Harvard University Press - NATURE

The Urban Whale

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 00:00:00 EDT

Edited by Scott D. Kraus
Edited by Rosalind M. Rolland
In 1980 a group of scientists censusing marine mammals in the Bay of Fundy was astonished by the sight of 25 right whales. Until that time, scientists believed the North Atlantic right whale was extinct or nearly so. The sightings electrified the research community, spurring a quarter century of exploration, which is documented here. The authors present current knowledge about the biology and plight of right whales and offer hope for the eventual salvation of this endangered whale.
Paperback October 2009

Ecology without Nature

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 00:00:00 EDT

Timothy Morton
Morton argues that the chief stumbling block to environmental thinking is the image of nature that most writers promote: they propose a new world view, but their very zeal to preserve the natural world leads them away from the "nature" they revere. The problem is a symptom of a far deeper situation: of accepting the idea of "ecology without nature." To have a properly ecological view, we must relinquish, once and for all, the idea of nature.
Paperback September 2009

Green Sisters

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 00:00:00 EDT

Sarah McFarland Taylor
Green sisters are environmentally active Catholic nuns working to heal the earth as they cultivate new forms of religious culture. Inviting us into their world, Taylor offers a firsthand understanding of the experiences of women whose lives bring together orthodoxy and activism, and whose lifestyle provides a compelling view of sustainable living.
Paperback September 2009

The Earwig's Tail

Tue, 15 Sep 2009 00:00:00 EDT

May R. Berenbaum
Throughout the Middle Ages, enormously popular bestiaries presented people with descriptions of rare and unusual animals, typically paired with a moral or religious lesson. In The Earwig’s Tail, entomologist May Berenbaum and illustrator Jay Hosler draw on the powerful cultural symbols of these antiquated books to create a beautiful and witty bestiary of the insect world.
Hardcover September 2009

Sharks and Rays of Australia

Sat, 30 May 2009 00:00:00 EDT

Peter R. Last
John D. Stevens
The waters around Australia, the world’s smallest continent, are home to the greatest diversity of sharks and rays on Earth. Fully 100 of these sea creatures (along with their little-known relatives, the chimaerids) have been named or described since the first edition of this book—the biggest revision of the Class Chondrichthyes since the time of Linneaus. This second edition of Sharks and Rays of Australia brings more than 300 of these species to life in newly commissioned, full-color illustrations.
Hardcover May 2009

Prairie Dogs

Mon, 2 Feb 2009 00:00:00 EST

C. N. Slobodchikoff
Bianca S. Perla
Jennifer L. Verdolin
Slobodchikoff and colleagues synthesize the results of their long-running study of Gunnison’s prairie dogs (Cynomys gunnisoni), one of the keystone species of the short-grass prairie ecosystem. By examining the complex factors behind prairie dog decline, we can begin to understand the problems inherent in our adversarial relationship with the natural world.
Hardcover February 2009

Dogs

Mon, 15 Dec 2008 00:00:00 EST

Catherine Johns
The juxtaposition and explanation of images as diverse as Greek pottery, Victorian jewelry, Assyrian sculpture, and Japanese netsuke, illuminates our understanding of the place of dogs in human society around the world. This book explores these cultural expressions and reflections of our deep and long-standing interest in dogs.
Hardcover December 2008