cheap books on Natural History

robmv said:
Considerably cheaper and (in my opinion) better than the König and Weick book that came out a couple of years ago - an excellent book in itself, but let down by substandard illustrations.
Click to expand...

Blasphemy ;) I felt the illustrations in König and Weick were excellent.

In other news, I've just received my copies of Walker's Carnivores of the World and Walker's Marine Mammals of the World from PostScript. Both seem excellent, although the refusal of the author, Ronald M Nowak, to accept the largescale splitting of Felis is a little frustrating :p
 
TeaLovingDave said:
... I've just received my copies of Walker's Carnivores of the World and Walker's Marine Mammals of the World from PostScript. Both seem excellent, although the refusal of the author, Ronald M Nowak, to accept the largescale splitting of Felis is a little frustrating :p
Click to expand...

Dave, I’m not familiar with these two books.

Are they completely new publications or simply the relevant chapters extracted unchanged from the most recent version of “Walker’s Mammals of the World”?

I guess the fact that the taxonomy of the genus Felis has not been updated possibly suggests the former.

(I have several different editions of “Walker's Mammals of the World”; it used to be a particular favourite of mine but it really has been (or will be) superseded by the “Handbook of the Mammals of the World”.)
 
the various Walker's books are basically excerpts from the 'Walker's Mammals Of The World", so you're actually better off just getting the latest two-volume set rather than the individual cut-up jobs.

Just googling the publication dates of the two mentioned ones: Carnivores was 2005 and Marine Mammals was 2003.


EDIT: I just looked on Postscript and those two volumes are only £3.99 each !!!!!!!!!!
http://www.psbooks.co.uk/Sale_Subj.asp?Subj=Natural History
 
Chlidonias said:
the various Walker's books are basically excerpts from the 'Walker's Mammals Of The World", so you're actually better off just getting the latest two-volume set rather than the individual cut-up jobs.

Just googling the publication dates of the two mentioned ones: Carnivores was 2005 and Marine Mammals was 2003.


EDIT: I just looked on Postscript and those two volumes are only £3.99 each !!!!!!!!!!
Books on Sale Clearance Titles - Postscript Books by Mail - New & Remainder Books - Book Remainders - Subject Listing
Click to expand...

Thank for answering my question; I've already got the latest two-volume set of "Walker" so these are no use to me then - but what a bargain at less than £4 each.
 
Chlidonias said:
the various Walker's books are basically excerpts from the 'Walker's Mammals Of The World", so you're actually better off just getting the latest two-volume set rather than the individual cut-up jobs.

Just googling the publication dates of the two mentioned ones: Carnivores was 2005 and Marine Mammals was 2003.


EDIT: I just looked on Postscript and those two volumes are only £3.99 each !!!!!!!!!!
http://www.psbooks.co.uk/Sale_Subj.asp?Subj=Natural History
Click to expand...

Quite ;) now you know why I bought them! Can't really afford the full two-volume set, and these excerpts are from the newest edition, so they suit my carnivorocentric interests well - especially as they have had *some* updating from the 1999 sixth edition of the complete work.
 
Tim May said:
(I have several different editions of “Walker's Mammals of the World”; it used to be a particular favourite of mine but it really has been (or will be) superseded by the “Handbook of the Mammals of the World”.)
Click to expand...

Needless to say, if I somehow found a cheap copy of the first volume of the latter online I'd snap it up in an instant ;)
 
These books sound like reference books, so is that how you would use them, or would you read them from cover to cover? Also, do you use these books for work, or are they for pleasure?
 
After reading this thread I logged into my Amazon and NHBS accounts and was quite surprised to see that since November last year I have spent more than £1,300 on books and journals (no wonder my girlfriend now refers to my home office as "the library").

To anyone considering purchasing "Toucanos" I'd like to say that "Toucans, Barbets, and Honeyguides" by Lester Short and Jenifer Horne and published by Oxford University Press is a vastly superior book. Indeed the entire series "Bird Families of the World" is fantastic and I strongly recomend "Birds of Paradise", "Herons" the now out of print volumes "Hornbills", "Megapodes" and my favourite; the two volume "Ducks, Geese and Swans". Here is a link:
Bird Families of the World - Biological Sciences Series - Series - Academic, Professional, & General - Oxford University Press

I say this as an owner of all published volumes of HBW.

I'm curious if anyone here has a complete set of hardbound "International Zoo Yearbooks"?
 
nanoboy said:
These books sound like reference books, so is that how you would use them, or would you read them from cover to cover? Also, do you use these books for work, or are they for pleasure?
Click to expand...

Think of them as reference books which can be read cover-to-cover for pleasure ;)
 
nanoboy said:
These books sound like reference books, so is that how you would use them, or would you read them from cover to cover? Also, do you use these books for work, or are they for pleasure?
Click to expand...

Yeah, Personally I have read a few cover to cover (most recently "Duikers of Africa - Masters of the African Forest Floor: A Study of Duikers - People - Hunting and Bushmeat") and others I haven't even opened (perhaps as many as 10 volumes of HBW would be good examples).

I think part of the reason I purchase them partially becasue I was blown away by the library at London Zoo. I have worked in the industry and have referenced some of my books and journals but it's nice to have them there to browse from time to time. I also have a bunch of textbooks left over from by University days which I haven't opened since then!

I also buy field guides for mammals, birds and herps to most of my travel destinations, not for me so much but for my girlfriend and to see the expression of joy on her face when she successfully identifies something (I'll confess to using the books for the odd lbj and lesser known herps).
 
Dicerorhinus said:
since November last year I have spent more than £1,300 on books and journals.
Click to expand...

I just checked my records and this year (as of today) I've spent $1511.74 on 37 books. I have some journals that are part of memberships that are not included in that figure.

And I still have a way to go - HMW 3 still to come!

:p

Hix
 
Hix said:
I just checked my records and this year (as of today) I've spent $1511.74 on 37 books. I have some journals that are part of memberships that are not included in that figure.

And I still have a way to go - HMW 3 still to come!

:p

Hix
Click to expand...

I don't even think I got 30 books for the money I've spent since November!
I did purchase the first two volumes of HMW but after seeing the plates for the third I'm honestly torn as to whether I want to continue this series, plus primate taxonomy moves so quickly the book is already obsolete when it comes to titi monkeys.

A few weeks ago I purchased "Black Python 'Morelia boeleni' (Frankfurt Contributions to Natural History Vol. 26)" Which I started reading on a train this morning. I have a few other books by the publisher and they're very good. (It was about £55 from a German online book store if anyone is interested?)

Perhaps somone should start a Natural History book recomendation thread?
 
Dicerorhinus said:
Perhaps somone should start a Natural History book recomendation thread?
Click to expand...

Think there *has* been a thread like that recently, but it died a fast death through neglect. This thread, however, is thriving for the purpose; maybe it should be retitled?
 
My package from PostScript arrived today. I ordered the same Walkers volumes as Tea Loving Dave (I added them to my basket just before reading his post, great minds ;)) plus Baker's book on the Peregrine, the first book NH book I have owned with a recommendation from the Poet Laureate on the cover. Total damage, including postage, £18.97. What's not to like? Thank you Chlidonias :)

Alan
 
zooboy28 said:
I've been stocking up on zoo books recently (aswell as HMW vol. 1 & 2), got both the Staglands and Cotswold Wildlife Park histories recently, as well as a few guidebooks (including Orana Park 1986).
Click to expand...
is the 1986 Orana guide the one with the zebra on the cover and the aerial photo of the park on the back? Ah, nostalgia.
 
ah yes I remember that one now (had to trawl through my brain...). That was the one directly after the zebra-cover one. I can't remember if it actually changed much inside though. The zebra one obviously had wolves and such in it though, which I guess the cheetah-cover doesn't. If I ever get my boxes of books back again I'll have a look.
 
This cheetah-cover book does still have wolves, but the map enclosed within it doesn't have wolves. I'm assuming they had only just gone. Where were the wolves kept? I can see gaps over where the hunting dogs are now and in the area now occupied by the tigers.
 
the wolves were between the farmyard and where the entrance is now, where there is now a playground (flying fox, see-saws, etc) backed by pine trees (the trees were in the wolf enclosure). Back then the entrance of course was at the other end of the park. Going away from the current entrance you had a water buffalo paddock past the wolves, a small round otter pen (originally for agouti), then the spider monkey island (still with spider monkeys now). The ruffed lemur island had patas monkeys. Where the tigers are now were paddocks for sitatunga etc. The original giraffe enclosure was over that side too.

EDIT: or maybe I'm wrong! These two old maps show the wolf enclosure to the side of the lake where the monkey islands were/are:
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/...4975294689.534696.109829354688&type=1&theater
https://www.facebook.com/media/set/...4975294689.534696.109829354688&type=1&theater
I could have sworn it was further towards the current entrance. Perhaps it moved later....?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top