundant and colorful insects and spiders in North America. An additional thirteen insects are mentioned as similar or related species. 80 color plates.