A is for amoeba

A lively and engaging biography of amoebas that reveals why these tiny amorphous splotches with a spot in the middle have more to teach us than we ever imaginedMany of us are introduced to the amoeba in science class at school but know very little about the amazing life of this versatile, shape-s...

A natural history of shells

From “one of the master naturalists of our time” (American Scientist), a fascinating exploration of what seashells reveal about biology, evolution, and the history of lifeGeerat Vermeij wrote this celebration of shells to share his enthusiasm for these supremely elegant creations and what they ca...

A state of change

A magnificently illustrated classic of California natural history, now updated in a long-awaited reissue."This wonderful book is a vivid reminder of how things began, and also as a vision of the rich and beautiful world we can work toward in our shared future." —Kim Stanley Robinson"This brings a...

A wilder kingdom

This book is a provocative and reflective examination of the relationship between zoos and the wild. It gathers a premier set of multidisciplinary voices to consider the possibilities and challenges of making zoos wilder.

Abominable science!

A captivatingly illustrated general-interest book confronting the persistent myths of cryptozoology.

Amazing arachnids

A richly illustrated and up-close look at the secret lives of spiders and other arachnidsThe American Southwest is home to an extraordinary diversity of arachnids, from spitting spiders that squirt silk over their prey to scorpions that court one another with kissing and dancing. Amazing Arachnid...

Animal diaspora

A breathtaking journey into the deep history of animal migration and the lessons it holds for life on a rapidly warming planetIn 2020, Inuit hunters of Canada’s Central Arctic made an intriguing discovery. They came across the massive frozen carcasses of eleven beached bowhead whales, killed by a...

Bird on the street

Blending natural history with science memoir, Bird on the Street traces how starlings illuminate the mechanisms of evolution and the relationship between humans and wildlife.

Cat wars

Why our cats are a danger to species diversity and human healthIn 1894, a lighthouse keeper named David Lyall arrived on Stephens Island off New Zealand with a cat named Tibbles. In just over a year, the Stephens Island Wren, a rare bird endemic to the island, was rendered extinct. Mounting scien...

Earth and life

From the world-renowned geobiologist and bestselling author of A Brief History of Earth, the epic story of a planetary conversation four billion years in the makingHow did the world as we know it—from the soil beneath our feet to the air we breathe and the life that surrounds us—come to be? Geolo...

Explorers of deep time

Roy Plotnick provides a behind-the-scenes look at paleontology as it exists today in all its complexity. He explores the field’s aims, methods, and possibilities, with an emphasis on the compelling personal stories of the scientists who have made it a career.

Extraction to extinction

Tracing our environmental impact through time, David Howe demonstrates how humanity’s exploitation of Earth’s natural resources has pushed our planet to its limit and asks: What’s next for our depleted planet?Everything we use started life in the earth, as a rock or a mineral vein, a layer of an ...

Great adaptations

"The irresistible enthusiasm of Great Adaptations couldn’t come at a better time."—David P. Barash, Wall Street Journal"Be very amazed."—Carl Safina, author of Beyond Words and Becoming WildHow one scientist unlocked the secrets behind some of nature’s most astounding animalsFrom star-nosed moles...

Her wilderness will be her manners

An electrifying feminist poetics combining language and visual collage to explore gender, landscape, taxidermy, and the idea of a “natural body”An innovative book-length poem that delves into the intricacies of natural history dioramas, taxidermy, landscape, and women naturalists, Her Wilderness ...

Macroevolutionaries

One of the twentieth century’s great paleontologists and science writers, Stephen Jay Gould was, for Bruce S. Lieberman and Niles Eldredge, also a close colleague, mentor, and friend. In Macroevolutionaries, they take up the tradition of Gould’s acclaimed essays on natural history.

Monarchs and milkweed

The fascinating and complex evolutionary relationship of the monarch butterfly and the milkweed plantMonarch butterflies are one of nature's most recognizable creatures, known for their bright colors and epic annual migration from the United States and Canada to Mexico. Yet there is much more to ...

Mossback

Debut essay collection exploring landscapes and mythologies at the intersection of environmental, indigenous, and social justice

Nature, love, medicine

Diverse essayists explore how practicing attentive natural history remains an essential pathway to sanity and health, for individuals and societies.

Octopus x

How a citizen scientist uncovered a strange kind of octopus that defied everything the experts thought they knew about these enigmatic creaturesIn the late 1970s, Panamanian diver and artist Arcadio Rodaniche observed a mysterious colony of striped octopuses off the coast of Panama. Unlike any oc...

Outsider animals

“This is a truly compelling book, rich with scientific expertise and humor.”—Isabella RosselliniFrom one of our foremost experts on behavioral evolution, an entertaining exploration of what raccoons, rats, and other animal intruders teach us about intelligence, adaptability, and ourselvesWhen we ...

Plants that cure

A full-color illustrated guide to the natural history of plants with medicinal propertiesOf the nearly 400,000 plants that have evolved on Earth, around seven percent of them have been used in traditional herbal medicine or as local remedies. More recently, scientific studies have revealed how pl...

Prairie

Candace Savage’s acclaimed and beautifully written guide to the ecology of the prairies, now revised and updated.Praise for the previous edition of Prairie: “Impelled with its sense of the miraculous in nature.”—Globe and MailThis revised edition of Prairie features a new preface along with updat...

Sarah bowdich lee (1791-1856) and pioneering perspectives on natural history

This first book-length appraisal of the pioneering perspectives of Sarah Bowdich Lee (1791–1856) on natural history in the first half of the nineteenth century pivotally highlights the intercultural, interdisciplinary and multi-genre reach of her work. The fact that she undertook it independently...

Silent sparks

An informative, entertaining, and beautifully illustrated look at the beloved fireflyFor centuries, the beauty of fireflies has evoked wonder and delight. Yet for most of us, fireflies remain shrouded in mystery: How do fireflies make their light? What are they saying with their flashing? And wha...

Spiders of the world

A stunningly illustrated natural history of spidersSpiders are among the most versatile creatures on the planet, inhabiting six of the seven continents and thriving in environments ranging from deserts and rain forests to Arctic tundra and cities. Spiders of the World is a captivating look at the...

The bees in your backyard

The ultimate bee book for bee enthusiasts and experts alikeThe Bees in Your Backyard provides an engaging introduction to the roughly 4,000 different bee species found in the United States and Canada, dispelling common myths about bees while offering essential tips for telling them apart in the f...

The cave bear story

The complete insect

A beautifully illustrated exploration of the world’s most extraordinary animalsWith an astounding 3.5 million species occupying virtually every habitat on Earth, insects are one of the most diverse groups of animals on the planet, from the humble bee to the agile praying mantis. Taking you inside...

The curious human knee

Distilling a vast amount of research in a style that is engaging, conversational, and even personal and witty, this book opens readers’ eyes to the complexity and significance of the humble knee.

The extreme life of the sea

A thrilling tour of the sea's most extreme species, coauthored by one of the world's leading marine scientistsThe ocean teems with life that thrives under difficult situations in unusual environments. The Extreme Life of the Sea takes readers to the absolute limits of the ocean world—the fastest ...

The grassland queen

A naturalist’s lyrical journey into the world of an endangered community of birds and the vanishing grasslands that sustain themAn elegant shorebird with a rounded body and an improbably elongated bill, the long-billed curlew is a highly intelligent bird that mates for life. There aren’t many cur...

The heart of the wild

Timely and provocative reflections on the future of the wild in an increasingly human worldThe Heart of the Wild brings together some of today’s leading scientists, humanists, and nature writers to offer a thought-provoking meditation on the urgency of learning about and experiencing our wild pla...

The hidden life of trees

A NEW YORK TIMES, WASHINGTON POST, AND WALL STREET JOURNAL BESTSELLER • One of the most beloved books of our time: an illuminating account of the forest, and the science that shows us how trees communicate, feel, and live in social networks. After reading this book, a walk in the woods will never...

The horse

A comprehensive, richly illustrated introduction to the fascinating natural history of the horse, from prehistory to the presentThere are countless books about keeping and riding horses. The Horse is different: it looks not only at the natural history of the horse in the context of its use by hum...

The last of its kind

Shortlisted for the Royal Society Trivedi Science Book PrizeHow an iconic bird’s final days exposed the reality of human-caused extinctionThe great auk is one of the most tragic and documented examples of extinction. A flightless bird that bred primarily on the remote islands of the North Atlanti...

The natural history of the bible

Traversing river valleys, steppes, deserts, rain-fed forests, farmlands, and seacoasts, the early Israelites experienced all the contrasting ecological domains of the ancient Near East. As they grew from a nomadic clan to become a nation-state in Canaan, they interacted with indigenous societies ...

The new neotropical companion

The acclaimed guide to the ecology and natural history of the American tropics—now fully updated and expandedThe New Neotropical Companion is the completely revised and expanded edition of a book that has helped thousands of people to understand the complex ecology and natural history of the most...

The sacred balance, 25th anniversary edition

“The Sacred Balance has a beautiful spirit.”—E.O. WilsonWith a new foreword from Robin Wall Kimmerer, New York Times-bestselling author of Braiding Sweetgrass—and an afterword from Bill McKibben—this special 25th anniversary edition of a beloved bestseller invites readers to see ourselves as part...

Two acres of time

Richard S. Laub tells the story of the Byron Dig, an astonishingly rich trove of fossils and artifacts. Recounting twenty-nine years of intensive excavation involving more than a thousand participants, he provides a comprehensive account of a working paleontological and archaeological field project.

We dig ammonites

Jodi Summers—an accomplished journalist and passionate fossil collector—guides readers through the entire arc of ammonite history.