Within Missouri's borders exists an incomparable variety of natural and historical adventures. From the surreal grandeur of the nearly two- billion-year old elephant rocks to the haunting presence of controversial artist Thomas Hart Benton in the cluttered studio where he died at his easel, Missouri's diverse heritage is illustrated through its more than 75 state parks and historic sites. In this book, four writers and committed conservationists team up with photographers to capture the compelling history, beauty and recreational value of Missouri's unique state park system. Illustrated with over 200 full-colour, large-format photographs and written in a lively style, ""Exploring Missouri's Legacy"" offers an invitation to discover Missouri's spectacular variety of geology, ecology and culture. Housing more caves, springs and clear natural streams than any other state in the nation, Missouri also boasts some of the oldest rocks on the continent and some of the youngest land-forms. The first archaeologically undisputed contact of man and mastodon in the new world was found in Missouri. The state's small towns have remained peculiarly vibrant, producing some of the nation's leaders in war and politics, literature and the arts. That remarkable diversity is preserved and commemorated here. The book opens with an account of the evolution of the park system. Essays on each of the state parks and historic sites are arranged chronologically within each of the states six natural divisions.

A collection of 59 essays aiming to demonstrate the thinking and development of Aldo Leopold, who propelled the US conservation movement from garden to government agencies. He was one of the first to recognize the importance of ecology while it was emerging as a new scientific discipline.

When initially published more than twenty years ago, Thinking Like a Mountain was the first of a handful of efforts to capture the work and thought of America's most significant environmental thinker, Aldo Leopold. This new edition of Susan Flader's masterful account of Leopold's philosophical journey, including a new preface reviewing recent Leopold scholarship, makes this classic case study available again and brings much-deserved attention to the continuing influence and importance of Leopold today. Thinking Like a Mountain unfolds with Flader's close analysis of Leopold's essay of the same title, which explores issues of predation by studying the interrelationships between deer, wolves, and forests. Flader shows how his approach to wildlife management and species preservation evolved from his experiences restoring the deer population in the Southwestern United States, his study of the German system of forest and wildlife management, and his efforts to combat the overpopulation of deer in Wisconsin. His own intellectual development parallels the formation of the conservation movement, reflecting his struggle to understand the relationship between the land and its human and animal inhabitants. Drawing from the entire corpus of Leopold's works, including published and unpublished writing, correspondence, field notes, and journals, Flader places Leopold in his historical context. In addition, a biographical sketch draws on personal interviews with family, friends, and colleagues to illuminate his many roles as scientist, philosopher, citizen, policy maker, and teacher. Flader's insight and profound appreciation of the issues make Thinking Like a Mountain a standard source for readers interested in Leopold scholarship and the development of ecology and conservation in the twentieth century.