David Sibley, Don and Lillian Stokes, and many more share their inside tips—and witty observations—on the birding life.The biggest names in birding dispense advice to birders of every level—on topics ranging from feeding birds and cleaning binoculars to pishing and pelagic birding—in these lighthearted essays accompanied by illustrations. Whether satirizing bird snobs or relating the traditions and taboos of the birding culture, this collection of wisdom is as choc...

Beyond Audubon: A quirky, "lively and illuminating" account of bird-watching's history, including "rivalries, controversies, [and] bad behavior" ( The Washington Post Book World).From the moment Europeans arrived in North America, they were awestruck by a continent awash with birds—great flocks of wild pigeons, prairies teeming with grouse, woodlands alive with brilliantly colored songbirds. Of a Feather traces the colorful origins of American bird...

This highly readable account of the author's year dedicated to fly-fishing in New Zealand, relates the highs and lows, the intricacies and finesse, of pursuing trout in wild places and pristine waters.

Its a fact of flyfishing that there is no prescriptive manual for ensuring success. It is an activity that defies simple evaluation, with enough variables to leave even the experts scratching their heads from time to time. For example, why is it that a trout will respond to a certain fly one day, but ignore it entirely in identical conditions on another day? Respected flyfishing author Philip Weigall attempts to answer this question and many more in this engaging book.

Upriver and Downstream gathers seventy columns about fishing—from freshwater to saltwater, from small ponds to the Great Lakes, from the Pacific Northwest to post-Soviet Russia—written for the “Outdoors” column of the New York Times.Contributors include such celebrated names as Nick Lyons, Thomas McGuane, Nelson Bryant, Peter Kaminsky, Ernest Schweibert, and Robert H. Boyle. Short, evocative, informative, and entertaining, here are pieces about fly-fishing for wil...

In 26 giant photographs—of a roaring grizzly, a piranhas razor-sharp teeth, a rattlesnakes poisonous fangs—Seymour Simon reveals the truth about natures most misunderstood animals and lets the reader decide what to really think about natures grossest, fiercest, and most fascinating survivors.

The legendary angler plumbs the depths of his experience on the water in this volume of fishing wit and wisdom—with illustrations by Rod Walinchus.With more than half a century of on-water experience, Bill Dance is one of America’s foremost fishing experts. In this volume, he draws on his wealth of knowledge, insight, and wit to share 101 tips that are sure to help any freshwater angler catch more and even bigger fish.Bill offers advice that might surprise ...

How does a dolphin sleep?What happens if you put a dry sea otter in water?What color is a polar bear's skin?What happens if you move a group of bighorn sheep to a new area?How many eggs can a mother hermit crab lay?Can a gorilla swim?Find out the answers to these questions and more in this fun 15-minute book about animals, then surprise your family and friends with these strange facts.LearningIsland.com believes in the value of children pr...

The Sea Wolves sets out to disprove the notion of "the Big Bad Wolf," especially as it is applied to coastal wolves, a unique strain of wolf that lives in the rainforest along the Pacific coast of Canada. Genetically distinct from their inland cousins and from wolves in any other part of the world, coastal wolves can swim like otters and fish like the bears with whom they share the rainforest. Smaller than the gray wolves that live on the other side of the Coast Mountains, these wolves are...

Good friends come in all shapes and sizes!Unlikely Friendships, the runaway New York Times bestseller with a compelling message of hope and friendship and differences overcome, is rewritten just for younger readers. This hardcover chapter book for children ages seven and up collects five heartwarming true stories of animal friendship: Koko the gorilla and her favorite kittens, a dog who swims with dolphins, a zebra who cares for a young gazelle, a baby warthog who...

"I don't care what size my last fish will be …I just want it to be a smallmouth."~Tony BeanTony Bean, one of America's most renowned smallmouth bass fishermen, is back fishing and teaching anglers the sport he loves. The Last Smallmouth provides step-by-step techniques for catching the elusive smallmouth as well as showing anglers good fishing practices.Entertaining stories illustrate Tony's teachings and give further insight into the art of smallmouth bass fishing. New fis...

Covers all the basics—from rods, lines, reels, and tippets to the actual practice of identifying and catching fish to using the moon, weather, and tides in your favorThe key to fun and effective fishingAn authoritative guide to saltwater fly fishingConway Bowman, an expert saltwater fly fisher, wrote this Orvis fly fishing guide. He offers useful techniques and advice for the beginner fisher. This unique fly fishing book for beginners is ideal for t...