|
Showing 1 - 10 of
10 matches in All Departments
After 20 years working as a professional biologist, the author
decided to 'retire' to the Highlands, moving with his wife to a
croft at the edge of a small and somewhat inaccessible village on
the west coast. This was no romantic and idealistic aspiration for
the Good Life, nor really an attempt to 'get away from it all';
rather a growing disaffection with living in the overpopulated
south of England and a desire to return to his Scottish roots.
Moving was like stepping back 50 years in time: most of the other
residents of this tiny hamlet had been born and bred there, the
majority were Gaelic-speaking and, with few of the conventional
'services', there was a strong sense of community that had been
missed. This engaging story gives a collection of cameos from those
first few years as they moved into and settled in their remote
smallholding. It is developed as a series of short 'anecdotes'
about life in this isolated west-coast Scottish community. Actual
anecdotes are interwoven with snippets of natural history
observation related to various topical wildlife issues. In the
tradition of Lillian Beckwith's The Hills is Lonely, the stories
revolve around the strong characters who made up this isolated
community and became part of their everyday life. All the people
and events described in this book are real, although places and
names may have been changed. Enough clues remain that professional
biologists or those with a keen interest in natural history will
readily identify the peninsula. It is a joy to read and reveals
Highland life with all its humour and character. Beautifullly
illustrated by wildlife artist Catherine Putman.
This accessible introduction to animal behaviour provides an
authoritative yet reader-friendly guide for the interested
naturalist. It presents current knowledge about the way animals
behave and will enable the reader to derive more pleasure from
their observations of animals by gaining a deeper understanding of
their behaviour. The concepts are presented in an easily
appreciated way with which everyone can associate.In the first part
of the book, the author explores how animals behave by considering
the physical processes involved in the way animals perceive their
environment and what determines how they respond to it. This is
followed by the 'why' of animal behaviour in which the author
examines many topics under the overall issue of expressing
behaviour, and the evolutionary forces that have shaped - and
continue to shape - the detailed form of more complex behaviours.
Therefore questions such as why animals forage in the way they do
and how that foraging pattern may be refined to optimal efficiency;
why animals adopt a particular reproductive strategy and breeding
behaviour and why some animals live as solitary individuals, while
others live in groups and so on.The book is copiously illustrated
throughout in support and interpretation of the text. While the
pictures enhance understanding of the written text, the text also
showcases the exquisite illustrations of wildlife artist Catherine
Putman.
This book provides a concise and up to date review of current
knowledge on the biological processes affecting animal welfare, and
the implications emerging from our improved understanding of those
biological principles in terms of options available to assess and
manage the welfare status of individuals and populations.
Biological principles are embedded within wider consideration of
the ethical basis for our concern about animals and their welfare,
in recognition of the fact that concern and responsibility for
welfare is strongly affected by cultural and ethical norms. The
Biology and Management of Animal Welfare covers several topics not
addressed in other texts. Thus it pays attention to the difference
between animal welfare and animal rights and distinguishes between
welfare and evolutionary fitness (which often causes confusion).
The thorny problem of necessary versus unnecessary suffering is
considered; most legislation provides for the prevention of
unnecessary suffering but never defines it. In addition a box
feature explores how human psychological development can affect
attitudes to animals and how psychological dysfunctions (in terms
of attitudes to other humans) can often be detected in advance from
attitudes to animals. The book also includes consideration of
alternatives to animal experimentation with a chapter devoted to
the 3 Rs (Refine, Reduce, Replace). Written by authors who work in
the field and all regularly contribute to postgraduate courses in
animal welfare, in veterinary faculties and elsewhere, the text is
deliberately kept short and concise to emphasise the essential
principles, but is comprehensively referenced throughout in order
to guide the reader in their own wider background reading around
the framework provided by this overview. The book includes a number
of dedicated box features that offer more detailed illustration or
worked examples for some of the topics addressed in the text, or to
focus attention on additional special topics.
A professional biologist with wide experience of working both in
the UK and overseas, Rory Putman takes us with him on working trips
to Iceland, East Africa, Nigeria and Indonesia, introducing us to
the countries and their people, their natural history, and
explaining some of the wildlife issues which have prompted himself
and his colleagues to travel there in the first place. The stories
cover episodes from more than four decades of working as a jobbing
biologist overseas. The understanding required to solve problems
and seek solutions to particular issues related to management and
conservation of wildlife means that in some way the observer
becomes much more intimately engaged, and perhaps gains a different
perspective of the country and its culture than might be apparent
to a more casual 'outside' onlooker. To some extent, that deeper
involvement enables Rory Putman to give the reader more of an
inside view and introduction to the countries and their wildlife
from a wholly personal perspective. Like many other enthusiastic
naturalists, the author enjoyed experiencing new habitats and
seeing wonderful and exotic species on his travels and this
engaging book will carry the reader along on the journey.
As Ecology teachers ourselves we have become increasingly aware of
the lack of a single comprehensive textbook of Ecvlogy which we can
recommend unreservedly to our students. While general, review texts
are readily available in other fields, recent publications in
Ecology have tended for the most part to be small, specialised
works on single aspects of the subject. Such general texts as are
available are often rather too detailed and, in addition, tend to
be somewhat biased towards one aspect of the discipline or another
and are thus not truly balanced syntheses of current knowledge.
Ecology is, in addition, a rapidly developing subject: new
information is being gathered all the time on a variety of key
questions; new approaches and techniques open up whole new areas of
research and establish new principles. Already things have changed
radically since the early '70s and we feel there is a need for an
up to date student text that will include some of this newer
material. We have tried, therefore, to create a text that will
review all the major principles and tenets within the whole field
of Ecology, presenting the generally accepted theories and
fundamentals and reviewing carefully the evidence on which such
principles have been founded. While recent developments in
ecological thought are emphasised, we hope that these will not
dominate the material to the extent where the older-established
principles are ignored or overlooked.
Ungulates are an extraordinarily important group of animals
worldwide, at many levels - in their remarkable biodiversity; in
many cases, as keystone species with a disproportionate effect on
the functioning of the wider ecological systems of which they form
a part or as dominant species acting as ecological engineers; and
as a prey base for endangered or expanding populations of large
carnivores. They are also important culturally and economically, as
a major source of protein in subsistence cultures and because of
their wide exploitation in recreational hunting, which is still a
major form of land-use in many countries. A number of aspects of
the balance of cost and benefit of ungulates and their management
in Europe are considered. Through a synthesis of the underlying
biology and a comparison of the management techniques adopted in
different countries, management approaches which seem effective
within their respective circumstances are explored. Each chapter is
written by experts in their own particular field, ensuring that
they are aware of the most up-to-date literature on that topic and
can also offer an experienced and informed review based on their
own research experience.
This booklet is part of a series of booklets on deer in Britain and
gives details about the biology and ecology of Sika deer in Great
Britain.
Among the most widespread and abundant of the world's larger
mammals, deer have been a source of endless fascination for humans
beings. Yet over the centuries we have hunted them for sport and
for their meat, hides, and antlers, and pursued them as destructive
pests.In this richly informative and engagingly written book, Rory
Putnam captures the astonishing diversity in habitat, diet, social
organization, and behavior of the world's 40 species of deer, and
tells what is known about their biology and natural history. Rather
than simply assembling species-by-species data, he compares and
contrasts the characteristics of the various species and accounts
for their similiarities and differences in reference to the
environments they have come to colonize.After discussing the
origins of deer, Putnam describes the species of modern deer and
their evolutionary relationships. He considers aspects of their
physiology, ecology, and behavior, drawing particular attention to
the ecology of habitat use, diet and digestive physiology, and
social organization and behavior. He covers the life histories of
the different species, population dynamics, and the interactions of
deer with other animals.Devoting a whole chapter to an essay on
antlers, he ends with an enlightening and entertaining analysis of
the relations between deer and humans.Generously illustrated with
stunning color and black-and-white photographs, as well as many
line drawings and figures, this book will both reward the amateur
naturalist and please the professional biologist."
This book considers a number of problems posed by ungulates and
their management in Europe. Through a synthesis of the underlying
biology and a comparison of the management techniques adopted in
different countries, the book explores which management approaches
seem effective and in which circumstances. Experts in a number of
different areas of applied wildlife biology review various
management problems and alternative solutions, including the impact
of large ungulates on agriculture, forestry and conservation
habitats, the impact of disease and predation on ungulate
populations and the involvement of ungulates in road traffic
accidents and possible measures for mitigation. This book is
directed at practising wildlife managers, those involved in
research to improve methods of wildlife management, and
policy-makers in local, regional and national administrations.
This book is the first to explore the diversity of management
objectives and the different approaches to wildlife management of
large ungulates in a wide range of different European countries.
Specialist authors from each country present an analysis of the
species present, numerical status and distribution of different
ungulates which occur in their particular country and consider
issues which must be addressed by management (whether management
for conservation, for control of damaging impacts or for
exploitation). Management systems are described (and both
legislative and administrative structures) together with an
evaluation of how effective current management practices may be in
addressing problems identified - or the extent to which they may
contribute to those problems. The book is aimed primarily at those
who may be actively involved in research into improving methods of
wildlife management; practising wildlife managers and game-keepers;
policy makers in local regional or national administrations,
responsible for formulating policies.
|
|